Our country continues to face a military recruiting crisis – as many branches are offering sign-on bonuses and other incentives to get more people to join. Sean McFate, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council and an adjunct professor at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, is an Army veteran and believes he knows the real issues at hand. He writes:
Sean McFate
“Honestly, I have a hard time with the 2023 Index of U.S. Military Strength, and most things that come out of them these days. It’s a little naïve, because the military has already tried all these things, but it’s not worked. I don’t think their researchers are paying attention.
People don’t volunteer for the military just because they want job opportunities or a free education. Military life is hard, and you can get killed. You need to believe it’s worth it, and that’s the current problem. Who can blame youth today who look back on 20 years for war and ask: What was it all for? Nothing, apparently.
Also, this is an absolute trope and ‘red flag’ that these analysts are not taking it seriously: ‘Low unemployment rates (plenty of job opportunities in the civilian sector).’ It’s not like the late 1990s tech boom. The ‘plenty of job opportunities’ are not career opportunities. For example, yes McDonald’s and the Gap are hiring, but that’s probably not the reason people aren’t volunteering for the force. No one is saying, ‘Gee, I really want to be a VP at Burger King, so goodbye Army!’
It seems like the military is caught in the culture wars where half of the recruiting pool thinks the military is too woke to join (conservatives) and the other half thinks military service is distasteful (liberal). That doesn’t leave much of a recruiting pool.”
If you’re interested in an interview with Sean, please reach out to Vanessa Marquette, Syracuse University Media Relations Specialist, at vrmarque@syr.edu.
