To whomever gave me the negative rating, I was simply adding to what Wing Commander said. Not trying to persuade the poster to actually JOIN or not. Simply trying to lay out the seriousness of such a decision. Too many recruits join for all the wrong reasons, then end up getting separated during basic for 'inability to adapt.'
The military is a serious commitment & serious business. Just ask the sailors detained by Iran. Yeah, the perks are nice-no doubt about that. Just make sure it's what you REALLY wanna do. Basic/boot is like jumping on a speeding train. There's no 'trying it out first' unless ur ROTC Freshman thru Sophomore.
Don't like the message? Fine, don't sign up. If it's something that appeals to you, you might look up Jason and Joel Woodliff. These brothers were raised as JWs, but joined the Marines after 9/11. Their story was in the nat'l news, and I think they came from Ohio. They were motivated by the attacks, and did what they felt was right. Apparently, some of the other Marines' families virtually made these brothers their own. A very touching story. I'm not sure what became of them, but I'm sure that with social media & all the people on this site, someone might know something. Godspeed.