Thinking about joining: several concerns...

[Srchng4smthn]

I am thinking about joining the marines but wanted to decide for myself before I talked to a recruiter, although i do have a few concerns outright:

1) my right shoulder has a loose tendon that means it dislocates much easier than normal, i have had my shoulder go out of socket many times and it is extremely painful. will this disqualify me from joining the marines? what should i do?

2) i have had trouble finding out what the lengths of terms of service are, could someone give me a brief rundown of how long I will be in active service?

3) the more I learn about the current marine corps the more I become concerned that it is more like a new Army. I see 'former' marines protesting the war, getting put in prison for abuse in Iraq, and acting like children in homemade Iraq videos. I see DI's who are not allowed to say the 'F' word. If I'm going to join I want to be grinded to a pulp. I have trouble taking people seriously who are not even allowed to swear in front of me. These things I'm seeing are not helping solidify my concept of what the marines 'should' be (as a naive civilian, of course). It scares me. If I'm going to join and push myself past my own limits I want to be a part of something truly honorable, something I can be proud of. Can anyone give me their perspective on this issue and the current state of the marines?

thank you in advance for any help & any advice & please forgive any ignorance on my part i'm just trying to learn as much as I can before I make my decision~

[rvillac2]

You need to learn the rules and fill out your profile. Marine and Corps is always capitalized.

But to answer #3. I don't need to swear to grind your worthless civilian carcass into a lifeless pulp. Neither do our Drill Instructors. Compare us to the Army like that again and see how you'll get treated.

[Covey_Rider]

I'm not even going to start. Yes you are right about one thing. You are a naive civilian. Trust me...what you read in a book or on the internet is different then real life.

[thewookie]

I am thinking about joining the marines but wanted to decide for myself before I talked to a recruiter, although i do have a few concerns outright:

1) my right shoulder has a loose tendon that means it dislocates much easier than normal, i have had my shoulder go out of socket many times and it is extremely painful. will this disqualify me from joining the marines? what should i do?

2) i have had trouble finding out what the lengths of terms of service are, could someone give me a brief rundown of how long I will be in active service?

3) the more I learn about the current marine corps the more I become concerned that it is more like a new Army. I see 'former' marines protesting the war, getting put in prison for abuse in Iraq, and acting like children in homemade Iraq videos. I see DI's who are not allowed to say the 'F' word. If I'm going to join I want to be grinded to a pulp. I have trouble taking people seriously who are not even allowed to swear in front of me. These things I'm seeing are not helping solidify my concept of what the marines 'should' be (as a naive civilian, of course). It scares me. If I'm going to join and push myself past my own limits I want to be a part of something truly honorable, something I can be proud of. Can anyone give me their perspective on this issue and the current state of the marines?

thank you in advance for any help & any advice & please forgive any ignorance on my part i'm just trying to learn as much as I can before I make my decision~

oh boy, what do we have here, Mr. Naive. Sure
Based on 1&2 - don't join, your physically and mentally not capable
Based on 3 - you want to be ground into a pulp, I won't comment

If you want the current state of Marines, ask the enemy and remember this: There are only two kinds of people who understand Marines: Marines and the enemy. Everyone else has a second hand opinion. -Gen. William Thornston, US Army

[BR34]

3) the more I learn about the current marine corps the more I become concerned that it is more like a new Army.



You don't know ****! What are you judging the Marine Corps by? TV? Books? Other bull**** 2nd opinion sources?


I see DI's who are not allowed to say the 'F' word

Again, you don't know ****! Actually...you're right, DI's don't curse. *smh*


Can anyone give me their perspective on this issue and the current state of the marines?

You don't know ****!

[sparkie]

Hope this kid gets his head outta his ars. And quits watchin PMSNBC.

[Echo_Four_Bravo]

The DIs couldn't curse when I went through boot camp. So, when the officers were around, they didn't. But, I can honestly say that it doesn't matter if a DI curses or not. The words they use have nothing to do with the training you receive.

As for the shoulder, get it fixed before you enlist. I have shoulder problems. It had been operated on before I went to boot camp. Everything was fine, until it decided to dislocate while I was doing bench presses. From then on, it would dislocate every time I got on the pullup bar. Going through the Navy to get the surgery wasn't the best of experiences. But, they did manage to get me fixed.

As for terms of service, talk to a recruiter. Most contracts are 4 years active duty/4 years inactive reserve. But, there are some other options.

[JordanB]

1. If your med problem isnt documented I wouldent bring it up at meps cause they love to find reasons not to let people get in.
2. Your gonna be looking at 4 years active with an additional 4 years reserve, if your mos is anything combat oriented or logistics than its basically 8 years because at the moment they are calling up reservists more than active duty Marines.
3. Take it from a Devil Dog who just got off the island, most platoons will train you right. Theres always gonna be nasty Marines, you just have to decide which one you want to be and hang around that recruit/Marine who is squared away.

[Echo_Four_Bravo]

2. is wrong. You are not in the reserve you are in the Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) when you get off active duty- and those people are not called up often at all. Further, active duty Marines are deploying MUCH more than reserves are.

[Achped]

lol, drill instructors don't use profanity.

lol, that was good.

They don't hit you either....

[immaproshooter]

lol.......theres alot of things they "dont" do.....but since they "dont" do those things no need to talk about those things

[Echo_Four_Bravo]

I'm proud to say that they never once wiped my butt after a trip to the head- and I have no problem talking about that!

[Sgt Leprechaun]

Krikey! <br />
<br />
Quite likely even if you lie and make it thru MEPS you'll be DQ'd after being in recruit training if this happens as often as you say it does. AND, if/when they find that little...

[immaproshooter]

or if you do attempt to enlist dont hide any information, if they are aware and you someho are able to enlist you cant get fraudulent enlistment

[thewookie]

I am thinking about joining the marines but wanted to decide for myself before I talked to a recruiter, although i do have a few concerns outright:

1) my right shoulder has a loose tendon that means it dislocates much easier than normal, i have had my shoulder go out of socket many times and it is extremely painful. will this disqualify me from joining the marines? what should i do?

2) i have had trouble finding out what the lengths of terms of service are, could someone give me a brief rundown of how long I will be in active service?

3) the more I learn about the current marine corps the more I become concerned that it is more like a new Army. I see 'former' marines protesting the war, getting put in prison for abuse in Iraq, and acting like children in homemade Iraq videos. I see DI's who are not allowed to say the 'F' word. If I'm going to join I want to be grinded to a pulp. I have trouble taking people seriously who are not even allowed to swear in front of me. These things I'm seeing are not helping solidify my concept of what the marines 'should' be (as a naive civilian, of course). It scares me. If I'm going to join and push myself past my own limits I want to be a part of something truly honorable, something I can be proud of. Can anyone give me their perspective on this issue and the current state of the marines?

thank you in advance for any help & any advice & please forgive any ignorance on my part i'm just trying to learn as much as I can before I make my decision~

One more thought, you brought up the bad things that you have HEARD about the Marine Corps which lead you to believe that the Marine Corps is "more like a new Army". Now,,, I know you're naive and all that, but hopefully this will help. Think of the Marine Corps as a whole, oh, I don't know it was 180k when I got out. Say it's up to 200,000 Marines currently, anyone know for sure please help later. Think of the USMC as a whole for a second, and then realize that it somewhat mirrors society. Society has it's 10%, and so do we. Swearing isn't going to make you climb up a lava mountain in the middle of the south pacific while crazy japs are shooting at you, trying to kill you. Don't ask to be ground into meat, we don't really do that, it sounds fun though,,, and someday I'd like to try it. You're trying to get into a fraternity lets say, we're going to reshape the way you think. And it will be physically and mentally challenging, no doubt. So don't worry if it will test you enough, we'll see too it that your tested, trust me. It's not like the movies you see in the cinema's or on TV or on your cell phone. It's real. Good luck. I wouldn't think about going in with a bum shoulder, I'm sure it can be repaired and maybe that will give you some time to figure out more and to decide if you want/can make a commitment. Don't think you're going to hide a shoulder you explained to us, don't waste any one's time please.

Oh, and the best way to see something, is in person. When you see it in person you gain perspective nobody can tell you about. Go see you're recruiter once your fixed and let the real Marine Corps give you some fresh perspective.

Semper Fi Marines