Sponsored Content
« Katie Couric launches a blog ... sort of [AnalogKid] | Main | The Official Innocent Bystanders Theme Song -- Michael »
September 07, 2006

Remember Monty? -- Michael

He was an AOSHQ commenter who was legendary for his wit, and whose appearances were sorely missed when he joined the National Guard at a relatively late age and went off to boot camp. He still shows up on occasion, but his appearances are rare.

Apparently his mid-life interest in military service is a nascent trend.

FORT JACKSON, S.C. - In an Army platoon where the average age is 21, they call him the old man.

But when the platoon marched onto Range 18 one day last week in basic training, Pfc. Russell Dilling - at 42, the oldest-ever recruit in the modern Army - delivered. He was among a dozen of 60 recruits who dinged enough targets to qualify for the rifle certificate on his first try - a major psychological hurdle for would-be soldiers.

Private Dilling's success on Range 18 was a quiet affirmation for a graying computer repairman given a second chance when the Army raised its enlistment age limit from 35 to 42 in June. "I told my sons never to have regrets," he says a day after the shooting test as he catches breaths at a team-building challenge course deep in the Fort Jackson woods. "Well, I finally took my own advice."

Pretty cool. You can join at 42 and still have time for a full 20-year military career leading to retirement at 62. This all makes so much sense. People are living longer, and many middle-aged folks are much more physically fit and capable than their counterparts a generation ago.

Not everyone looks at this in a positive way.

But critics say adding older recruits is a sign of desperation for the Army - and a condemnation of the war effort from broader American society.

"It's true that people are living longer and people with more experience are needed, but let's face it: This initiative is about people from the normal demographic group not signing up in the midst of an unpopular war," says Loren Thompson, a military expert at the Lexington Institute in Washington.

See, that remark kinda pissed me off, even though it's probably true, and I was all ready to make snarky remarks about left-wing fucktards like Loren Thompson. But, I did pause to check out the Lexington Institute. It's actually a pro-military conservative think tank.

Still, God bless you, Pfc. Russell Stilling. Thank you for your service to our country. You too, Monty.

Christian Science Monitor - Newest Army recruits: the over-35 crowd


digg this
posted by Ace at 01:06 AM

| Access Comments




Recent Comments
t-bird: "I'm a little suspicious. If cigarettes are that ba ..."

[/i][/b]andycanuck (Vwz3I)[/s][/u]: "Nood. Ace broke things again. ----------- That's ..."

Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere [/i] [/b] : ""Exercise can stave off or reverse age-related men ..."

gourmand du jour: ""... for destruction of shareholder value" That ..."

The_Hoser: "That means there's some very serious backdoor powe ..."

NL : "How can Joe be losing his marbles what with all th ..."

Hadrian the Seventh: " For "intriguing" substitute "fascinating". This ..."

spindrift: "[i]TWITTER'S HEAD OF BRAND SAFETY AND AD QUALITY I ..."

Sponge - F*ck Joe Biden: "[i]Scientists determined that one risk factor seve ..."

ace: ">>>6 Un-Lucky Strike exactly, that's the coded ..."

The Unfaucinated and Unmasked Ranger - Longing to Lie in Zooey Deschanel's Bosom for Comfort: "I spoke to some Twitter employees and this seems t ..."

Mark1971: "The only thing I miss about smoking is ordering th ..."

Recent Entries
Search


Polls! Polls! Polls!
Frequently Asked Questions
The (Almost) Complete Paul Anka Integrity Kick
Top Top Tens
Greatest Hitjobs

The Ace of Spades HQ Sex-for-Money Skankathon
A D&D Guide to the Democratic Candidates
Margaret Cho: Just Not Funny
More Margaret Cho Abuse
Margaret Cho: Still Not Funny
Iraqi Prisoner Claims He Was Raped... By Woman
Wonkette Announces "Morning Zoo" Format
John Kerry's "Plan" Causes Surrender of Moqtada al-Sadr's Militia
World Muslim Leaders Apologize for Nick Berg's Beheading
Michael Moore Goes on Lunchtime Manhattan Death-Spree
Milestone: Oliver Willis Posts 400th "Fake News Article" Referencing Britney Spears
Liberal Economists Rue a "New Decade of Greed"
Artificial Insouciance: Maureen Dowd's Word Processor Revolts Against Her Numbing Imbecility
Intelligence Officials Eye Blogs for Tips
They Done Found Us Out, Cletus: Intrepid Internet Detective Figures Out Our Master Plan
Shock: Josh Marshall Almost Mentions Sarin Discovery in Iraq
Leather-Clad Biker Freaks Terrorize Australian Town
When Clinton Was President, Torture Was Cool
What Wonkette Means When She Explains What Tina Brown Means
Wonkette's Stand-Up Act
Wankette HQ Gay-Rumors Du Jour
Here's What's Bugging Me: Goose and Slider
My Own Micah Wright Style Confession of Dishonesty
Outraged "Conservatives" React to the FMA
An On-Line Impression of Dennis Miller Having Sex with a Kodiak Bear
The Story the Rightwing Media Refuses to Report!
Our Lunch with David "Glengarry Glen Ross" Mamet
The House of Love: Paul Krugman
A Michael Moore Mystery (TM)
The Dowd-O-Matic!
Liberal Consistency and Other Myths
Kepler's Laws of Liberal Media Bias
John Kerry-- The Splunge! Candidate
"Divisive" Politics & "Attacks on Patriotism" (very long)
The Donkey ("The Raven" parody)
Powered by
Movable Type 2.64