View Full Version : Real ROTC VS. Goarmy.com Propaganda
EvilJesus
2008-05-21, 07:11
So I was just watching the laughable propaganda videos at goarmy.com, and wondered just how stark the contrast is between the videos and the real world.
Anyone care to comment?
Trueborn Vorpal
2008-05-21, 08:11
So I was just watching the laughable propaganda videos at goarmy.com, and wondered just how stark the contrast is between the videos and the real world.
Anyone care to comment?
ROTC, eh? I couldn't tell you. I enlisted straight outta college. But there's an NROTC at the high school here on base... I'll see if I can mask my hatred of high school children long enough to ask those who are in it.
xilikeeggs0
2008-05-22, 19:37
Link to videos?
soul flayer
2008-05-22, 20:09
Don't know about the army, but here's (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8339263754616231366&ei=s8w1SI3rEofWqwP-hKW0CQ&hl=en) what people do in the real Air Force.
xilikeeggs0
2008-05-22, 21:53
Don't know about the army, but here's (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8339263754616231366&ei=s8w1SI3rEofWqwP-hKW0CQ&hl=en) what people do in the real Air Force.
I lol'ed. :D
Elephantitis Man
2008-06-03, 07:50
I took Army JROTC in high school because taking you only had to do PT every other week and one year of it would complete all required Phys. Ed. credits. 'Tis really the only reason I signed up.
As for how the class turned out, it was actually pretty fun. The class instructors were former drill sergeants, and a little rough around the edges (ie. they didn't have a problem getting in students' faces). We did fun stuff like rappelling from the roof of the gym and playing paint ball. Kids always seemed to be getting hurt during PT, too. It was funny, because when someone would get hurt (and I'm talking about real injuries, like one girl broke both wrists at the same time an one guy was run over by a jeep) one of the sergeants would shout "Medic!" and a couple students would have to go get one of those green canvas army stretchers and put the person on it and carry them to the nurses office. Funny shit.
Another fun aspect was that the classes established a chain of command amongst the students. You could be in ROTC all 4 years of high school and as you progressed and met special goals, you were promoted in rank. In class you had superiority in those under your rank, and thus, could issue commands to them during class time and if they didn't comply you could report them to the sergeant and they would be forced to do push-ups. I only stayed in the class for a year and half, so I only got up to corporal, but all the new freshmen always started out as privates, and as you can imagine, the newly promoted sophomores always had alot of fun with our new found authority.
And like I said before, the sergeants were rough around the edges. They scoffed at the whole "Red Alert" drills we had right after Columbine. When they were still talking about the shooting shortly after it happened, our sergeant told us, "I don't concern myself with these drill procedures. If there's a gunman loose in the schools, you all can hide and build your little desk fort in the corner of the room like you're supposed to. I'm hopping out the window, getting my pistol out of my truck (which was parked about 15 ft. away from the window), and I'm going to try to get a shot off on the wacko before he has a chance to shoot himself."
All in all, on the high school level, the ROTC program was pretty fun (not that this says anything about real college level ROTC). If you have such a program at your school, check to make sure the officers in charge of the program aren't douches (I've heard of some schools where they are), and if they're decent guys and you're looking for a class that's different from the rest, give it a go. :)
DesertRebel
2008-06-09, 20:30
I took Army JROTC in high school because taking you only had to do PT every other week and one year of it would complete all required Phys. Ed. credits. 'Tis really the only reason I signed up.
That class was a joke. I did 3 years in it, and if I had to do it again, I'd fuck around even more in it than I did. It is NOTHING like the real military. Oh my god, you can march. Marching doesn't really account for too much in the military. Now standing at attention and saluting, especially saluting accounts for quite a bit.
I think the only favor it did for me was help me overall make rank faster cause I chose the right rate. My buddy in the Army told me an E1 and an E3 can come in on the exact same day, and do everything the same. 2 years later, those guys will put on E4 together.
That class was a joke, I still highly reccomend you take it for the pay perks but thats about it.
I don't have experience with Army ROTC, but I do have personal experience with NROTC...
The Navy website makes it sound like you leisurely PT once or twice a week, with a convenient "drill" session where you learn about the military, march, and wear your pretend uniform. Your a TOTALLY normal college student enjoying all of the freedoms college allows.
Bull fucking shit.
I wake up at 5 am 4 fucking days a week and go to PT for an hour and half. Since it's the Navy, most guys are disgusting fat bodies who hate PTing, so most of the time it's some easy boring shit thats a waste of my sleep and time.
Thursdays I get to sleep into 5:30 am... that's when I put on my uniform and walk to the furthest building on the god damn campus. It's normally some long, boring, utterly useless briefs about safety, underage drinking, or predatory loaning. Every once in a while we get a semi-interesting speaker who blabbers on about the same shit. We did get an Ex-SEAL who helped form Red Cell, and that shit was pretty tight.
On top of waking up, there's stupid duty, where you sit in a chair from 1530 until 2100 and do jack shit. You have to wake up the day of extra early, and the day after. That's only once a month though, so it’s not that bad.
There are also volunteer events that I get "voluntold" to do. Color guards, ushering, and other bull shit. They just take up more time, and are generally annoying. I also have the WONDERFUL pleasure of cleaning up the fucking football stadium at 0600 on the Sundays after home football games.
Combine this nonsense with horrible peer leadership, and staff leaders who are only there to get their MBAs and you get a thoroughly frustrating experience.
You're also not a normal college student... getting up at 5 am everyday prevents you from staying up past 11 or 12, which limits your social life/homework time. You also have to be really careful if you happen to want to drink underage, because your ass is kicked the fuck out if you get caught
I realize that I sound like a total whiny pussy to an enlisted member, because the amount of bullshit enlisted in the military has to go through is gigantic compared to my little kiddy play military experience. At the end of the day, I do enjoy NROTC, and I do realize it’s a joke compared to things to come. However, all of the tiny little things add up over the year and I think it’s even harder because you’re a minority on campus. All of your friends will be having fun while you’re sleeping/doing some stupid ass volunteer event. However, your friends won't get to a lot of crazy bad ass shit that you will. I know a lot of Army ROTC cadets that have gone to Airborne school, and some that have even done Air assault school.
If you really want to be there, you’ll deal with the nonsense, end of story