Friday, March 28, 2008

Crime doesn't pay (or does it?)

My recent article about the anti-war/pro-troops paradox inspired more than a few e-mails and comments. I’m happy to report far more agreement than I might’ve imagined. However, a few challenged the stats I used to show that only a small percentage of American troops enlist solely for economic reasons. For the sake of argument, let’s say I got it all wrong. Let’s say that most of today’s enlistees volunteer because they lack almost any other economic options.


(Thanks, Rick)

What I’m wondering is this: Would this same economic excuse hold water for those who opt to become gang members for the same exact reason? A poor black kid “enlists” in the Crips, a poverty-stricken Hispanic “enlists” in the Latin Kings...for that matter: an uneducated Italian kid in Bensonhurst “enlists” in the Mafia. These kids are also faced with a stark choice—being poor or choosing a uniform—but no one hangs yellow ribbons for them, no one makes excuses them.

There are two primary differences between them and the men and women who volunteer to join the US military:

1. The US military is far more dangerous than any gang or Mafia family
2. The US military is considered legal

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Posted on 03/28 at 05:56 AM
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