In case you missed it, only 30% of 17-24 population is eligible for military service, mainly due to lack of education and obesity amongst other factors. To get the full scoop, check this: http://majastevanovich.wordpress.com/2009/09/02/only-30-of-17-24-year-old-eligible-for-military-service/
Group of retired military Generals and Admirals recently called this “disturbing” and a long-term threat to the nation’s security.
Currently military recruiting is enjoying one of the most successful years partly due to the economic climate. Although this is not an immediate problem, if measures are not put in place, the lack of youth eligible can indeed cause serious issues for military recruiters.
A non-for profit organization called Mission Readiness http://www.missionreadiness.org/ that is composed of many retired military leaders is taking matters into their own hands; the group is lobbying for measures to take better care of America’s youth and address problems in education and obesity in particular. This is not just the military’s problem; it is an issue that affects us all collectively.
[...] The military is meeting and exceeding its recruiting numbers, however there are statistics arguing that the youth population is shifting more and more towards the ineligible status; this being true, it should become a cause for concern. To read more about those statistics, http://majastevanovich.wordpress.com/2009/11/20/military-recruiting-matter-of-national-security/ [...]
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