When I hear the words boot camp I often think of a bunch of recruits doing push ups constantly and getting yelled at by their drill instructors. They stay there 13 weeks (if it's the Marines), and then they come home. After that, they go off to war. But I think that the government is pushing too hard and boot camp and we the public don't realize what goes on behind the scenes.
My brother left for boot camp about two months ago and has been severely sick for a month and a half of it. He has had pneumonia, bronchitis, and they even tested for tuberculosis. You think they would have sent him home by now, but no. He has lost all his muscle, he can't complete the workouts, and he is fading away. Yet they still won't let him come home. I understand that my brother signed a contract, but I think that since he is so sick, he should get to be released.
There comes a point when they need to realize that he needs to go home or he's not going to get better. The government should come up with some kind of rule for these situations. Like send them home after they've been out for so long, because it gets to a point of where these kids are pushed to their limits and can't go any farther. We need to be on the lookout for the health of these individuals and not be so gun-ho on getting them through training.
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I did my time in boot camp about five years ago. The amount of people that get sick is astonishing. One of the reasons most people get sick is because their bodies are not used to the strenuous marches, activities, and workouts. Another is the close quaters the recruits are in. If one person has a cold, by the end of the week, everybody else has it.
If someone is sick they try to get people to 'suck it up and drive on' but some people just can't. They get even worse, get sent to the hospital, and usually recycled to another group.
However I do agree with you on , if somebody is just getting worse and worse, they need to let them go.
The problem is the military needs more and more recruits because of the freaking war. To the military, your brother is probably just another 'bleep' on the screen to make quota.
The only way out now is in a casket or on a hospital bed. There isn't much you can do.
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If a society is willing to give freedom for temporary security, they deserve neither.