There are a large number of so-called truths commonly mentioned in the media that are totally false. Many of these "truths" get repeated by people who should know better. Here are some examples that deal with America's armed forces:
1. The armed forces are composed principally of those who are not as well educated as the rest of society. This belief is widespread. Here is how then senator and now Secretary of State John Kerry put it a few years ago: ''You know, education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. If you don't, you get stuck in Iraq.''
Here's the truth. Over 93% of soldiers have a high school diploma or some college. That compares to less than 60% of the general population. Fully 83% of the officers have college degrees compared to just under 30% of the general population. What Kerry should have said is that if one studies hard and stays in school, one can make it into the military.
2. The poorest segments of society are over-represented in the army. After all, they have no other career choices. Think about it. How many times have you heard someone tell you that America has the poor fighting for it while the wealthy sit at home and ignore the battles.
Here's the truth. Only 11% of the recruits into the military come from the poorest fifth of the country. About 24% of military recruits come from the wealthiest fifth of the country. Get that? The soldiers and sailors are more likely to come from families that are well off than from poverty. This has been the case both before and since the recession.
There are also certain truths about the armed forces that never get mentioned. My favorite is the geographical distribution of recruits. The areas that provide more recruits than their percentage of the population are Texas and the South and the Mountain states in the West. The Midwest is just under the national average, then comes California and the Pacific state with the Northeast coming in last. And the polling done of recruits finds that the reason given most often for joining up is to serve the country. Since the bulk of recruits do not come from the media capitals of New York and Los Angeles, it is not surprising that the media still perpetuates myths about who actually joins the military and why they do it.
1. The armed forces are composed principally of those who are not as well educated as the rest of society. This belief is widespread. Here is how then senator and now Secretary of State John Kerry put it a few years ago: ''You know, education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. If you don't, you get stuck in Iraq.''
Here's the truth. Over 93% of soldiers have a high school diploma or some college. That compares to less than 60% of the general population. Fully 83% of the officers have college degrees compared to just under 30% of the general population. What Kerry should have said is that if one studies hard and stays in school, one can make it into the military.
2. The poorest segments of society are over-represented in the army. After all, they have no other career choices. Think about it. How many times have you heard someone tell you that America has the poor fighting for it while the wealthy sit at home and ignore the battles.
Here's the truth. Only 11% of the recruits into the military come from the poorest fifth of the country. About 24% of military recruits come from the wealthiest fifth of the country. Get that? The soldiers and sailors are more likely to come from families that are well off than from poverty. This has been the case both before and since the recession.
There are also certain truths about the armed forces that never get mentioned. My favorite is the geographical distribution of recruits. The areas that provide more recruits than their percentage of the population are Texas and the South and the Mountain states in the West. The Midwest is just under the national average, then comes California and the Pacific state with the Northeast coming in last. And the polling done of recruits finds that the reason given most often for joining up is to serve the country. Since the bulk of recruits do not come from the media capitals of New York and Los Angeles, it is not surprising that the media still perpetuates myths about who actually joins the military and why they do it.
No comments:
Post a Comment