Recruitment Standards
Re “A Sound Recruitment Plan,” Commentary, Feb. 21: Lowering the recruitment standards for military service during peacetime can have dangerous consequences both for the military and high school students. Graduating from high school today is hardly enough to obtain any decent employment. Moreover, it may encourage those students doing poorly in school to drop out and join the service.
During wartime it may be necessary to draft men and women (perhaps) no matter what their education. If we can’t get enough high school graduates to fill the ranks of our peacetime military, maybe we should think of reinstating the draft.
HAL ROSS
Los Angeles
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I strongly support the plan of Secretary of the Army Louis Caldera to lower the educational standards for enlistees. Thousands of sound, motivated young men and women are being excluded from the opportunity to serve their country.
The Army in particular is equipped to provide the additional education under disciplined conditions, as Army personnel are not as subject to instant deployment. Furthermore, many are deficient because of misguided educational procedures such as in California.
Having started service aboard ship in 1938, I am experienced in training volunteers as well as recruits without high school diplomas. Men and women can learn under proper guidance such as the Army can give.
PAUL C. LOVELACE
Los Angeles
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Your Feb. 17 report on Army recruitment brings up a frightening problem: Too many citizens are undereducated. Our concern as a republic should not be that the Army places too high or too low a concern on recruitment standards. Instead we should focus our energies on determining why so many Americans aren’t completing high school. A representative democracy cannot survive with an ignorant populace.
We must impel our young to finish their secondary education. If that means subsidizing low-income families so that their kids do not have to work, so be it. Lowering the Army’s standards is treating the effect and ignoring the cause.
MARK MISHKIN
Los Angeles