Totally unacceptable. I'd tell them to lean in another direction, and quick. (People here disagree, I don't care, we've already had this argument and we won't change each others' minds.)

Anonymous wrote:I would feel really sad, like I had failed as a parent on some level. Outwardly I would support him but the military goes against almost everything I believe in so I would be disappointed.

I’ll be shocked though. He is super sensitive, conflict avoidant, and loves doing things his own way. The military would be a sharp contrast to that.

You see these as positive characteristics?

If they're a good student, ROTC and the four year scholarship is very good way to get into an elite school. And have it all paid for

I would feel really sad, like I had failed as a parent on some level. Outwardly I would support him but the military goes against almost everything I believe in so I would be disappointed.

I’ll be shocked though. He is super sensitive, conflict avoidant, and loves doing things his own way. The military would be a sharp contrast to that.

Anonymous wrote:Absolutely not. We aren’t poor. They have other options.

I wasn't poor either but 132K in loans from college took 20 years to pay off. My husband had zero loans for undergrad and grad school.

Absolutely not. We aren’t poor. They have other options.

My husband is military, so makes sense. My son wants to but he has T1D so unfortunately isn't eligible.

What are you concerns?

I have some fears of this based on personality. It's come up in our family career discussions with the teens but no one has decided to enlist yet, so it's just a possibility. One of my kids is quite negative. I worry about him becoming angry at the world and cynical. The other one is the opposite very kind and accommodating and I worry about him being bullied or just hating it. The only people I know who do really well are really determined and energized by the military in a positive way. I don't have a kid like this. I worry about the deployment but I also just worry about the culture too. I didn't have a great experience in the past with several military people and while I admire and respect all of them and many of them are outstanding people, it's also a very insular culture.

Support them.

Ask them why. What attracts them to the military, what are their expectations, what are they hoping for?

What did I do? I told my son I was proud of him and helped him explore all of the different types of jobs there are, helped him find some practice ASVAB tests and suggested he search for YouTube videos about the jobs he was interested in. Then I got him a gym membership.

He leaves for bootcamp next week with a contract for the job he wanted in a field that will translate well to civilian life after his military career.

How many kids do you have?

I'd be scared and proud. And have them take the ASVAB and make sure they know the physical requirements.

No problem as long as they can get into the academy.

How do you react as a parent today when your kid says they are thinking of joining either the Marines or the military.