Officer Training School

Parents dont want me to join the army because there scared i'll die.?

I would like to do rotc in college and join the army after but my parents think i will get hurt because its dangerous in iraq. How do I convince them that the army is not that bad.

Public Comments

1. Don't your parent realize you could die at any time. Once you are 18 you can do what you want. They will come around eventaully.
2. By that logic, they shouldn't let you drive either. 40,000 Americans are killed driving each year, while 4,500 have died in war over 9 years.
3. You don't have to convince them. At 18 you are an adult. You just get into the ROTC and progress and see how you like it. By the time you graduate they'll have gotten used to the idea.
4. its your decision. you have a better chance of being killed in a car accident stateside then being killed in iraq.
5. Ask them this, How do they know you won't get killed driving home from work tonight?
6. You can't...the "Army not that bad"?? The Army isnt bad..But if you join a Combat job.....well you get the picture. good luck
7. Statistically speaking it is more dangerous to walk the streets of Washington D.C. at night than to do a combat tour in Iraq or Afghanistan. Tell them that.
8. ignorance......
9. Good for you! One of the bravest things you can do as a citizen is serve your country in the armed forces. Even though we hear about soldiers dying in Iraq from time to time, they are a very small percentage of the amount of troops that are actually deployed (about 4,600 KIA from 200,000 deployed over 7 years, or less than 2.5%) Most casualties are from bombs planted by terrorists, almost none are from direct combat. Great training is what keeps American forces alive in the field, and you're sure to get the same training if you join ROTC. Hope this helps!
10. if you are of age the decision is up to you. no disrespect to your folks but you can be hit crossing the street.this country is free because people have served from the start FREEDOM isNOT free.
11. Well if you do ROTC, it means you're going to become an Officer. Officers don't see as much combat as the Enlisted. The Army, in general, is not that dangerous, but I wouldn't know what it's like to have a combat arms MOS or be part of a combat unit. I wouldn't know what the casualty rate of that is. Higher because they are closer to harms way? Or lower because they are better trained? Well, if you don't plan on choosing a combat MOS, you can tell your parents that. Tell them what it is you want to do, be it mechanics, computers, etc. Also, if you have been keeping up with the times, Iraq is a lot safer now. It's Afghanistan that you're going to have to worry about. However, death rates in Afghanistan currently has not come close to the death rates in Iraq from '03 - '07
12. Your parents reaction is understandable...... they love and want to protect you...........but it is based on lack of information FIRST.... By the time you become an Army officer..... the Iraq War and even Afghanistan will be a memory..... SECOND..... While there are no completely safe jobs in the military...... there are no completely safe jobs in the civilian world either ..... Your role as a Army officer will not be significantly riskier than other civilian professions..... THIRD... Most people think the Army is about "killing and destroying"..... when in reality we teach survivability..... there are many jobs in the military that BUILD not destroy.....SAVE lives not take them...... The skills you learn in the military will be applicable no matter what career you finally choose .... Leadership.....personnel and time management.....problem solving process.... organization.... responsibility.... FOURTH.... Your parents gave you the tools....the values.... to be a good person.... but they can not live your life for you..... As Gibran said in the "Prophet".... they launched the arrow but you must find your own target You will make mistakes..... and you will have successes..... but they are YOURS not theirs Treasure their love.....but live your own life As to ROTC..... the higher your rank in the military......... the greater your chance of NOT being killed or injured..... Besides after four years of ROTC training.... numerous field training exercises..... and summer camp in your third year...... you may decide the military is NOT what you want..... Reality often replaces dreams
13. Try taking it out with them but he right 18 fully indenpdent do whatever you what to do
14. Probably by the time you go in, Iraq won't be an issue. But there's always something else. The military IS dangerous. It really can be "that bad." You're trained for combat. You'll likely go into combat. In combat some die. There's no guarantee you won't be one of them. But, more people die in traffic accidents on any given three-day weekend than US troops die in combat in a week. Each year over 20,000 people die in hospitals under the care of careless, inept, or incompetent doctors. That's five times the number of casualties in Iraq in five years... every year. People are dying every day because they're out of shape, stupid, or careless. All those people die for NOTHING. At least when a soldier dies, he's dying for something he believes is worth dying for. If he doesn't believe that, he has no business in the military. Eventually we all die. I'm almost 70. I was in the Navy for 25 years. And I saw my share of combat. Some of my buddies didn't make it back. I made it back because some of them probably died saving my life. I put myself in danger to protect them. I made it... they didn't. But not one of them died because some ham-handed doctor messed up, or some drunk drove into them, or because the were shot by a drive-by while reading the evening paper. Yeah, you might get hurt... maybe crippled for life... or killed. You can't convince somebody that's not going to happen. You have to go in with your eyes wide open. If you think it's worth it, figure out why. When you have yourself firmly convinced that it's the right thing for you to do... that it's something you HAVE to do, give those reasons to your parents. They've done their best to teach you values and morals, and right and wrong, and all that stuff so you can make your own decisions. Service in the military is a pretty big decision. When you know why it's the correct one for you, that's what you should tell your parents. If you're afraid of making a wrong decision, I can almost guarantee you'll make some... it's part of the human thing. But you have to make decisions, or other people will run your life. “The time to take counsel of your fears is before you make an important battle decision. That's the time to listen to every fear you can imagine! When you have collected all the facts and fears and made your decision, turn off all your fears and go ahead!” (General George S. Patton) Just replace "battle decision" with "life decision" and you have it.
15. its not like the army gonna hand you a gun and say go fight your trained plus ur going into battle with trained people who know what their doing thinking of joining army rangers ur 18 do want you want and good thing they pay for house food and everything else plus u get good pay