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Be All You Can Be . . . Or Maybe Not
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Be All You Can Be . . . Or Maybe Not |
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Huan Yi Member Ascendant
since 2004-10-12
Posts 6688Waukegan 
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. “WASHINGTON (Nov. 3) -- Are America's youth too fat, dumb or dishonest to defend the nation against its enemies? The latest Army statistics show a stunning 75 percent of military-age youth are ineligible to join the military because they are overweight, can't pass entrance exams, have dropped out of high school or had run-ins with the law.” http://www.sphere.com/2009/11/03/70-percent-of-young-americans-are-unfit-for-milita ry-duty/ . |
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Sunshine
Administrator
Member Empyrean
since 1999-06-25
Posts 63354Listening to every heart |
Lack of physical education and the ignorance of not knowing what one puts in their mouths as "food" can be part of the factor. Of course, it's possible that the only Physical Education in school is now geared towards sports and/or olympyic endeavors. Kids can now opt out of PE, which use to be a required course, thanks to President Kennedy. I was glad for that, even if I couldn't keep up with most of them.  http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3010854 But the trend towards physical education has been bypassed, unlessed geared towards sports. I don't mind a good football game, or any game for that manner, but when it takes over the natural funding of schools per se, then it's not such a great matter whem more suffer overall. Schools, on the other hand, will argue that sports make "the market" in education. But I will silently continue to disagree with the disarment of the majority of our youth's ability to be strong. If we were to concur in the idea that our youth should have exercise even at a minimum, then our military wouldn't have to worry. |
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Essorant Member Elite
since 2002-08-10
Posts 4769Regina, Saskatchewan; Canada |
So be it. Most people are not fit enough to be professional athletes either. If they want to join they ought to be expected to live up to the standard, but if they don't, there is no need to blame them for not living up to it. |
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Bob K Member Elite
since 2007-11-03
Posts 4208 |
I put in a fair amount of effort worrying about defending America against Her enemies, but maybe twice or three times that amount worrying about defending her against her friends. I'm afraid the damage done by her friends may be far worse. |
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Balladeer
Administrator
Member Empyrean
since 1999-06-05
Posts 25505Ft. Lauderdale, Fl USA |
These are the same out-of shape, overweight people demanding free health care? As Essorant basically said, it's their choice. |
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Bob K Member Elite
since 2007-11-03
Posts 4208 |
quote: Not if the insurance companies can find some way of forcing them to pay for it at an inflated rate, and can then deny coverage to the worthless jerks! Business is business! |
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Bob K Member Elite
since 2007-11-03
Posts 4208 |
And why do you think the health care is free? |
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Huan Yi Member Ascendant
since 2004-10-12
Posts 6688Waukegan |
. Doesn’t this risk a military that is not overweight, can pass entrance exams, did not drop out of high school or have run-ins with the law that sees itself as an elite better able to make decisions for the country than the majority? . |
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Bob K Member Elite
since 2007-11-03
Posts 4208 |
That's why the military is supposed to swear allegiance to the constitution and not to the President, isn't it? I have never been thrilled with the draft, but this is one of the reasons for maintaining one, the basic notion of the citizen soldier is not a bad one. It helps give people a sense of involvement in the enterprise of state and the Democracy, and a sense of participation in the thing. If not as a soldier, then a period of government service as a teacher, a social worker, a laborer or a something specifically to do with the national enterprise. It'd give people a sense, ever after, of wanting to be sure that the enterprise of state was one that they thought was one worthy of their service and of the service of their kids. |
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Fairplay Member
since 2007-01-15
Posts 222England |
Maybe there should be an overweight department in the Army with more McDonald's etc to try and encourage these people to join. Fat people deserve a life and they can be smart too..... Before thinking about conscription where only the thin and fit would be the ones that would be sent to the sharp end... let few more fat volunteers in.... Makes me smile when I think of military training where food was often basic and if you couldn't make a check point in the middle of nowhere by xxxxhrs no food at all |
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Bob K Member Elite
since 2007-11-03
Posts 4208 |
I knew a guy in the reserves who was a captain in the early 90's. He was perhaps 5'10" and 270, clearly fat, but was also very energetic and had a lot of strength, endurance, agility and speed. He played a fine game of basketball and could play without stopping all day and could run for miles. Me, I'm a couch potato, but this guy made a point of saying that simply because you were fat didn't mean you weren't fit. He could lay out a good argument about it. I'm not sure I'd agree with him; we disagreed on a lot of things, but he made a good case and was a good example for the case he laid out. Personally, I find that being heavy isn't good for my joints, but I'm not sure if this is a result of actual weight or whether it has something to do with fat or if there's some sort of more complicated relationship going on. I do know that there are a lot of prejudices directed against fat folk, male and female, and that it's unclear where the bias starts and the reality takes over, how much of the problem comes from being over-weight and how much comes from being under-muscled and how much comes from large fluctuations in body mass and the body's attempts to recovers from the stress of those large swings in body integrity. And of course how much of it comes as the result of some of the diseases that dog the fat folks among us. So here's to Lord Byron, guys, King of the yo-yo fad dieters (boiled potatoes and vinegar), drunk, genius, thrown out of college (he kept a bear in his rooms and it was reportedly ill tempered when sober and not house-broken), upper class twit (do your own research), Boxer, exile, wit, Poet, and soldier for the freedom of others at the last. He would have been one of those folks not good enough for the American Armed Forces, either. I think his home room teacher — not that he ever had one, by the way — wouldn't have checked off the box that said "plays well with others." He was famously not good at taking orders, and was at many times in his life either morbid or morbidly obese. Hock and soda! |
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