To think the army shouldn't be allowed to 'avertise' in schools?

[TheDevilWearsPrimark]

I was speaking to my aunt over the weekend she told me she was horrified to hear there had been an assembly run by the T.A at her local school.

Her 15 year old son was apparantly very excited about all they had said, and has apllied for his local cadets group.

I just can't help think that this smacks of desperation on the armies part to recruit children who otherwise feel they have little options, or simply don't really know what they want.

Those television adverts that make it all seem like a fun computer game are another step too far.

The Army has always recruited in schools !

Some schools run ccf's

how about the police force? Would that be OK?

Understand that most mothers are horrifed by the idea of their DC's going into the army but young squaddies have always been the backbone of the army.

I would have thought the discipline of army cadets is good for most teenagers (my neices did it) very few actually join the army.

YABU

Cadets is a lot different to the Army and can be really good for teenagers. Teaches discipline, gives them an interest, gives them something to do other than hang around on street corners.

And there are worse careers than military ones.

I cannot see what the problem is TBH. Yes.. YABU.

army career was the making of my ex - would have been a feckless hooray henry wihtout it and now (post army) works for the Red Cross.

This country has an army which it believes it needs. All the private schools have lots of TA activity, not that any of my children chose to join. Also it can look quite good on CVs and university applications as would founding a new pacifist group at the school. At least they're doing something other than drugs etc.

would be interesting to see recruitment stats given that so many troups are in the middle east at the moment

it's not one career that I'd be reccomending in a hurry tbh

Scottish teachers have voted to ban Army recruitment in schools.
Story here

what I meant is that I think that not as many are joining up now given the current situations

There are other options to teach children about discipline, for example the duke of edinburgh.

This is the first time I have heard of the army recruiting in schools. It is fair enough at a graduate fair, where the person is old enough to really understand the implications, but not in a school assembley where children are forced to sit and watch the propoganda.

Oh Xenia, so the army os the only way to keep them from doing drugs

Yes, YABU.

The forces assist a lot of young people to continue education and for some offer access to higher education that would otherwise be denied.

They offer a lifestyle that would be inacessible to many.

Yes, if you are a pacifist then you might find this distasteful, but we need an army, and the one we have is on the whole a fine establishment, with long traditions, that looks after its personnel in many ways, and equips them form life once their service career is over.

blimey Primark - talk about putting your own spin on it - don't think thats quite what Xenia said (grief I'm turning into a Xenia defender).

You beleive its wrong - I don't have a problem with it anymore than any other career talk we got at school (we got several).

Thanks for that link Macdog

I am not a pacifist, but I do not believe in illegal wars

Very interesting point from the link Macdog posted
"Delegates were told that one establishment in Glasgow had 14 visits from army recruiters in the past year, while another experienced a 10-fold rise in the number of army visits during the past 12 months"

Could the rising number of conscientious objector cases, deaths, and dropping recruiment figures have anything o do with that?

oh of course, it's just coincidental.

I had a career talk at school that advised I would be best suited as a publisher, librarian or animal welfare officer (rofl) but none of those came armed with flashy videos designed to look like computer games, and enormous spin.

The current war in Iraq was the responsibility of politicians, not the army per se. But they have a job to do, and they are doing it.

There is a long tradition of taking the kings shilling when you live in a poor/deprived area, often these are very successful regiments - e.g. the highlanders.

Yes it is cynical to target deprived areas, but I imagine someone from the army will counter that they are trying to improve their minority group recruitment.

And is a career in the army better or worse than the dole? In terms of danger to life better or worse than being a fireman, or oil rigger, or builder?

Young boys and men can have a brilliant time with the TAs.

The army proper recruits in all sorts of ways. Ads on the tube, I've seen them at village fairs etc. They're not an illegal organisation.

Girls can join and enjoy ccf too

There seems to be an underlying tone here, suggesting that those in deprived areas may as well go into the army, as otherwise they would have a wasted life.

And please no one mention bloody Sandringham.

The Army does a lot of good getting people of otherwise would have wasted their lives in to decent work.. there is no denying that !

My 14 yr old niece, who is incredibly sporty, has been invited (via her teacher!!!!) to a day out organised by the army recruitment people, involving paintballing, video games, abseiling, loads of fun stuff.

Thankfully she's a cynical little moo and has no intention of joining the army, but I do think targeting children at this age (or younger) is wrong. YANBU.