Tags: US Army
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Why Don’t They Make Recruiting Commercial Like This Anymore?
Tags: US Army
sign me up…
Was this produced and directed by Ronald Reagan?
that’s what got me signed up!
hooah!
Because young Americans are no longer interested in patriotism. New recruiting videos pander to those who cant get accepted in to colleges or have other reasons to “get away from home”.
Unfortunately, from what I see on a daily basis this has also resulted in a class of young military persons who are more likely to do 4 years and get out, then when I and others enlisted back in the late 80’s and early 90’s.
Im proud to be “Old Corps!”
Not all young Americans.
Army-Money for college/look at the sweet job training we got for little effort
Navy-Global force of do gooders/tech stuff/NAVY SEALS!
Air Force-Look at how nerdy you can be
Marine Corps- You got what it take to be a f******* meat eater?
So only the Marines fight right? All due respect, I’ve seen plenty of jarheads that look like they managed to get through boot camp with that, what is it, 3 pull-up minimum? Plenty of army combat arms soldiers look like they’d chew those kids up and spit them out, even if they did two whole weeks more in basic… Rollin my eyes, bro.
Pretty sure he meant how they portray themselves/are perceived, not necessarily who’s actually in each service.
And here’s another patriotic young American. (and damn proud of it)
Thanks for having a brain Taylor.
Young Americans are no longer interested in patriotism? That’s a pretty strong statement. But…. I suppose if 100% of the young people you’ve met aren’t patriotic that’s your reality. Sad.
Ok, lets say 80% of the young enlisted persons that I have contact with on a daily basis have no patriotism at all. They are here for a check and the promise of a college education which in most cases they will not use when they get out in 4 years.
I see more of these young enlisted persons joining, getting trained, then leaving in 4 years and taking a low level job as a private contractor and making 2-3X what they would be as an enlisted person.
I apologize, I did not mean ALL of them. Just the very large majority of them!
You make it sound like it’s criminal if you don’t want to do 20 and punch… Just because someone doesn’t decide to make the military a career, doesn’t mean they’re an entitled punk kid, or are unpatriotic. Kudos to the folks that do retire, I respect that. But it isn’t for everyone.
Usually it’s toxic leadership, rampant hypocrisy, and too much politics that influence many people’s decisions to get out. The stress and bullshit isn’t worth one’s health or sanity. I see good people get steamrolled by “leadership” every day, while dirtbags and losers skate by unnoticed or don’t get punished; that wears on everyone.
Thank you Phil. This was damn near the exact reason I decided to get out instead of re-enlist. I went in wanting to make it a career and retire from it.
JHS,
I’m sure you remember it that way but the fact is that the majority of people who join the military do one term and then leave. It has been that way since we returned to a volunteer military in the 70s.
Every generation of soldiers / marines / airmen /sailors (generation = about 5-6 years) declare that the new soldiers aren’t as patriotic or tough as they were “back in the old days”. It just isn’t true.
But don’t worry, in another 5-6 years the new recruits of today (those that reenlist) will be lamenting how unpatriotic and weak the class of 2020 has become. And the cycle will begin again.
When I joined in 1975 I just wanted to “get away from home” and didn’t have the money for college. And like most of my peers I was too young to really understand larger concepts like patriotism or selfless service. That comes later.
I also fully intended to get out after 4 years. Most of my peers did just that. But I ended up staying thanks to some great NCOs. And during 36 years in the Army I had the honor of serving with several generations of new soldiers.
And I can say without hesitation that the newest are at least as patriotic and tough – and good – as I every was.
So my advice is to give the youngsters a break. Thank those that leave after their first term for their service and wish them luck.
But (if you are still in a position to do so) do some mentoring to help those with potential for long(er) service to grow and develop and stay.
Just my opinion.
Good stuff!
Before you crap on today’s enlistees, recall every single one who enlisted since 9/11 knew we were at war and that he individually had a good chance of getting sent down range.
As for the money, job training, and college stuff, that’s been prominent in ads and the pitch ever since we went to the All Volunteer Force.
im plannin on joining here soon for love of the republic or course its gonna be a 4 year enlistment but if i like it ill keep in as long as i can ….
I would like to share the same sentiment, but there are plenty of millenials that have turned some real shitheads into worm food and proven themselves.
I say 1 out of 3 new Soldiers that arrive in my Unit show up without any heart. Straight out of OSUT and 19 year old kid does 33 pushups and does 19:47 on his 2 mile run. BAM – flagged, on a radar.
These self-centered punks are the product of helicopter parents who raised them protecting them from the world, and when they decide to join the Armed Forces they think they are soo special – while any stress will cause them to cry to the Chaplain and claim PTSD. Easy way out.
While I am at it – since when the US Armed Forces decide to recognize all different cultures and make everyone feel oh so special? Like I really give a flying fk about a Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month or any special interest group thats wants to recoginze their achievement in the US Armed Forces. Maybe I am bitter becuase there is no Easter-European-American Heritage Month and no Kielbasa is served at the DFAC. As a immigrant I joined to be part of the US Armed Forces. Although I recognize and respect all types of different cultures and races within the US Armed Forces I never forget that we’re all serving under the same flag and uniform. Just becuase you came from different country or look different doesnt make you special, and you shouldnt be treated any special then the Joe next to you. After duty? Sure – let’s go to a bar and celebrate whatever the occasion is, Cinco De Mayo, Pulaski Day, Martin Luther King day…
Instead of uniting Soldiers we’re creating groups who tend to keep to themselves becuase it is encouraged to do so, just look at your local DFAC.
Sorry for my rant. It’s been a long day.
SSD, I will completely understand if you delete my post due to its being off topic. Thanks
No, I find it germane.
I see what you did there lol
That’s back when Americans were proud of their country and Ronald Reagan was actually a president who led the world with actions and rhetoric. The PC BS of today would never tolerate a military recruiting ad that bolstered patriotism.
I’ll tell you why Eric. There’s been a fundamental change in society that trivializes service to one’s country. I just lost an uncle who was a WWII vet (Italy and Sicily) both he and the guys he paled around with saw things differently.
What the hell happened to Pillsbury, Crest, Colgate, Windex and Mr. Clean commercials? They’ve been replaced by leaky vagina medication, erectile dysfunction, catheter sample packs, and hemorrhoid medication. Hell, If you experience an erection lasting more than 4 hours, don’t go to the doctor for Christ’s sake. Get your wife to invite her girlfriend over…
You are right, we don’t see recruitment commercials like that anymore. Nor will we, I’m sad to say.
You’d better go yell out your front door; those damn kids are on your lawn again!
I have to admit, that video kind of choked me up. That’s the reason I joined. For love of country and a sense of duty. I will always believe that its ones duty and privilege to server their country. Too many people take advantage all our rights without ever contributing to the greater good. Long live the Republic and God Bless America!
Sure does beat the Aussie Army recruiting commercials that are just full of chicks and choppers…
Oooo I’m down for that!
That on a laser disc in the recruiter’s office is what got me. 1989. 11X, COHORT, 10th Mountain Division, 4 year initial.
America, fuck yeah. And anyway you cut it, the America depicted in that video is no longer with us. Not a dig on current generation, but too much has changed.
And those kids need to get off my yard!
Well maybe we can get these commercials back when Putin decides to revive the Soviet Union.
I thought he already had.
I remember watching that back in the late 1980’s in between episodes of Gi-Joe and Transformers back in Elementary school! When we played Cowboys and Indians and Ruskies vs the a good Guys in our back yards ! I’m certain there are legions of Soldiers who were motivated to serve by that ad, it definitely made lasting impression on me and to this day I’m still serving as a Soldier. I really wish they still made these types of recruiting ads, ones that made you feel proud and patriotic.
The era of the “Army of One” and the whole “it’s all about me” is not what the Military is about. At the same time, I have to say that the “Video Game” Game
I remember watching that back in the late 1980’s in between episodes of Gi-Joe and Transformers back in Elementary school! When we played Cowboys and Indians and Ruskies vs the a good Guys in our back yards ! I’m certain there are legions of Soldiers who were motivated to serve by that ad, it definitely made lasting impression on me and to this day I’m still serving as a Soldier. I really wish they still made these types of recruiting ads, ones that made you feel proud and patriotic.
The era of the “Army of One” and the whole “it’s all about me” is not what the Military is about. At the same time, I have to say that the “Video Game” generation did answer the call when our Nation called in her decade of need.
That commercial spoke to me in absolutely no way. Perhaps it’s generational. I don’t know.
Those of you who would decry today’s volunteers need to recognize that societal norms and mores change. They can change quite quickly. What spoke to a recruit in 1974 was different than one in 1994 which is different than one in 2014. That’s good. That’s fine. Also, remember that every generation is only a reflection of the parenting.
Lastly, I couldn’t care less why service members join. If they are patriotic. Great! If they want the absolutely sexy Post-9/11 GI Bill, get some! I don’t care. Just do your job, do it well, be respectful, and don’t get out of line, and we’ll get along very well.
Ads like that are what drew my interest… I was probably in 7th or 8th grade when that one came out… They don’t make them like that anymore because Army advertising is managed on Madison Ave, and they have no clue… It’s been a few years, but when I was got stuck on recruiting duty I found the advertising extremely frustrating. Everything coming out was pussified… we had one or two posters or billboard ads (which we had to get board owners to post as a PSA – USAREC would not pay for the space) that were ‘tactical’… everything on TV was neutered… by contrast, everything the Marines had was either snake-eaters or SDP (maybe a few aviation here and there)… The stuff now is no better.
It’s all about target audiences.
The ad agencies on Madison Avenue know exactly what and how to do what they do..down to several decimal points. Big Army is the customer, and Big Army wants to recruit X number of certain young people who fit a certain profile, who will be reasonably trainable, reasonably compliant, and most of whom are not intended to be retained as career soldier. Madison Avenue uses highly researched messaging to influence specified target audiences, for any product, whether cars, pills, political candidates, timeshares or Army enlistments.
Most SSD readers are probably an unusually self-selected group, and we are not representative of the Big Army target audience.
Meanwhile the Marines take market share… because the big army thinks it knows what it wants, but has no idea what it needs… while I was on mission, they would not listen to what people in the field would tell them about their target audience or how to reach them… the army seems to spend a lot on advertising to sell parents, not the actual enlistees… which is backwards… advertising should generate the interest, and let the recruiter sell the parents.
That made me want to extend my enlistment. I’m already in! I joined purely for patriotic reasons in the first place.
It’s funny how some are complaining about the present generation. I joined the Army in the 80’s (yes, I remember the commercial) and I heard the same thing from the older generation about my generation. As the years went by I heard my generation saying the same thing about the newer generation. I have a different perspective. I don’t believe the Soldiers/Marines/Sailors/Airmen really change. I see the politicians and the upper brass (Pentagon) as the ones that change for the worst. If you want to complain, then change your focus on the establishment, upper echelon, whatever you want to call them.
It’s those f-er’s at squad!
The brass is why I left… I saw the decision making, the types that were getting promoted to birds and stars, and those that weren’t, and didn’t like where things were going. By and large, from what I can see from the outside now, what I was concerned about has, in fact, manifested itself, and reaffirms that decision.
For all those crowing about how much better soldiers were back when:
There are a ton of kids in Arlington that supposedly grew up softer, weaker, and less patriotic. Please visit them and let them know they don’t really get sacrifice or service.
This is why:
http://www.radixjournal.com/altright-archive/altright-archive/main/the-magazine/gi-jane
No Tony. That’s not why. You might want to get your information from sources that are just a little less racist and homophobic.
I saw nothing “racist” or “homophobic” (seriously look up phobia in a dictionary) from that article. I guess if it didn’t come from Huff Post or TYT it must be “racist” right??
Jian,
Maybe you should read it again. The author (apparently to bolster his argument against women and homosexuals) writes:
“The Army similarly maintains that racial integration led to no negative effects whatsoever and that it somehow made it a “more effective fighting force.” [15] The near collapse of the United States Armed Forces during Vietnam and afterward because of racial divisions belies this conclusion.”
So, according to the author, racial INTEGRATION almost destroyed the US Military and contributed to the loss of the war in Vietnam.
So, again according to him, racial integration (not racial prejudices) weakened and continues to weaken our military.
The author then goes on to say that the only reliable fighting forces left in the US military are fighter pilots and Special Forces because they are still almost “100% white”.
Not male, not straight – white.
Get it? The article clearly says that the US military has been in a steady decline sine 1948 when Truman directed desegregation.
It therefore also implies that the best way to regain our military “purity” and strength is to purge the gays and the women and the blacks.
So yea, even though it doesn’t use the N word it is as racist as hell. And it isn’t hard to see.
“A phobia (from the Greek: ????? phóbos,”aversion”, “fear, morbid fear”) is, when used in the context of clinical psychology, a type of anxiety disorder, usually defined as a persistent fear of an object or situation in which the sufferer commits to great lengths in avoiding, typically disproportional to the actual danger posed, often being recognized as irrational.”
And yea, I think the exaggerated fear of all things homosexual is ridiculous and more irrational than rational.
this is what made me join… as well as other reasons. best recruit video ever in my opinion.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=07-RnI8W4xY