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Comment by diggan | Hacker News Reader

> Why aren't the kids joining the military? Did something happen in the last few decades that made them rethink it as a career option, possibly?

Wouldn't the right question to answer be why anyone would want to join the military? At best you get an average/below-average salary, at worst you get sent to fight in wars. Seems like very little benefits for a lot of risks.

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The other problem is it’s not just a job, you sign away your rights for life and can be recalled at any time. Also, if you really piss them off they can recall you then try you under the BS military judicial system instead.

If you’re particularly unlucky you get blown up in the sandbox 6,000 miles from home and die for nothing.

Don’t sign on the line kids, it’s never worth it.

It’s the surest way to access European-like benefits for the lower class, in the US. Housing (for your family, too), healthcare (ditto), retirement, free education, paid vacation (if not much of it). Pretty good schools for your kids, mostly.

But in most of the rest of the OECD, like Britain? Yeah, not sure.

Instead maybe simply emigrate to Europe?

How on earth do you think immigrating anywhere is an easy process?

Easier than subjecting yourself to an abusive, aggressive, nationalistic organization with its own laws, that may take you to a battlefield.

I had known many who made the US-EU jump, it didn't sounded particularly hard (the administrative part)

As someone with a high school diploma and nothing else, and zero cash in the bank? Those are the folks to whom enlisting is appealing (in the US, at least). Not college grads in hot, in-demand fields with at least five figures liquid and ready to spend on immigration expenses.

I'm in the same boat as you are more or less - just have cash in the bank - beyond that everything I do is based on North American standards - much of it does not directly translate to Europe - if I wanted to remain employable, Canada or Australia is where I would have to go, as in my industry they're closer to the US technically.

Tell me how I know you've never LEGALLY tried to move to a new country.

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