• Ydna@lemmy.world
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    2 hours ago

    The GI bill also effectively pays you to take classes. The money is designed to be used for housing but it’s distributed as cash into your bank account. If you fail a class, you can re-take it as needed (though eventually this counts against you for academic reasons). They really pull out all the stops.

  • qbus@lemmy.world
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    9 hours ago

    Don’t forget about the free socialized grocery stores the military gets to shop at too

  • busted_Anoose@aussie.zone
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    21 hours ago

    anyone thinking about signing up to the military should talk to some vets, see how they are treated on the other side with lifelong injuries both mental and physical or both.

    • Earthwormjim91@lemmy.world
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      10 hours ago

      Pretty well, speaking from direct experience. VA has taken care of me medically. Got my degree paid for. Got a zero down home loan. Gave me connections that have supercharged my civilian career.

      Virtually everyone I served with has the same experience. The Marines were nothing but good for my life. Just sucked while I was in lol.

      I know there are vets out there with the opposite experience. But the ones I personally know with that experience were shitheads before the Marines and shitheads when they got out/got kicked out.

  • merc@sh.itjust.works
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    18 hours ago

    In a proper society with socialist benefits, you wouldn’t need to join the military to receive those benefits.

    Basically, those are employer benefits. Your employer happens to be the US government, and you get healthcare, college tuition and housing as benefits from your employer.

  • Kn1ghtDigital@lemmy.zip
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    1 day ago

    Stating the obvious but need to shout into the Internet:

    It’s incentive, turning desperate people into expendable weapons. War is good money for powerful interests with no qualms about human lives.

    • rayyy@piefed.social
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      1 day ago

      You could say the same about the orange pedo’s recruitment of subservient goons into ICE, and even all his other appointments.

  • SalamiDommie@lemmus.org
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    1 day ago

    To the point of the meme - can we talk about how much of a struggle our military currently has at recruiting? Those benefits do not get them the head count that they desire.

      • heartSagan5@lemmy.zip
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        17 hours ago

        Because even the executive offices are having brain drain. That’s why they’re hot for AI, they’ve lost the head count because it isn’t a good place to work.

    • emeralddawn45@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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      1 day ago

      And if those benefits were provided to everyone, they’d have an even harder time. The people who want to cut social spending are the same ones who want to spend trillions on useless wars, and they need people to be desperate enough to sign up to be cannon fodder for the billionaire war mongers to make money off of.

  • ignirtoq@feddit.online
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    1 day ago

    I want to say upfront that I don’t subscribe to this argument myself, but the belief isn’t that people don’t want social programs. The argument is that society can’t afford them. Supposedly, if people’s basic needs are met by government programs that don’t require any work from them, then enough people will stop working that tax revenue will fall below required levels for those programs and the whole system will collapse. Therefore people blocking or otherwise countering these programs are actually saving people from themselves.

    I don’t think it’s a good argument, but let’s not build a straw man.

    • kboos1@lemmy.world
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      21 hours ago

      The most common argument I get from people is that their hard earn money would taxed to go to the undeserving.

      I personally don’t mind paying my share of taxes as long as it’s being used responsibly. I am a little upset that the ones with the most wealth don’t pay their fair share.

    • Hapankaali@lemmy.world
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      1 day ago

      Not only is it not a good argument, the real-world data shows a positive correlation between more generous social benefits and more people entering the workforce.

      • Axolotl@feddit.it
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        1 day ago

        And some people will be even more willing to pay taxes.

        (I admit that i have no data but just a few anecdotes) i noticed that in my country where taxes magically disappear and are used for bullshit stuff (eg, during the covid pandemic they spent a shit ton of money on desks on wheels for schools which almost no school got 'em and were fucking useless) and so everyone hate to pay taxes “what the fuck do they use all those money for??” and so people evade taxes which make our situation worse, while friends in some other countries (I think like Denmark, if I’m not mistaken) don’t have any problem to pay 'em

      • SalamiDommie@lemmus.org
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        1 day ago

        Non-combative point. Could you address that point to the military? Per the original post?

        • ParlimentOfDoom@piefed.zip
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          22 hours ago

          The original point is : look at all these good things the government offers to military recruits, to entice them to join.

          The same people then decry the government offering those good things to everyone. Then they’re bad things, suddenly.

          The military requires desperate people feed their recruitment quotas.

          • kboos1@lemmy.world
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            20 hours ago

            I believe that the justification is that they have served the military so they have more than paid for those benefits and it’s the least that could do since they have given up years of their life and possibly mental health that will set them back when they exit the military.

            I have more than a few friends that served only to find out that if you’re not an officer then rest of the world treats that time as a gap in work history.

    • lath@lemmy.world
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      1 day ago

      Tax revenues are already in the shithouse because the largest accumulation of wealth isn’t paying tax. Tax all the billionaires properly and you get a couple of trillions in taxes. Suddenly society will be able to afford a lot of things.

    • TaterTot@piefed.social
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      22 hours ago

      let’s not build a straw man.

      walking in with a couple of button’s for eyes and a straw hat

      “oh… okay…”

    • workerONE@lemmy.world
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      1 day ago

      Capitalists want a workforce that is desperate and does not have basic needs met. So the argument is that if people aren’t desperate enough they won’t work? Think about medical care. If you owned a factory wouldn’t you want workers to show up, healthy and fed and ready to work? Sure they do, but they would rather have desperate people who have no choice but to work for pennies, who can’t afford to take time off to vote or strike.

    • x00z@lemmy.world
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      1 day ago

      While thinking about this some time ago, I looked into health care and how much it costs a country related to what the people actually get. Most European countries spend around 20% of their budget on healthcare, and get almost free healthcare in return. The US also spends around 20% on healthcare, and we all know what that gets you. So society can easily afford it, it’s just that in the US healthcare funds don’t go to the people, they go to the rich.

      The second point, where people with needs met will not work, is not true. After 1 year of paid unemployment, life becomes extremely boring and dull. Even if you are housed, clothed, fed and healthy, you’ll want more things from life. You’ll want money to do fun activities and go places, buy a nicer house, car, phone, clothes, etc. I literally know a UK guy that would get £200/month less if he would work (which is a different problem) but he’s still considering it because he feels like a leech and simply has too much time on his hands.

      • busted_Anoose@aussie.zone
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        20 hours ago

        ive read that going free healthcare would actually be cheaper in the US than the current healthcare and pharma leech parasite middle men system currently in play

  • heartSagan5@lemmy.zip
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    17 hours ago

    Also, another reason why university/college may be spendy and loans are often offerred, they want you to go for the GI bill to keep their recruitment numbers up and hook John Q. Public with more DOD budget increases.

  • fizzle@quokk.au
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    1 day ago

    Obviously, it’s because it’s an offer made to an individual, rather than asking whether the individual wants everyone to enjoy those things.

    • WhoIzDisIz@lemmy.today
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      1 day ago

      Yeah, any individual that is “fortunate” enough to not have any issues that make them unusable for the purpose of Cannon Fodder.