[...] all those past and present who have bravely taken the oath to defend our great nation and serve a cause greater than their own self-interest, thank you, thank you, thank [...]

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Very nice Wordsmith, outstanding visual you used for our outstanding troops that we can never, ever repay for what they have, still and will do for this country. I also appreciate the respect they prove daily for the nation they dedicated their lives to serve. They are serving us far from home, as they always have, in life threatening conditions, as they always have, just asking for some support from home.

Bless them all and their families that are also sacrificing, supporting and praying for their loved one and all that serve with him/her. A big weight they carry for all of us.

From your article:

“active-duty recruits came from the top half of those in the United States testing highest in math and verbal aptitude,”

High verbal apitude is right. Having read military blogs over the past few years and comments from our outstanding contributers here, who couldn’t know that?

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The task of signing up people for military service has become much more difficult since the Iraq war and, as a result, much more expensive.

In fact, in per-enlistee terms, recruiting costs have more than doubled over the past 20 years – from about $7,000 per recruit in 1985 to more than $16,000 per recruit in 2005, according to a report for the Defense Department titled “Recruiting an All-Volunteer Force.”

http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0412/p02s01-usmi.html

And then you have had a reduction in the annual goals in recruitment numbers, raising the maximum enlistment age from 35 to 42, enlisting those who are overweight or have physical injuries, granting entry to those with a criminal record, lowering the aptitude standards, instituting a massive stepped up effort in recruitment, and finally, the added sweetner of a $20,000 signing bonus.

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I love that photo, I will find a use for it some day. thanks for what you do…

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Gosh those MRAPs look familiar. Whoever worked on those must be one helluva soldier.

To all veterans, thank you for your service, and thank you especially to those who are serving today.

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very memorable pick, has depth and meaning. thank you to all serivce men and women who put themselves out there everyday. you guys rock and deserve far more than you get.

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