Posted on 01/26/2024 5:50:38 AM PST by Enlightened1
The Use of Low-IQ Troops in the Vietnam War, inductees of the project died at three times the rate[1] of other Americans serving in Vietnam and following their service had lower incomes and higher rates of divorce than their non-veteran counterparts. The project was ended in December 1971
I must be the exception to the above. HS drop out, 17, sent to Vietnam as an infantryman (survived), got out completed high school then on to college, got married stayed married 54 years (and still counting), worked and then retired with no debt and a comfortable nest egg.
Some 17 year olds drop out of school because they are bored.
I did learn not to make hasty decisions when bored.
I joined the navy in 1979 without a HS diploma or GED. The ASVAB test is what matters. If they drop that I will be upset.
I was serving back then, too. Morale, discipline, and performance will not be improved by this move, even if a high school diploma today is no indication that the holder can read, write, or do simple arithmetic.
Even more reason to know that Robert McNamara was one evil man. I had not heard of Project 100,000 before.
“I must be the exception to the above. HS drop out, 17, sent to Vietnam as an infantryman (survived), got out completed high school then on to college, got married stayed married 54 years (and still counting), worked and then retired with no debt and a comfortable nest egg.
Some 17 year olds drop out of school because they are bored.”
I met a lot of HS dropouts when I was in the Army, that were quite intelligent. The McNamara experiment used people with low IQs, that normally would not be fit for military service. For cannon fodder. High School drop outs do not equate with low IQs. And congratulations to you successful life!
I remember a news item from more than 40 years ago. A mother was upset that her son was rejected by the Army even though he had a high school diploma, because he had only a third-grade level reading ability.
From the article:
“50 on the test is a relatively low score, with 31 being the minimum to qualify for service.”
50 is only low if average is low, which doesn’t make sense. 19 is actually the lowest score the military (at least the Navy) will take (very, very few openings per year). I put two of them in one time; they were my (black) zone supervisor’s nephews. The qualifying ASVAB score has always been flexible depending on recruiting success. I put in lots of people with 31 to 50 AFQTs. I know everyone on FR made a 99 when they took the ASVAB, but an AFQT of 31 means someone is literate and proficient in basic math. They’re not idiots.
There is a lot information out there on Project 100,000. It ran from 1966-1972, over that period they accepted about 350,000 men. They did not meet the standards for the AFQT, or did not meet physical requirements. Now when you score below the standards for the AFQT what MOS are they going to put you in? At the time, McNamara was very proud of the program. They called the soldiers in the program: “New Standards Men.” Unfortunately, many of these New Standards Men were assigned to combat units. They had a death rate in Vietnam that was twice the rate of American forces as a whole. No surprises there.
So more money, a reduction in force size, lower standards and they still have trouble meeting their recruitment goals.
They clearly need to go to more Furry conventions, more Drag Queen Story Hours at public libraries and search for more chicks with two moms. Supply of those seems to be running low.
Meanwhile, the White Boys will be sitting out your next Neocon war. Enjoy.
Were you Army? Each service has a different way of scoring.
I joined as a junior in HS. And went to basic my junior summer and AIT after I graduated. It was called split option for the Army NG. Kept me out of trouble.
Well, we can see the direction this is going & it’s not a good one. Somebody(somebodies)in this administration is doing what they can to downgrade our military. These people are true subversives & need to be dealt with as severely as the law allows. By the way, just who is doing this & what will the law allow for this kind of activity if proven? If we are to have a country at all, then this has to be stopped. The average interested citizen might not be able to do much about it, but we can pray to our God about it.
Me too. Many were good guys, but had a hard time understanding the most basic concepts. As a LCpl (E3), I had to teach my squad leader (a sgt- E5) three times how to do a resection on map. After the third time, he just had me do them.
They also must score at least a 50 on the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery, or ASVAB, an SAT-style quiz to measure a potential recruit's academic ability.
False. It assesses vocational aptitude, hence the name.
That’s my experience, too. A score of 99 was the max (USAF, early 1980s). Is it different by service?
It shouldn’t be. Everyone takes the same test at the same time at MEPS.
. Demand to enlist illegal aliens to fill the gap.
/\
aka
modern day Hessians.
Closer to the Romans and their end of days where they used hostile foreigners who then turned on them.
“Everyone takes the same test at the same time at MEPS.”
I’ve been out of recruiting for a while, but we gave the ASAB at high schools (basically to all students) and we had local testing centers. I actually don’t recall ever sending someone to MEPS to ASVAB. It would have been a major waste of time if they failed to qualify.
All I can say is where I went. I was also 25 y/o.
There was around 30-40 guys & girls in the room.
I took the EPDT solo, the same day at MEPS.
Wasn’t my great leadership, not at all. For those that were underperforming, I gave them a choice: get it together and continue having omelets made to order at the Hahn AB dining facility, or you’ll get transferred to our sister battalion in Mannheim, and spend 8 months out of the year training in the red mud at Grafenwoehr.
They knew what was in their best interest.
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