OT: Military recruiting at the amusement park ?

[JackB1]

Everybody on this board is blasting me because I mentioned it looks like a Coast Guard ad and they all think the Coast Guard is harmless and don't see the big picture here. You dont think the recruiters try and "steer" kids into areas of higher need and demand? Even if the ad is ONLY meant for Coast Guard recruits and those kids NEVER end up in combat somewhere, I still think equating a roller coaster ride with working in the Coast Guard is extremely misleading.

When you sign up for the military, you pick the job you want after taking the ASVAB to see what you are qualified for. The Army could not guarantee me being able to fly helicopters, so I went into Naval Intelligence instead. There was no bait and switch, it was in writing before I went in. (As was the fact that once you sign up, you are NEVER out.)

Also, anyone who signs up now better not be surprised if they do end up in Iraq. I think I've seen something about it on the news now and then...

[pk500]

Ok - lets clear something up. I KNEW it was an ad for the coast guard, but the ad wasn't specifically for the Coast Guard...it was to JOIN THE ARMED FORCES in general. So it is conceivable that some young, impressionable lost kid, with no direction, gets off the roller coaster, sees that ad and thinks to himself..."wow, that looks cool, I want to do that" and walks into his local recruiting office and 12 months later is in Iraq, fighting for his life. I can't believe that most of you guys think that this type of recruting advertising is ok? It's totally misleading and inappropriate for a family amusement park. It just shows the lowest of lows that this government has sunk to to get new recruits. We wouldn't need to sink this low if we didn't have our whole damn army in a sh*t-storm Iraqi civil war.

This kind of advertising occurred before the U.S. went to war. Does the game America's Army ring a bell? That's been around since before the Iraq War started, and it's a recruiting tool.

Do you really think a kid is so stupid to think he's going to join the Army today and not end up in Iraq? You're selling short the intelligence of America's youth if you believe that.

Take care,
PK

[pk500]

Everybody on this board is blasting me because I mentioned it looks like a Coast Guard ad and they all think the Coast Guard is harmless and don't see the big picture here. You dont think the recruiters try and "steer" kids into areas of higher need and demand? Even if the ad is ONLY meant for Coast Guard recruits and those kids NEVER end up in combat somewhere, I still think equating a roller coaster ride with working in the Coast Guard is extremely misleading.

And so are cigarette ads showing happy, healthy young people. And so are alcohol ads inferring that drinking will lead to a wild, fun life filled with beautiful people and parties, etc.

It's advertising. The military is entitled to do it, just like any other entity. And the public is entitled to digest or ignore it, just like any other ad.

Take care,
PK

[webdanzer]

It's not "anti-Bush" per se. It's "anti sleazy recruting".

It just shows the lowest of lows that this government has sunk to to get new recruits. We wouldn't need to sink this low if we didn't have our whole damn army in a sh*t-storm Iraqi civil war.

Come on now. You saw your shot and took it. I have no idea what you are talking about with this lowest of low stuff, either. I grew up with ads in comic books, recruiters in the high school, and jeeps and recruiters and stuff at the local mall...and all without Bush in office or any sh*t storm Iraqi civil war. I don't see how a poster in an amusement park is so much more sleazy.

So what would you do with the lost kids with no direction getting off the roller coaster? Recommend the tilt-a-whirl? You have people in this very thread telling you they were such kids, and the military helped give them direction.

I don't even see how the ad is misleading. You don't think many people join the volunteer military for the adrenaline rush? For the thrill seeking?

What places would you consider to be appropriate for military recruiting, then? The gun range? Prison cafeterias?

Your strong dislike for the military shows through strongly here, Jack.

[pk500]

PK......I am apposed to all war...period. I am not opposed to the military as a peace keeping force. We should have evolved as human beings more by now to realize that by killing more fellow human beings than they can kill of us, is not the best way to resolve conflict. When JFK decided to blockade instead of bomb during the Cuban Missle Crisis, he was on the right track and showed promise towards the future. Unfortunately we (and the rest of the world) still don't get it.

Odd that you hold JFK to such lofty standards and ideals.

Do you know which president escalated America's role in Vietnam from observatory to set the table for a full combat role? John Fitzgerald Kennedy.

Kennedy increased America's troop numbers in Vietnam from 500 to 16,000. He sent the Green Berets to Vietnam, introduced helicopters to the war and created a joint U.S.-South Vietnamese Air Force, staffed with American pilots.

So much for the illusion of JFK as this shining beacon of peace.

Take care,
PK

[Naples39]

Ok - lets clear something up. I KNEW it was an ad for the coast guard, but the ad wasn't specifically for the Coast Guard...it was to JOIN THE ARMED FORCES in general. So it is conceivable that some young, impressionable lost kid, with no direction, gets off the roller coaster, sees that ad and thinks to himself..."wow, that looks cool, I want to do that" and walks into his local recruiting office and 12 months later is in Iraq, fighting for his life.

Jack, if your test is centered around it being 'conceivable that some young impressionable lost kid with no direction' is slightly confused about what an ad is pushing, then nearly every ad on television is sleazy, as is every military ad of the last 20 years.

It's not "anti-Bush" per se. It's "anti sleazy recruting".

It just shows the lowest of lows that this government has sunk to to get new recruits. We wouldn't need to sink this low if we didn't have our whole damn army in a sh*t-storm Iraqi civil war.

Given that your test for sleazy advertising is so absurdly broad, it really makes the second of those statements seem like your real reason for you hating the ad.

I can't believe that most of you guys think that this type of recruting advertising is ok? It's totally misleading and inappropriate for a family amusement park.

I still think equating a roller coaster ride with working in the Coast Guard is extremely misleading.

What is the appropriate place to advertise? The fact is that the people they are trying to recruit are young men 18-24. It is just marketing 101, not sleaze tactics, to advertise in the places your target audience will be or during the things they are attracted to.

The US army launched America's Army as a videogame recruitment tool in July 2002, before the Iraq war. Was that sleazy and inappropriate? By your test, that videogame would be much more misleading to the confused, lost and impressionable, yet clearly the govt didn't need to stoop to such low levels because of the shitstorm of Iraq then.

Also, it's not like the US armed forces are the first to associate roller coasters with aircraft. In the early 90s Six Flags NJ opened a thrill ride that was supposed to be a fighter jet simulator. I cannot confirm whether or not the armed forces had a recruiting poster there, but I would bet they did. There is also the "Top Gun" roller coaster at Carowinds Charlotte.

[fsquid]

The Top Gun coaster is great.

[pk500]

Christ, "Top Gun" was nothing but a 90-minute recruiting film for the U.S. Navy.

And I'm certain I read that enlistment in the Navy, especially by prospective flight school applicants, soared (no pun intended) after that movie was released.

Take care,
PK

[ScoopBrady]

Everybody on this board is blasting me because I mentioned it looks like a Coast Guard ad and they all think the Coast Guard is harmless and don't see the big picture here.

No, I'm blasting you because you automatically think of a person who kills other people when thinking of someone in the armed forces. And if I go on your scenario with a lost young person getting off the roller coaster ride and falling prey to the armed forces' big, bad, and evil advertising, I'll counter with poor, uninvolved parenting that made this young person lost to begin with. You fail to realize that the armed forces provides a sense of honor and belonging to these 'lost' kids you referenced earlier. Where their parents failed them, the military doesn't. And in turn they provide you with the freedom to openly speak about your disapproval rather than being killed in street for doing so. For this precious freedom the U.S. armed forces should be able to tattoo their logos on all of our asses if they wanted to.

[XXXIV]

PK......I am apposed to all war...period. I am not opposed to the military as a peace keeping force. We should have evolved as human beings more by now to realize that by killing more fellow human beings than they can kill of us, is not the best way to resolve conflict. When JFK decided to blockade instead of bomb during the Cuban Missle Crisis, he was on the right track and showed promise towards the future. Unfortunately we (and the rest of the world) still don't get it.

Odd that you hold JFK to such lofty standards and ideals.

Do you know which president escalated America's role in Vietnam from observatory to set the table for a full combat role? John Fitzgerald Kennedy.

Kennedy increased America's troop numbers in Vietnam from 500 to 16,000. He sent the Green Berets to Vietnam, introduced helicopters to the war and created a joint U.S.-South Vietnamese Air Force, staffed with American pilots.

So much for the illusion of JFK as this shining beacon of peace.

Take care,
PK

Bay of Pigs wasnt very peaceful either...

[JackB1]

I guess. I would hope that the military would use a little more class since the stakes are so much higher.

It's advertising. The military is entitled to do it, just like any other entity. And the public is entitled to digest or ignore it, just like any other ad.

Take care,
PK

[dbdynsty25]

The verbal beat down continues. Nothing like 15 on 1...but I guess that's what happens when you spew ridiculous rhetoric and ideologies that no one else agrees with.

[fsquid]

"Son, I'm only going to say it once. If you want to continue working here, lay off the drugs."

[peabody]

I am definitely not the military type and am thankful I live in a country that affords me the option to decide whether or not I want to join the military and am thankful to those who do go that continue to keep that option available to me and those who will follow me.

In many countries this is not an option. You just go to the military when your 18. My wife served in the Israeli army for three years. It’s just something they do. I can see where the discipline can do people a lot of good. It forces you to grow up.

As for the marketing aspect, this is how it works in our society. Show the good, leave out the not so good. It’s been going on for years. Make things sound better than they are; Make people believe they need things they don’t really need; blah blah blah.

If you’re disgusted with them at the amusement park, how do you feel about them on high school campuses? Because they go there as well.

Lastly, you can rest assured I will inform my son when the time comes of exactly what he would be getting himself into. That’s my job. Hopefully I’m around long enough to have that talk.

[pk500]

I guess. I would hope that the military would use a little more class since the stakes are so much higher.

The stakes are equally as high when you climb behind the wheel of a car drunk or start a habit as a young person that can lead to lung cancer and death.

And do you honestly think that current military recruits aren't aware of the stakes? Come on, Jack.

Take care,
PK

[JackB1]

Paul.....I think u hit the nail on the head when you said "would u feel differently if this was a different war" or something like that.
It's hard to be objective about recruting and anything war-related when I disagree so vehemently with the current war we are engaged in. I might be OK with this type of thing if our military was being used in the proper manner that it was intended for.

I guess. I would hope that the military would use a little more class since the stakes are so much higher.

The stakes are equally as high when you climb behind the wheel of a car drunk or start a habit as a young person that can lead to lung cancer and death.

And do you honestly think that current military recruits aren't aware of the stakes? Come on, Jack.

Take care,
PK

[Brando70]

Lets see, when I was in the Navy, it wasn't just a job, it was an adventure. Then we went full steam ahead. Then we accelerated our lives.

LOL, I had to laugh at that. My dad was in the USN for 25 years during all those ad campaigns. It was a job, but there was little adventure!

Admittedly, those campaigns worked much better than "Shave your head and live with men...on a boat!"

PK is right, the military markets itself like most companies do. Like most advertsing, I don't think it compels, people who wouldn't normally enlist to do so. It's more like it resonates with someone already considering it.

[Naples39]

"Son, I'm only going to say it once. If you want to continue working here, lay off the drugs."

"When you think of garbage, think of Akeem!"

[Jackdog]

I guess. I would hope that the military would use a little more class since the stakes are so much higher.

Hell no. We are all baby killing, stupid ass,child stealing pieces of horseshit. Were the willingly stupid. None of us have any education or family values at all. We just want to kill. We don't want to serve and protect our country,we want to serve the Goverment. We may be stupid asses,but we know how smart politicians are!

So thank God for the ads! Because all us that joined needed those damn things to convince our dumb asses the military is a great place to get cool gear,free food and most of all kill people.

I'm much more appalled by this thread than I am about recruiting at an amusement park.

The citizen soldier has been this countries strongest military asset. No reason to hide it.

The fact is, America has been a nation since 1776. Its forces have functioned on a peace footing a hell of a lot more than a war footing since then, so the vast majority of veterans did more than fire weapons to kill. They learned job skills, discipline, leadership and teamwork skills that they probably couldn't have received anywhere else.

Plus service in the Armed Forces has helped millions of Americans earn a college education through the GI Bill that they never would have received otherwise.
Take care,
PK

When you sign up for the military, you pick the job you want after taking the ASVAB to see what you are qualified for. The Army could not guarantee me being able to fly helicopters, so I went into Naval Intelligence instead. There was no bait and switch, it was in writing before I went in. (As was the fact that once you sign up, you are NEVER out.)

Do you really think a kid is so stupid to think he's going to join the Army today and not end up in Iraq? You're selling short the intelligence of America's youth if you believe that.

Take care,
PK

I don't even see how the ad is misleading. You don't think many people join the volunteer military for the adrenaline rush? For the thrill seeking?

What places would you consider to be appropriate for military recruiting, then? The gun range? Prison cafeterias?

Your strong dislike for the military shows through strongly here, Jack.

No, I'm blasting you because you automatically think of a person who kills other people when thinking of someone in the armed forces. And if I go on your scenario with a lost young person getting off the roller coaster ride and falling prey to the armed forces' big, bad, and evil advertising, I'll counter with poor, uninvolved parenting that made this young person lost to begin with. You fail to realize that the armed forces provides a sense of honor and belonging to these 'lost' kids you referenced earlier. Where their parents failed them, the military doesn't. And in turn they provide you with the freedom to openly speak about your disapproval rather than being killed in street for doing so. For this precious freedom the U.S. armed forces should be able to tattoo their logos on all of our asses if they wanted to.

The verbal beat down continues. Nothing like 15 on 1...but I guess that's what happens when you spew ridiculous rhetoric and ideologies that no one else agrees with.

Yep.

[XXXIV]

I guess. I would hope that the military would use a little more class since the stakes are so much higher.

Hell no. We are all baby killing, stupid ass,child stealing pieces of horseshit. Were the willingly stupid. None of us have any education or family values at all. We just want to kill. We don't want to serve and protect our country,we want to serve the Goverment. We may be stupid asses,but we know how smart politicians are!

So thank God for the ads! Because all us that joined needed those damn things to convince our dumb asses the military is a great place to get cool gear,free food and most of all kill people.

I do always enjoy it....when you scold the children and or the weak minded...

[ProvoAnC]

JD-

Good post, but I think you can make it better by tossing a "cock-holster" in at least twice

[XXXIV]

JD-

Good post, but I think you can make it better by tossing a "cock-holster" in at least twice

I have images of Slim Pickens in Blazing saddles....

But feeeeeeeeeeeeeerrrrrrrrr what?

I think cocksucker is as cocksucker does....

[dbdynsty25]

At least break out the "c*nt muscle" phrase from Entourage. Classic.