Gangs Have Infiltrated Military. How Great a Threat?

[jnevis]

Ya know, I just realized something. 
The OWS crowd is complaining about the 1%ers. Outlaw biker gangs have always considered themselves the 1%ers.  I think we should put them together for a meeting!

[tombogan03884]

Ya know, I just realized something. 
The OWS crowd is complaining about the 1%ers. Outlaw biker gangs have always considered themselves the 1%ers.  I think we should put them together for a meeting!

Now you're thinking J !
We can invite the Mexican Mafia,  Crip's , and some Yakuza for "Cultural diversity.   

[Solus]

Sort of a   "Last 1% Standing" type of competition 

[mkm]

I'm going to break the trend a little.  I'm going to say it may be a bigger problem than we give it credit.  Gangs and gang signs have shown up in military zones worldwide.  Many of these people are essentially born and raised in a gang; they aren't looking to replace their "family" with the military.  Some of the larger gangs operate in a highly structured hiearchy a lot like the military.  They come in and learn the skills they were sent there to learn, do their minimum time, or get kicked out.  Once back in their hood with their crew, they can spread their newly acquired training.  This is probably more of a problem in larger cities, but I wouldn't bet on their allegiance to the military being greater than their allegiance to the gang.

[tombogan03884]

I disagree MKM. The fact of gang membership indicates criminal activity, arrests and convictions are grounds for refusal by the services, so the percentage of veterans who gang members would still be lower than in society at large.

[Sponsor]

[mkm]

I disagree MKM. The fact of gang membership indicates criminal activity, arrests and convictions are grounds for refusal by the services, so the percentage of veterans who gang members would still be lower than in society at large.

Don't get me wrong.  I'm not saying that the percentage of veterans who are gang members is higher than society at large.  I have no doubt that most veterans are upstanding members of their communities, and I am very grateful for them.

With that said, no one can deny that there are always a few bad apples.  It has also been shown that gang members are present in the military. The few members who are specifically sent in for training are the ones I'm talking about.

To take it back a few years, almost all of the original outlaw bikers were veterans. 

[jnevis]

I disagree MKM. The fact of gang membership indicates criminal activity, arrests and convictions are grounds for refusal by the services, so the percentage of veterans who gang members would still be lower than in society at large.

There's a waiver for just about anything.  Recruiters have quotas and some how gone to great lengths to meet them. IIRC it was a Navy recruiting district a few years ago that faked ASVAB scores AND diplomas to get kids in from some bigger city, Chicago I think (go figure).  The quotas are currently fairly low and they are able to meet them legitimately right now but a few years ago that wasn't the case.  If you walked in the door the Recruiter would do just about anything to get you shipped.  Now they can be a little more selective and won't process as many waivers, but still do.

[Magoo541]

Jenvis, took my son to the recruiter back in May and did the whole paperwork thing, found an 11B opening, with a Jan/Feb '12 ship date, and thought we were good to go.  Turns out he was diagnosed with ODD, Obstanance Defience Disorder, when he was 14 or so in addition to the ADD every boys is diagnosed with.  The doctor wrote a letter for my son on the ADD that he was off medication, he did that on his own, and was "cured" of his ADD but the ODD slipped past us, turns out it was a deal breaker.  He needs to go back to the doc to have the ODD thing taken care of but he's working construction and can't take time off for anything other than girls and heading to the lake (girls in bikinis).

He's 18 and I can only do so much from here, he's up in Montana, but even if he could get approved it would be the end of next summer before he shipped out.

[tombogan03884]

Being "pig headed " is a "disorder" now ? 
WTF ?
That used to be treated with a kick in the ass.

[jnevis]

He should keep trying if that is what he wants to do.  Has he considered SeaBees?  If he's already working construction and if he doesn't mind it...(Go Navy)  

Not making light of the situation, but I'm glad I joined before they had a "disorder" named for being a PITA  Sometimes I think they are trying to make everybody have a mental condition.