Book Report: AWOL

AWOL: The Unexcused Absence of America's Upper Classes from Military Service and How It Hurts Our Country

Ok, real quick. I read this book called AWOL. It was given to me by my aunt after she read it. I read it more out of a sense of obligation than anything. But I ended up enjoying it and, after reading it, felt a little more fortunate having made the decision to enlist. I still think the military has a butt-load of bs in it, but it has a redeeming quality or two as well, as was pointed out to me by this book.

It has two authors, one being a Democrat wife of a Marine officer, and the other being a Republican father of a Marine. Not the same Marine, though. The full title of the book basically states their mission. They are troubled by the declining rate of individuals from the upper class ranks enlisting in the military. Some of the particularly strong points made are:

--That it's not a Republican/Democrat issue. It is a class issue.
--Fewer and fewer of our nation's leaders have military experience. Which means, they are in charge of an operation that they know nothing about.
--Not only are fewer of our nations leaders able to say that they have military experience, fewer and fewer have children that have served or are serving. Without a personal stake such as a son or daughter in the military, our leaders are simply sending faceless soldiers off to war. That's a problem.
--The people that benefit the most from our society have no idea what it costs to defend it. And those that do know the cost don't benefit as much. There's an imbalance there.
--Our military's power is impressive, but it has its limitations. The common citizen takes it for granted without realizing the amount of work and money that is required for everything our military does. Enlistment helps eliminate that problem.
--Military life shows service members that they can do more and put up with more than they ever thought they could.
--There is a level of satisfaction achieved from working for an institution that is greater than the self.
--The authors mention the idea that there is a national wisdom that is gained by a nation over the span of its existence. I'm still not sure what I think about that one, but I thought it was an interesting idea.

My only two criticisms of this book are:
--It claims that anyone can get promoted in the military fairly easily. This is only true if you are very low-ranking. They practically give out rank to those that don't have much. However, that only seems to last to the mid-ranks. After that, it is my perception that you definitely have to know someone to progress much farther.
--It never adequately addresses the failure of the military to be more intelligent in its recruiting and member-retaining policies. For stupid reasons, our military refuses otherwise qualified applicants and discharges valuable service members. Catch HIV, and you'll be allowed to continue serving until you reach full-blown AIDS. Wheeze, and you'll likely find yourself discharged for asthma before you can blink. And that's only one example. It makes no sense. Not that I think that HIV infected individuals shouldn't be allowed to stay in, mind you. But I'm sure you understand my point.

That's pretty much it. Again, good book. If you're military, I'm sure it will prove an interesting read for you.

Reading: The Varieties of Religious Experience by William James