Posted on 03/07/2007 2:44:51 PM PST by Racehorse
The Keys are living in a van because of Joshua Key's opposition to the U.S.-led war in Iraq. While many opponents of the Iraq war base their opposition on media reports, Key's opinion is based on what he witnessed when he fought for eight months in Iraq's Sunni Triangle.
Key never thought he'd end up in Iraq in the first place. When he first enlisted, he signed up to be a bridge builder in a non-deployable unit. Despite this, the army trained him in explosives and landmines, and sent him to Iraq in April of 2003.
Key describes himself as a patriotic citizen who grew up learning "all-American values." Raised by his grandparents in a small town in Oklahoma, Key became a welder and was earning $7.25 an hour before he joined the army. With a rapidly growing family, he desperately needed a better job to make ends meet. After a visit to the local military recruiting office and then a score of 50 percent on an aptitude test, Key was told he could pick between three different jobs.
"I decided on a bridge builder in a non-deployable unit," he explains with a slight southern drawl. "This was my incentive to join the Army. I wanted to be close to my family. Other guys were offered money incentives."
. . .
During basic training in May 2002, Key learned that his legally binding contract could be changed by the military at any time. "In the first few days of basic training, you learn that you are just a number and to keep your mouth shut unless spoken to. We were told that we were going to learn how to be the worst damn killers in the battlefield. I was already thinking: what the hell are you talking about?"
(Excerpt) Read more at thetyee.ca ...
The ads place emphasis on your secondary MOS - the stuff you learn after Basic Training - like water treatment, computers, engineering, etc.
What the ads don't tell these young people is that when you pass Basic, you're classed as an 11-B, an "eleven-bravo". You're an infantryman, trained to use a rifle.
So when the Army needs riflemen to patrol, you're it.
This comes as a big shock to people who joined the Army to earn money for college.
"a rapidly growing family..."
Probably his cousin on both sides of the family. "Hey, how do you shut this thing off, anyway?"
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