To expand on the Navy’s Nuclear Power program - it was the brainchild of Admiral Hyman G. Rickover, who pretty much single-handedly created the nuclear navy and ran it for 30 years. He was an engineer’s engineer and a perfectionist’s perfectionist - and pretty much had carte blanche to develop the Navy’s nuclear submarine fleet and hand-pick the officers who ran it. His extreme standards are largely responsible for the US Navy accumulating over 7000 radiological incident-free reactor years with 500+ reactor cores and 200+ million miles of operation on ships and submarines. A stark contrast to the Soviet Union/Russia’s record.
In boot camp all the recruits destined for nuke school had their retinas dilated for a baseline exam. Then they’d go back into formation and be marched along with the rest of the recruits. But because they were wearing those post-eye exam wraparound disposable sunglasses, instead of normal cadence the company commander sang the “We Are Devo” lyrics.
14%? That was low ball. When I got my first mortgage, interest rates were running 18% to 19%.
Thanks to everybody answering my question! So interesting and informative. Some of it I could have guessed if my brain were engaged – they’d have never recruited me. 
Love the Devo story, @Slithy_Tove !
I had a Navy recruiter after me in high school. I have no idea how they got my contact info. I have an uncle and a great-uncle who are both Navy vets but neither of them ever tried to get me to enlist. I think after the third or fourth time the recruiter called me I told him that they didn’t want me. I’d never make it through basic training as I barely passed gym class, I’m severely claustrophobic, and I had bad knee issues even in high school. He quit calling after that.
There’s going to be a new test: How good are you at piloting a drone? First Person Shooter skills? Can you hack?
Only sort of kidding!
I did not join, nor even consider, the military. For one thing, I was a skinny, unathletic kid, and there was never anything about being in the military that sounded appealing to me.
I was an excellent student, and had always planned to go to college. When I was a junior in high school, the local military recruiter called all the guys in my class, inviting each of us to come in to his office for a chat, to see if we wanted to learn about enlisting. I went to see him, for courtesy’s sake, but our conversation was probably not even five minutes long: I introduced myself, explained the college plans I already had, and he said, “yup, sounds like you know what you want to do, and it’s not with us. Thanks for coming in!”
For what it’s worth, my dad did serve (he drove a tank in the Army). He dropped out of college after two years to enlist, and the only reason he did so was that his father had become permanently disabled, and the family could no longer afford his tuition; my dad realized that his best opportunity to finish college was to serve for a few years, qualify for the GI Bill, and then muster out.
The draft was already over when I turned 18.
My dad, his brother, and his first cousin all were career military. They were retired with pensions.
My dad discouraged me from joining. He had been a First Sergeant in a Squadron and knew the good and bad. It was his job to deal with enlisted men’s needs and problems.
I did register as required. Then went off to college.
The military saved my dad and his brother from extreme poverty. My uncle was working in the Civilian Conservation Corps before joining the military. Part of his CCC pay was sent to my grandparents to help with food and bills.
May I ask where this was?
The CCC? I never asked my Uncle which projects he worked. He lived in California and I only saw him a few times when he visited.
His parents farm was in Northern Louisiana. I think he did some work in Arkansas. The crews were moved around as needed.
Lake Catherine State park has extensive stone retaining walls and walkways. The CCC built the original cabins and bridges for the park. There’s a sign that commemorates the CCC.
The CCC work camps required brutual physical work.
Germany, 2000/01.
I spent much of the 90s flip-flopping between college and working. I was studying CmpE but also in software development, and at the time there was a lot of dumb easy dotcom money to sweep up. Alas, programming paid well while college paid nothing so my attention to my studies suffered and soon I was going 1 or 2 quarters a year. (That Chris Farley joke from Tommy Boy? “You know, a lot of people go to college for 7 years.” “Yeah, they’re called doctors.” Well that was me too haha.)
2001 rolled around and I got laid off and was enjoying a decent severance package and planning a return to finish school when 9/11 happened. I’d always had an interest in submarines and almost went NROTC when I was first looking into colleges but didn’t do it. I said “what the heck, I have time” and went to the recruiter, gave nuclear school a hard pass (I’m trying to avoid school here) and went into sonar.
I loved it and felt like I’d found my calling. Got out after my 5 years and went into sonar engineering and I’m still doing it to this day…
My father was in the National Guard for a brief period of time, I’d already been born and I think he was unemployed and looking for something to do at the time. Both of my grandfathers had been in the Navy during/after WWII, neither saw any action and both left after their enlistment periods were up. Apart from that, there was no “military tradition” in my family, and I wasn’t pushed (not by my family, anyway) into a military career.
The military recruiters who came through Springfield Southeast High School in the mid-late 1980s saw it differently. Somehow every recruiter in Springfield, for every branch, got it in their head that this long-haired, disobedient little prick with a giant chip on his shoulder was just what America’s Armed Forces needed to fight the baleful and pernicious spread of communism, and they would not leave me the fuck alone. Day in, day out, of my senior year, recruiters were pressuring me. One night my mother even let two Army recruiters into my house to give me their spiel. After repeating to them for, oh, 200 times that I was not interested, and them showing no signs of letting up, I simply got up, went outside, got into my truck, and drove around town for a couple of hours, figuring they’d have gotten bored and left by the time I got back. They were, indeed, gone when I got back, but boy howdy did I get a lecture from MammaHomie about the awakward situation I put her into.
Needless to say, I didn’t join.
Told my boot camp experience in another thread here. Found it rather easy. I joined under the nuke program but never had an eye exam as someone above stated. While attending Electronic Technician A school at Great Lakes Naval Training Center, I was one of about 1000 that was excused from the nuke program due to the back log at the nuke training center. After A school I was sent to NAS Whidbey Island which was only 75 miles from my home. The division I was assigned to was 30 military and 30 civilians. It was more like a civilian job except for having duty every 6 days. From there I was sent to San Diego for my last 18 months in Navy. I was assigned to the USS Sperry, a submarine tender. The only time I went to sea was a 22 day cruise to Matzalan and Acapulco. The highlight was the day I was the officer of the day as an E-3 Seaman. Got to eat in the officer’s mess and sleep in the OOD quarters. Had a grizzled Chief Petty Officer as my junior OOD, I let him make the few important decisions. I consider my time in the Navy as a good learning experience that paid off with a 40 year career at Boeing. If I had to do it over again, there are 2 things that I would have changed. First, would never have gotten married. Second, I would have gone to college a lot more while serving. The Navy paid for everything and I may have had more opportunities after I got out. I didn’t discover this till I only had 6 months left in my enlistment.
My grandfather was a Rough Rider, my dad was 20 year Navy and I was 4F. Then the Korean war came along and I got my draft notice. Took the physical and got 1A stamped on my forehead. I complained that I’d tried to join but was 4F. The Sargent said they’d take me now and I had about 10 days to join before I’d get my Army report date. So, I went to the USAF recruiting office and became a computer geek instead of an ichthyologist. I suspect the subsequent pay was better.
I went and saw one of my many Aunties today, to learn, surprise! She tried to join the military when she was 19.
She was raised in a traditional immigrant family where she was expected to work for her father and then get married and be a SAHM. She was not encouraged to go to college or anything.
She didn’t want that life for herself, so she went to an army recruiter. She was all dressed up in a suit and she had a list of questions she had for the recruiter. She made an effort to be as prepared and professional as possible. But when she got there she was stuck alone in a room with an older man who sexually harassed her so badly that she left in tears. She said the experience shook her to her foundation.
So she went back to the life that had been planned for her. She married an abusive narcissist and it took her years to finally get out of the marriage, find her freedom and finish raising four boys on her own. One of which became a Marine.
She’s such a soft maternal person it’s hard to believe she almost chose that career path, but then my current nonprofit CEO is a Marine and she’s a giant marshmallow. I also have a good friend who is a Marine and he can definitely be a hardass with some hair-raising stories, but he also won’t watch movies where children or animals get hurt. So I guess I know three Marines.
I’ve never really been interested in the military because I don’t like war, but even if I did I’m sure my various health issues would disqualify me.
An excellent, excellent move. I’ve always told people that if they ever instituted the draft and they got their draft notice, to go to the recruiter of the service of their choice and sign a guaranteed contract for the MOS they desired most (and, of course, qualified for).
Nice move, @Crane .
I did not join. Military service was not a strong tradition in my family. I’m not aware of anyone on my paternal side being in the military. My maternal grandfather enlisted in WWII right after Pearl Harbor. After the war, came home and lived a quiet life raising a family. One of my ancestors on my maternal grandmothers side was an Alamo defender, so he paid the ultimate sacrifice, although for the Republic of Texas.
When I turned 18 I registered for the draft as required, but my focus was set on being a first generation college graduate. I have the utmost respect for those that choose to serve. The US has the strongest defense with an all voluntary military. To me that’s extremely impressive.
The cost of freedom is not free.
Military service was not for me. I was more of a “question authority” kind of guy. I was in the first group that Carter required sign up for the new Selective Service. I declined. (my first felony!). Looking back, I might have enjoyed a career in the Navy or Coast Guard, but in the post-Vietnam era, I simply was not interested at all.
I did pretty much the same thing. Got called up for the physical and was told that in 21 days I’d be eligible for the Army draft. I went to the Navy and signed on as Group 8, which is the Seabees.
I was born in December of 63 so a few months after the first wave and one of the first to have to sign up within I think it was within 30 days of my birthday. Two of my friends and I have birthdays in a two week window and we all went to the post office together and solemnly filled out the post card.
Did you face any repercussions for declining to take part? Did you ever register?