I agree with this post. I volunteered in 1959 because I thought 3 years as a Marine officer was better than being drafted for 4 years as Army enlisted. Because of that service I am more acquainted with the military than my peers who got married and had babies to avoid the military. However even those peers were more acquainted with the military than most civilians are today.
In addition I think Donald Rumsfeld and his crusade to build a small professional military was a big part of what has gone wrong in Iraq and is wrong with our military overall. He thought technology would completely take over and anyone with any sense knows that boots on the ground will always be needed.
Was anyone else taught that Rome fell because no one wanted to serve in the military, which then became filled with mercenaries? The last part of that has begun both by foreigners joining our military and by outsourcing to companies like Blackwater USA.