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Green GI
 
Group: Registered User
Last Login: 1/3/2004 11:50 AM
Posts: 43,
Visits: 1
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Please respond to this army vs marines topic and help my friend jc out who is enlisting at the end of the semeister, appreicated!
Recently in my young life I have made the choice to enlist as a member of The United States Army. Although I have surely made this decision and I am not changing my mind, a Marine recruiter constantly calls my house trying to alter my future in joining The Marines instead of The Army.
For myself, it is a huge decision, because I have chosen to do this as my career, for the next 20 years. But back to this marine recruiter, he is telling me many different ways on how The Marines are so much better and joining them would be a far better career decision, but I completely fail to see how this is. I also realize how it is a recruiters job to convince people to join them but every other recruiter from all the branches are the same exact way.
So I suppose I am looking for some real answers, because the recruiter just gives me close to the same bullshit story every time, "The Marines are elite!" Yeah no shit, we all know that's the saying you defend your lives with, but why is that? Yes you get probably harder and longer training, but as I'm planning to become special forces later on down the road I'll be getting some hard training. They try to give me **** about how it is a tradition, like The Army doesn't have that. Marines have courage and honor, The Army must not.
This recruiter keeps explaining how The Marines give more of a challenge, and that's why most people my age join. I like a challenge, but is that a good enough reason to join The Marines over The Army?
I'm looking for a career I'll be good at in The Army. I can get a guarantee on what I'll be doing for a job, The Marines cannot do this for me. Their defense to this was something like:
"Well if anyone can get a guarantee to do something for a career, how great of a job can that really be?"
This statement has knocked me back a few years when I was like 13 trying to figure out what I wanted to do for a living. This elite Marine guy is pretty much telling me if I go Army and guarantee myself a pretty good career for the next 20 years, I'm making a bad decision.
I'll be honest here I don't know every single thing about The Army, and I know even less about the life of a Marine, but here is where I'm looking for other opinions. Maybe some help from anyone on the inside of either branch, if anything I'm thinking of is completely "F"ed up and I got the wrong idea, let me know. Any help will do. Although I just can't see how one recruiter can change my opinion, he has said some pretty off the wall **** too. But basically I just need to know is there much of a difference between the two branches? Another Marines recruiter showed me a video from him training with some friends somewhere down south. I happened to notice they were getting trained by The Army?
"GO HARD OR GO HOME"
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Seasoned Vet
Group: Past PNET Supporter
Last Login: 9/7/2005 7:22 PM
Posts: 6,666,
Visits: 289
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Spitfire,
Stay Army. You can get a GUARANTEED 18X contract right off the street for SF. You can get a GUARANTEED Ranger contract or a GUARANTEED Airborne Infantry contract. Why go anywhere else and roll the dice?
If you want to be in an elite unit, the Army is the place to be because they have so many elite units and slots between the Rangers, Special Forces, and CAG. The Marines have very few Airborne slots and even fewer SOCOM slots. The Army is what you make of it, and it can challenge you to your very limits and beyond if you want. Just pick something challenging like SF, Rangers, or Airborne Infantry. It's all up to you, how far do you want to go?
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Trooper
Group: Past PNET Supporter
Last Login: 1/2/2005 11:44 AM
Posts: 784,
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Number one, if that USMC recruiter says that the US Army has no Honor, and Tradition, and that more people join the USMC he is full of sh*t. I thought that the recruiting slogan for the Marines was, the few, the proud. Number two, from what I get around here the USMC and the US Army have different jobs, and they seem to be able to do them well.
My military career is only begining in 5 days, so ill grab some cover and let the BTDT's say what they have to say.
    
pain is temporary, glory is forever and chicks dig scars, SO MOVE OUT AND DRAW FIRE!!!
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Strac Trooper
Group: Community Supporter
Last Login: Today @ 12:09 PM
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Spitfire, first of all if the Marine Recruiter is calling you I'd tell your Recruiter because he is not supposed to do that. Once you join you are off limits to other branches. Like Delta said, in the Army you will get your job guaranteed, as long as you qualify. You will know exactly when you leave, where you are going, and what your training path will be. I know there are some Marines here that are now in the NG/Reserves and Im sure they will be able to tell you more. One thing to keep in mind though is that I've met alot of Marines that got out and joined the Army. Yes the Marines do go through Army schools. Also in the Army promotions are faster. The Marines only guarantee your job if you score an 85 or above on the ASVAB and then they only guarantee that you will work in that for 1yr then they can change you if they want. Im not here to bash any other service so I hope that no one takes it that way. We all bleed the same color and we are fighting for the same cause. If the Army didnt have pride would any of us be here on P-net talking about our experiences?
[mp][wingflag][rigger][E5][swasia]
"The sergeant is the Army." - General Dwight D. Eisenhower
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Regular Joe
Group: Past PNET Supporter
Last Login: 3/13/2004 5:16 PM
Posts: 57,
Visits: 1
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Spitfire, At the risk of becomming a target for all the rwest on the board.....I was Army, no complaints. The esprit is great, the troops are great. Don't look back. My dad was Corps. My son-in-law is career corps. Bottom line is what do you want out of the military? All of the branches have pluses and minuses. If your desire is to get the best techniocal education possible, go Air Force or Navy. If you want to learn a skill and experience the "combat ready" mentality, go Army, if you are hardcore kill it, then eat it...go Corps. Something for everyone. Honor among the branches is not a question, regardless of what anyone says. All are professional, all seeped in tradition and honor. This is a decision that only you can make. Listen to the recruiters, weigh what they say (with some understanding of the fact that they are marketing their service to you). and decide where you think you would like to be. 20 years from now, whatever your decision, it will have been the right one.
If you really want to do something, you will find a way. If you don't, you will find an excuse."
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Regular Joe
Group: Past PNET Supporter
Last Login: 3/13/2004 5:16 PM
Posts: 57,
Visits: 1
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Spitfire, one other thought. If you would like, unlike me, to be able to compose a simple message expressing a simple thought, without major spelling and grammatical errors....go Coast Gaurd.
If you really want to do something, you will find a way. If you don't, you will find an excuse."
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Stare Master
Group: Community Supporter
Last Login: Today @ 8:07 PM
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Okay, first, this has been moved to the Recruiting Forum.
Second, Spitfire this advice is for you and for the guy whose friends told him he should go OCS instead of enlisting. You have to live your own life and live with the choices you make. If you are comfortable with that choice then don't worry about it. When you are older and look back at the choices you have made the standard is not did you make the right choice in hindsight, but did you make the right choice with the information you had available at the time you made the choice.
quote:
This recruiter keeps explaining how The Marines give more of a challenge, and that's why most people my age join.
Given that the Army is larger and has more recruits I would like to know how that is. Like Delta said, go to the 82nd or another unit on jump status or go to the Rangers. You will find that the Army does have its own elite and you will and that intangibles like tradition and honor aren't exclusive to one service.
Only two defining forces have ever offered to die for you, Jesus Christ and the American GI. One died for your soul, the other for your freedom.
"History teaches that when you become indifferent and lose the will to fight someone who has the will to fight will take over." COLONEL BULL SIMONS
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