Thread by @STEMthebleeding

Obama in 2009: We need children to eat healthier in schools.

DOD in 2009: If we don't address childhood obesity, we won't be able to maintain our military readiness.

GOP "Fuck you!"

GOP in 2022: "Why are #recruiters having such problems finding 18 year olds who are qualified?"

For those wondering what I mean, let me explain:

Every June, recruiters get a list of the next years high school seniors from the counselor who didn't opt out of being contacted by recruiters.

We then have pool members from that school start marking off names.

We put a mark next to all of the females, those in special education classes, those who are physically disabled, and those who are excessively overweight.

The remaining names after that make up the QMA for that school (qualified male applicants).

The others aren't contacted.

In some cases that meant that >90% of high school seniors aren't viable applicants.

I had high schools myself were there were no applicants in the entire senior class.

And this is before we disqualify anyone for criminal activity, tattoos, or any of the 1000+ medical issues.

So before we've even found out they're anti military, anti-woke, anti-war, or had a scholarship to college - more than 70% of them were eliminated for being anti-salad before the school year ever started.

Recruiters are effectively competing with college sports at this point.

So no, we don't have an applicant problem. Recruiters are still getting their appointments, still meeting their canvassing numbers, and still getting people coming through the doors of their officers.

We have an enlistment problem. There's not enough QUALIFIED applicants.

note 1: I was a Marine Corps recruiter, and a RSS Non-commissioned Officer in Charge, meaning I ran operations for my area.

Army/AF/USN recruiters may not have done things the same way as we did, especially IRT female contacts.

We didn't actively recruit females. They might.

*offices.

Why? Well, the answer is pretty straightforward: The Marine Corps only has one female training battalion, only so many racks in those barracks, and we never having trouble filling those spaces at boot camp.

The only exception is if they could play a level 4 solo on the clarinet.