Will Improved Military Enlistment Last?

Re-joining up: US soldiers saluted at a mass reenlistment ceremony last November at a US military camp in Balad, north of Baghdad in Iraq. Defense officials worry that a generous new GI bill could affect the currently strong reenlistment rates. Thaier al-Sudani/Reuters/File

From Christian Science Monitor:

Retention rates may be hurt by the GI Bill's expanded school benefits as well as potential budget cuts.

Washington - The US military is maintaining its allure during the economic downturn as thousands of service members are opting to stay in the service.

But a number of factors converging this year may complicate the military's ability to retain them over the next couple years.

The Pentagon is preparing to implement a comprehensive new GI Bill to subsidize service members who want to attend college. The bill, which goes into effect in August, is considered as a way to pay back a generation of troops who have made enormous sacrifices in Iraq and Afghanistan with a generous package of school benefits.

But, depending on a number of factors, including the economy, the new school benefits could induce many service members to leave the service this year to go to school on the government's dime. At the same time, the services may have to cut back on the lavish pay-to-stay retention budgets that have kept them attractive.

All this spells uncertainty for the health of the military in the next year or so.

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My Comment: The answer to these hypothetical questions are always very hard to answer. In the military, there are numerous variables that can easily change anyone's prospects over night.

But overall .... my experience with many who choose to serve the military has always been that the idea of Duty, Honor, and Country .... while it may sound cliche .... is firmly believed by many who make the decision to don the uniform .... and in the final analysis .... it is the reason why they enlist.