[No Left Turn]

But just one was from a well-to-do family, and with the exception of a Naval Academy alumnus, just one had graduated from an elite college or university.

A few points. Why are the Naval Academy alumnus not considered graduates from an elite college or university? If you combine the two, a little more than 7% of those KIA came from elite universities. I'd wager that's a lot higher representation than Americans from elite univerisities in the general population, even higher than Americans of typical college age.

Also, coming from an elite university doesn't mean you're rich. Coming from a non-elite university doesn't mean you're not rich. And what constitues a well-to-do family? One that this reporter knows personally? I'd like to know how many in the military come from families in the top ten percent of the income bracket? I'd bet it's quite a few, especially if you look at the officers corps.

[jjm2111]

Both at the USNA, where I've worked, and the USMMA, where I graduated had a fair share of American Brahmins. The reporter is smoking something if he/she doesn't believe that their are no elites in the officer corp.

The serivce, IMHO, is probably one of the best ways for a poor kid to make it to at least the middle class if not further.