Public Employee Press

BushWatch
PEP keeps an eye on the most anti-labor, anti-minority,
anti-woman president in American history

They won't go

With military recruitment numbers down and demand for soldiers up, the administration is turning to untried measures to tap the reserves of the young and the able-bodied. The United State’s Army’s top recruiter says that only 10 percent of the goal will be met by the beginning of 2006.

Cutting the standard four-year enlistment down to 15 months of active duty is the latest ploy. In March, the Army raised the maximum enlistment age from 34 to 39 for the National Guard and the Army Reserve.

“Some teachers, parents and students are complaining about what they consider to be overly aggressive recruitment tactics, especially at schools with low-income and minority students,” said the Los Angeles Times. The Defense Department now has to offer a $150,000 bonus to get highly trained Special Forces combat personnel to re-enlist.

— Jane LaTour