Old 03-07-2005, 21:16   #1
GTRich
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18X - In Retrospect?

I know a couple guys who will supposedly be signing 18X contracts at the end of this Spring semester of college. They are sophomores (I'm a lowly freshman) and very driven individuals who, I think will make great contributions to their country, whether or not they are selected. If I were in their shoes I would finish college. If, for some reason, I couldn't do that I would enlist with the intention of being a paratrooper. Then who knows, maybe at some point I would try for the opportunity to go SF.

This question is for you Quiet Professionals. If you had to do it again, would you go 18X? Why or why not?
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Old 03-07-2005, 22:09   #2
lksteve
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part of the answer...

Quote:
Originally Posted by GTRich
This question is for you Quiet Professionals. If you had to do it again, would you go 18X? Why or why not?
#1...we don't have it to do again...
#2...if somehow, the clock could be turned back, i would have still enlisted when i was 18 and you still had to be 20 to go into SF back then, so the only way i could have done what i did is to serve in the 82nd, mature as a soldier, and bust my butt to get into SF...

i've known a couple of guys who were 18 when they went SF...one needs to be shot and i haven't heard much about the other one...
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Old 03-08-2005, 05:04   #3
Pete
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18x

Quote:
Originally Posted by lksteve
i've known a couple of guys who were 18 when they went SF...one needs to be shot and i haven't heard much about the other one...
The SF option of the mid 70s was similar to the 18X. You enlisted of the street for SF. If you fell out anywhere along in the training you were up for world wide assignment. You could also say that there were no recycles, just stuff like medical. Of the 118 who were out at Phase I with me, only 34 graduated to go on to Phase II (MOS Training). There was maybe 5 guys on medical hold. The other almost 80 guys had been reassigned and were gone, no longer in the company when we came back from MacKall.

That tended to cut down on problems. You either made it or you didn't, no second chance. Also when you got to a team you were around older guys and that had a great impact on your actions (not all good )

Yes, I would do it again if I were younger and had to do it all over again. The mission, the people you serve with, the good times and the bad times all make for memories that few others will ever have.

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Old 03-08-2005, 10:05   #4
NousDefionsDoc
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I spent 3 in the 82nd Airplane Gang. I wouldn't change a thing about any of my time except breaking my back. Hell, I can march!
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