(12-28-2021, 08:40 AM)copycat Wrote:

(12-28-2021, 07:31 AM)The Real Marty Wrote: https://www.news4jax.com/news/florida/20...ison-time/

What a terrible idea- force people into the military who don't want to be there, but are only there to avoid going to prison.

It is very apparent you have no clue on this matter.

I have seen malcontents and petty criminals turn into model citizens and “lifers” because of that very option.  For many of them it was the first time they had ever had any structure in their lives.  I’d even go one step farther and have every HS graduate serve a minimum of two years for the same reason.

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(12-28-2021, 07:49 AM)homebiscuit Wrote: I saw this story and thought about posting it. While I have never dealt with people in this predicament during my time in the military, my experience with all sorts of people from all sorts of backgrounds tells me that while there may be an occasional success story, most will be problematic. They’ll see the military strictly as the proverbial ‘get out of jail free’ card and will be unproductive and simply bide their time, or will be getting in trouble again. Most people’s characters are firmly established by this age. If they won’t respect boundaries and authority in civilian life, they won’t in the military. I’ve seen it.

Where do you think Boatswain mates come from?

I know working in the aviation ratings that a good part of the slackers came from non-ideal situations in civilian life and simply didn't adapt. Some do, but the ones who needed constant oversight and correction were overwhelmingly people with bad upbringings which instilled apathy towards authority and standards. 
Trolling court dockets for potential recruits will introduce more problems than it will solve. Perhaps a stringent vetting process would increase the chances of success, but it's not destined to succeed wildly simply because of the people involved. 

Btw, compulsory military service is a bad, bad idea.

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