The decline in physical and mental fitness among young adults that has made many ineligible for military service is worrisome, but it may not be a grave national security concern. This is because our methods of killing terrorists and thwarting attacks now rely more on technology than manpower.
The 2011 killing of Osama bin Laden required two helicopters containing two dozen Navy SEALs. In 2020 the U.S. killed Qasem Soleimani—Iran’s second most powerful leader—with a drone and remote control. The role of technology in the military is evolving, and it’s hard to imagine that these types of operations will require putting U.S. troops on the ground for another eight years.
More concerning is the lack of technical talent that America is producing compared with China and Russia. We should be most concerned with the percentages of students who are proficient in math, science and cybersecurity.
One of the best ways to address this is to spend more on ROTC programs, which produce technical talent and military-level discipline. I wish I had known about it when I began college, and more effort should be put into advertising it. America spends more on its military than the next 10 highest-spending countries combined, and there is no reason we can’t make a serious effort to expand programs like these that work.
—Peter Iossa, Pennsylvania State University, Physics
Lost Financial Incentives
The military serves an important role in economic mobility for the working class. This often drives recruitment. I have peers who have been able to attend college only because of the GI Bill and other associated benefits, which have exempted them from the continuously spiralling college-debt crisis. Public support for college-debt relief and other similar measures have damaged this enlistment incentive. As the social safety net expands, the military will have to find other means of enticing potential recruits.
The decision to enlist is also influenced by public sentiment, especially among Gen Z—the target demographic for recruiters. I have heard countless times that enlisting in the military is a trap: Those who serve can fall behind the earnings curve compared with peers with certain college degrees. With the loss of old-fashioned American patriotism and meagre financial incentives, it’s no wonder Gen Z isn’t interested in the military.
—Trey Livian, University of California, Berkeley, economics
Gen Z Blindness Problem
The convergence of anti-American sentiment and falling physical-health standards has culminated in 80% of 18- to 24-year-olds being deemed unfit to serve, which has deepened the recruitment-retirement ratio.
To Gen Z, the idea of serving our country means working as an activist, spearheading campaigns, and firing verbal warning shots at anyone who dares to disagree. This generation is blinded by rose-coloured glasses, refusing to accept reality until it is too late. We must pull our heads out of our smartphones and examine such necessary changes as depolarizing politics and instilling national pride.
If needed, I would volunteer to protect my country. Americans take freedom for granted and assume that it will always be protected. But if we don’t teach this generation that their freedom can be taken away, the country is in jeopardy.
—Evelyne Holland, Southeastern University, communications and mass media
The Politicization of Everything
According to the Reagan National Defense Survey, 62% of Americans believe military leadership has become overly politicized and decreased their confidence in the armed forces, and almost 60% say it is due to a lack of presidential competence. To combat this, the military must rescind its political posturing and affirm its core values: protecting American freedoms, not designing them.
Lost confidence in American institutions through this politicization should be deeply concerning. Four out of five young adults in the U.S. aren’t fit to serve due to being overweight, using drugs, or not meeting other of the military’s physical and mental standards. But it’s even more concerning that healthy people don’t want to join.
If the U.S. instils discipline, and excellence and provides an abundance of opportunities free of social politics, young people will begin to join again. The military shouldn’t be brought under political scrutiny. Americans would do well to remember the Marine Corps motto: “Semper Fidelis” (Always Faithful) to each other, our country and the battles ahead.
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