As my sons reached adulthood, I told them that the military was a great option but that if they chose to do so, they should commit themselves to a military career and as commissioned officers as opposed to simply enlisting. I say that as one who enlisted myself and made it to sergeant.
I would never recommend anybody enlisting unless they had few other options. I enlisted in the Marine Corps and served four years, making it to E-5 (Sergeant). It was a great experience and I'm glad I did it but only because I did not have many other options. My family was working-class poor so could not afford to send me to college and because my high school grades were mediocre, I wasn't going to get any kind of scholarship. So it was either scratch out a living as an unskilled worker in a tough neighborhood (where many of my peers were caught up in drugs, crime and worse) or join the military and see the world while acquiring a skill (as my recruiter put it).
On the other hand, becoming an officer in the military is absolutely a fantastic career choice. The difference between how officers and enlisted personnel are treated in our military defies description. Let's just say you don't want to be enlisted unless you have no other option.
But to become an officer requires a much longer commitment in time so if you go that route, might as well make it your career.
This is why we are unlikely to see many more presidents with military experience. An enlisted man has little chance to become president and a career officer will likely not be considered. Witness the recent cries about General Petraeus not having the necessary experience - which is an utter joke, by the way. Anybody making it to that level in the military has more executive experience than just about anybody else, not to mention broad experience in politics, diplomacy, team-building and knowing how to choose good subordinates and delegate to them accordingly.
The Romneys immigrated to the United States 170 years ago, to serve Joseph Smith, after being converted to his religion, in England.
During that 170 years of American history, not one male in Mitt’s line has ever served, no draft, no war, no sense of patriotism, nothing, has ever gotten them to break that family tradition.
Mitt was evading the draft in France as his father campaigned as the anti-war candidate for president, against Ronald Reagan, when it came to Mitt himself running for president in 2008, he had all five of his military age sons with him, saying that they served America, by serving his campaign.
Bull crap! I'm a very old vet but to make a statement is pure foolishness. Like saying that to Americans that never served are worthless pieces of crap and have no leadership. Just because the Constitution makes the President the commander in chief does not give non military no rights to the Presidency. There is more problems in running this Country than the military part.