Military recruiting crisis?

[EndtheMadnessNow]

The US military, at least going by this paper below is not worried about the current "recruiting crisis." They view it as a minor hurdle that can be navigated fairly easily and at the moment will simply rely on more PMC contractors than usual.

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters Volume 52, Number 3 8-25-2022

Meeting the US Military’s Manpower Challenges (15 pg PDF)

Some excerpts:

To pay for expensive technologies, many strategists favor a reduction in force size. In light of the strategic focus on China, the different service branches are adopting their own approaches. Since the Navy and Air Force are likely to play the most important roles in a conflict with China, the Army is likely to shrink. The Army, however, would play a critical role in a conflict with Russia. At the same time, it is trying to develop capabilities that will also be useful in the Pacific theater, such as long-range anti-ship missiles. Even when large numbers of ground combat troops are not needed, the Army has historically provided large numbers of troops to support other services.

The Air Force will likely cut its force to finance modernization efforts. The Marine Corps is currently restructuring its forces (Force Design 2030) for the Pacific theater. It plans to shrink to pre-Iraq and pre-Afghanistan levels to pay for long-range precision weapons and unmanned aerial vehicles.  The Navy, for some time, has been perceived as an outlier because it plans to grow its force structure and increase its fleet considerably, though its earlier goal of reaching a 355-ship fleet collapsed due to staggering costs. Although Russia’s invasion of Ukraine may delay the long overdue pivot to Asia, the future focus on China will require modernization and investment in high-end technologies rather than large numbers of troops.

Analysts agree the biggest challenge for the armed forces in an age of near-peer competition is the quality rather than the quantity of service members.
Recruiting and retaining personnel with high-end technical and cyber skills, (since the cyber domain is projected to increase rapidly) must be a priority. The 2018 National Defense Strategy highlights the necessity to modernize professional military education (PME), implement improved talent management, and better utilize civilian workforce expertise.
....
While acknowledging that manpower supply is a serious concern, this article has argued that the notion of a “manpower crisis” needs to be nuanced. Although the relatively small recruitment pool of qualified youth remains a serious challenge for the armed forces, the underlying issues of obesity, previous criminal records, and lack of education may, to various degrees, be worked around. Nor do all of these issues trend in the wrong direction, particularly when it comes to the educational attainment of young Americans.

The Department of Defense has historically found ways to overcome manpower shortfalls. First, the Armed forces have used more contractors at home and abroad. Contractors are less expensive and easier to recruit and terminate. The US military has adopted a practice employed by private companies for a long time—outsourcing certain activities that do not need a highly skilled workforce. Outsourcing is problematic since the practice makes the military dependent on a private sector driven by different incentives than the public sector. Second, reservists have been used more efficiently—and could be used even more efficiently if appropriately managed.

Third, the number of Department of Defense civilians has increased.Over time, the military has shifted active-duty personnel functions to other
workforces to overcome recruitment and retention problems because active-duty service members are expensive. Although much of the discussion focuses on recruitment, some analysts think retention is a more significant concern since it is easier for the military to mask the numbers. Some believe the most talented people tend to leave and continue their careers elsewhere.

I think part of recognizing the post-vietnam NatSec state that we've been living under for the past 50 years is understanding that the draft will literally never be reactivated, ever. Pivoting to foreign militias, drones of every shape & kind under the sun, and now entire proxy countries has been a long march towards ensuring there is always a wall separating the public outcry against military intervention vs the actual morale and efficiency of that intervention.

During the Vietnam era there was no wall. With everyone since, there has been. Even while Rumsfeld was deflecting on national TV when he was asked if the US would use nukes post-9/11, the one thing the Bush Admin was firm on was that the draft would never be activated.

Perhaps the goal is to put the US public as far away from the actual warfighting as possible. Utilizing drones even US soldiers barely interact with the targets, they just use an X-box controller in an air-conditioned RV in the Nevada desert to obliterate whomever.

[Brotherman]

The US military, at least going by this paper below is not worried about the current "recruiting crisis." They view it as a minor hurdle that can be navigated fairly easily and at the moment will simply rely on more PMC contractors than usual.

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters Volume 52, Number 3 8-25-2022

Meeting the US Military’s Manpower Challenges (15 pg PDF)

Some excerpts:

To pay for expensive technologies, many strategists favor a reduction in force size. In light of the strategic focus on China, the different service branches are adopting their own approaches. Since the Navy and Air Force are likely to play the most important roles in a conflict with China, the Army is likely to shrink. The Army, however, would play a critical role in a conflict with Russia. At the same time, it is trying to develop capabilities that will also be useful in the Pacific theater, such as long-range anti-ship missiles. Even when large numbers of ground combat troops are not needed, the Army has historically provided large numbers of troops to support other services.

The Air Force will likely cut its force to finance modernization efforts. The Marine Corps is currently restructuring its forces (Force Design 2030) for the Pacific theater. It plans to shrink to pre-Iraq and pre-Afghanistan levels to pay for long-range precision weapons and unmanned aerial vehicles.  The Navy, for some time, has been perceived as an outlier because it plans to grow its force structure and increase its fleet considerably, though its earlier goal of reaching a 355-ship fleet collapsed due to staggering costs. Although Russia’s invasion of Ukraine may delay the long overdue pivot to Asia, the future focus on China will require modernization and investment in high-end technologies rather than large numbers of troops.

Analysts agree the biggest challenge for the armed forces in an age of near-peer competition is the quality rather than the quantity of service members.
Recruiting and retaining personnel with high-end technical and cyber skills, (since the cyber domain is projected to increase rapidly) must be a priority. The 2018 National Defense Strategy highlights the necessity to modernize professional military education (PME), implement improved talent management, and better utilize civilian workforce expertise.
....
While acknowledging that manpower supply is a serious concern, this article has argued that the notion of a “manpower crisis” needs to be nuanced. Although the relatively small recruitment pool of qualified youth remains a serious challenge for the armed forces, the underlying issues of obesity, previous criminal records, and lack of education may, to various degrees, be worked around. Nor do all of these issues trend in the wrong direction, particularly when it comes to the educational attainment of young Americans.

The Department of Defense has historically found ways to overcome manpower shortfalls. First, the Armed forces have used more contractors at home and abroad. Contractors are less expensive and easier to recruit and terminate. The US military has adopted a practice employed by private companies for a long time—outsourcing certain activities that do not need a highly skilled workforce. Outsourcing is problematic since the practice makes the military dependent on a private sector driven by different incentives than the public sector. Second, reservists have been used more efficiently—and could be used even more efficiently if appropriately managed.

Third, the number of Department of Defense civilians has increased.Over time, the military has shifted active-duty personnel functions to other
workforces to overcome recruitment and retention problems because active-duty service members are expensive. Although much of the discussion focuses on recruitment, some analysts think retention is a more significant concern since it is easier for the military to mask the numbers. Some believe the most talented people tend to leave and continue their careers elsewhere.

I think part of recognizing the post-vietnam NatSec state that we've been living under for the past 50 years is understanding that the draft will literally never be reactivated, ever. Pivoting to foreign militias, drones of every shape & kind under the sun, and now entire proxy countries has been a long march towards ensuring there is always a wall separating the public outcry against military intervention vs the actual morale and efficiency of that intervention.

During the Vietnam era there was no wall. With everyone since, there has been. Even while Rumsfeld was deflecting on national TV when he was asked if the US would use nukes post-9/11, the one thing the Bush Admin was firm on was that the draft would never be activated.

Perhaps the goal is to put the US public as far away from the actual warfighting as possible. Utilizing drones even US soldiers barely interact with the targets, they just use an X-box controller in an air-conditioned RV in the Nevada desert to obliterate whomever.

Fuck it, bring on the lizard squad 

[Finspiracy]

Old stuff here:

3.6.2015 10:52
[*]The Union of Conscientious Objectors says that it is becoming much more common to resign from the army. By the end of May some 485 reservists had resigned from the army, according to a statement from the union. In 2014 fewer than 300 resigned over the whole year.

[*]I resigned from the reserve troops of Finnish defense forces 2017 or so. As mandated by law, i was sent to civil service center for 5 days. Loved it there. Great lectures, great food, plenty of like-minded people. And some time away from this dusty apartment. I wish i could go again, but obviously, i can't.


Now, 7 years later (after that news article clip) the resignations are at an all time high. Records being made. You all know why...

[*]( Zero idea where the
[*]things come from, or how to remove them. Deal with it)

[*]The fuckers multiply. Gotta end my post here or it will be nothing but strange * stuff

[Snarl]

Old stuff here:

3.6.2015 10:52
[*]The Union of Conscientious Objectors says that it is becoming much more common to resign from the army. By the end of May some 485 reservists had resigned from the army, according to a statement from the union. In 2014 fewer than 300 resigned over the whole year.

[*]I resigned from the reserve troops of Finnish defense forces 2017 or so. As mandated by law, i was sent to civil service center for 5 days. Loved it there. Great lectures, great food, plenty of like-minded people. And some time away from this dusty apartment. I wish i could go again, but obviously, i can't.


Now, 7 years later (after that news article clip) the resignations are at an all time high. Records being made. You all know why...

[*]( Zero idea where the
[*]things come from, or how to remove them. Deal with it)

[*]The fuckers multiply. Gotta end my post here or it will be nothing but strange * stuff

There's a whole bunch of internal talks going on about this Woke Ideology being a deterrent to recruitment. They're wasting their time like the ID10Ts that they are.

I can assure you of this: It's not even a consideration to a recruit. A recruit's awareness of how Woke the military has become is just laffable.

The recruiting problem probably has a lot more to do with simple lack of motivation ... based on an overall Lazy high school population. There's so much more to life than a sentence of military service that exceeds what most judges hand out to convicted felons these days.

Why join if it's not even worth it? You ought'a see what it's like here in the States. You drive through almost any neighborhood any day of the week, and what you won't see ... is kids playing outside.  Everyone is just stuck indoors all the time. All the kids are fat, dumb and lazy.

[Finspiracy]

[*]
Why join if it's not even worth it?

[*]I dunno. Old values? Like freedom and justice? Not everyone are woke. Everyone does not have a different gender for each day of the year and cancelling everyone and everything and building back better.

[*]Yeah, kids playing outside. Rare these days here too. Beautiful sight when it happens, though. Breaks my heart how us, the adults have left them a total mess to deal with. Fabricated crisis after a fabricated crisis and these people are trying to grow up to be some sort of balanced adults. How could they understand what is going on, regarding the world around them, when even most adults do not have a God damn clue?

[Snarl]

[*]
Why join if it's not even worth it?

[*]I dunno. Old values?

They're gonna have to pay more.  I know I'd take a job at McDonald's for starting wages before I would even half-way consider signing-up for another career in uniform.

The medical benefits were worthwhile for the past 20 years, but the co-pays and difficulty getting in to see a doc are eroding that feeling with a quickness.

I don't even know what benefits would incentivize interest to be honest. I can only tell you from what I do know, and my present and past affiliation, no recommendation is going to pass my lips.

[NightskyeB4Dawn]

[*]
Why join if it's not even worth it?

[*]I dunno. Old values?

They're gonna have to pay more.  I know I'd take a job at McDonald's for starting wages before I would even half-way consider signing-up for another career in uniform.

The medical benefits were worthwhile for the past 20 years, but the co-pays and difficulty getting in to see a doc are eroding that feeling with a quickness.

I don't even know what benefits would incentivize interest to be honest. I can only tell you from what I do know, and my present and past affiliation, no recommendation is going to pass my lips.

I used to sing the praises of the VA. Now I try to avoid the place like the plague. Once all the good doctors left, they were replaced with a bunch mentally impaired fools that could not get a job anyplace else.

Never say never, but they are going to have to pull some serious magic out of their hat to get me to ever volunteer to serve again.

[Finspiracy]

So do you Rogues think that the military of The USA is weaker today than what it used to be.? Or stronger, but maybe not even close to the strength it could be, in optimal conditions (No wokes, No recruiting problems, great VA?)

I would really like a strong American military. Our countries could be allies soon. I hope that happens, but it is not my call. It is the call of a Turkish dictator.

[Snarl]

[*]
Why join if it's not even worth it?

[*]I dunno. Old values?

They're gonna have to pay more.  I know I'd take a job at McDonald's for starting wages before I would even half-way consider signing-up for another career in uniform.

The medical benefits were worthwhile for the past 20 years, but the co-pays and difficulty getting in to see a doc are eroding that feeling with a quickness.

I don't even know what benefits would incentivize interest to be honest. I can only tell you from what I do know, and my present and past affiliation, no recommendation is going to pass my lips.

I used to sing the praises of the VA. Now I try to avoid the place like the plague. Once all the good doctors left, they were replaced with a bunch mentally impaired fools that could not get a job anyplace else.

Never say never, but they are going to have to pull some serious magic out of their hat to get me to ever volunteer to serve again.

Retired from Active Duty in '98. Never dealt with the VA. I guess I'm fortunate.

[ABNARTY]

I was on recruiting duty for a while with the Army. Finding qualified kids back then was hard enough. Now? 

I'm am being serious. In my area, about 70%-80% of the young people were not qualified. They were too fat, to physically unfit, on too many medications, couldn't pass the entrance exam, or had too many law infractions.  

Of the ones who could jump through all the hoops, few were interested. At the time DA did not care and did nothing to assist the problem other than smash down recruiters harder. I worked from 08:00 in the morning to 21:00 at night M-S. Sundays were a "day off" but you usually ended up working anyway. Two of the recruiters at my station committed suicide. Yet no one cared. 

The new woke advertising will have no affect. ANTIFA/BLM types are not prone to enlist anyway. 

The cost of contractors to perform the roles of military members is fine as long as the tax payers are willing to foot that bill. Pound for pound, a Private in the Army or any branch is your most economical way to defend the nation. A contractor on the other hand is about the most expensive way to go. The tax payer pays twice. They pay Uncle Sam to train them and them pay a contractor 5-10X to hire them after they get out. 

But the bill payers in Congress are not concerned about that. They benefit financially from the MIC playing a bigger role.

[Finspiracy]

But you have a population of 330 million.

Sure you can find enough fit and qualified youngsters to have a strong and powerful army?

If The United States falls, the whole west falls, it is simple really.

Don't fall!

[NightskyeB4Dawn]

But you have a population of 330 million.

Sure you can find enough fit and qualified youngsters to have a strong and powerful army?

It The United States falls, the whole west falls, it is simple really.

Don't fall!

Part of the problem is level of maturity. When I was 8 years old, I washed and dressed myself, cleaned up my brother and dressed him. I cooked my breakfast. Fed my brother. Walked him to the lady's house that watched him, then went to school. 

After school I picked up my brother. Made us a snack. Washed, dried, and put away the dishes. Then did my homework. All before my Mom got home from work.

18 year olds can't do that today.

Too many of our youths can't tie their own shoes. And they can't put down their phones.

[Finspiracy]

Part of the problem is level of maturity. When I was 8 years old, I washed and dressed myself, cleaned up my brother and dressed him. I cooked my breakfast. Fed my brother. Walked him to the lady's house that watched him, then went to school. 

After school I picked up my brother. Made us a snack. Washed, dried, and put away the dishes. Then did my homework. All before my Mom got home from work.

18 year olds can't do that today.

Too many of our youths can't tie their own shoes. And they can't put down their phones.

That is really impressive from an 8 year old!

And yes, the phone thing is really, really bad. Young people seem to really be unable to put down those phones for more than 30 seconds at a time.

[Ninurta]

Part of the problem is level of maturity. When I was 8 years old, I washed and dressed myself, cleaned up my brother and dressed him. I cooked my breakfast. Fed my brother. Walked him to the lady's house that watched him, then went to school. 

After school I picked up my brother. Made us a snack. Washed, dried, and put away the dishes. Then did my homework. All before my Mom got home from work.

18 year olds can't do that today.

Too many of our youths can't tie their own shoes. And they can't put down their phones.

That is really impressive from an 8 year old!

And yes, the phone thing is really, really bad. Young people seem to really be unable to put down those phones for more than 30 seconds at a time.

That's just the way it was back in the day. Kids did more, because they COULD do more. I could cook at 8 (probably better than I can cook now, since my focus has shifted away from eating over the years), and had 3 younger sisters to look out for. Responsibility jerks one towards adulthood a little faster, and kids don't have many responsibilities in general any more. They don't have to grow up, because mommy and daddy will take care of everything for them, so they don't.

I had a rough patch in life a while back, and my son ended up looking after me for a while, since I was unwilling to look after myself. Really, dead or alive made no difference to me. I think that did him a good turn and jerked him towards adulthood early. He's well on his way now, and didn't freak out when he developed a family of his own to look after. He'd already been there and done that, and already had a sense of responsibility installed that stood him in good stead.

Perhaps that sense of responsibility was a factor, but he shied away from military service, since the military is becoming less and less responsible these days with it's focus towards wokeness and away from fighting ability. The purpose of a military is to kill folks and blow stuff up, not kowtow to little Pat(rick)/Pat(ricia)'s choice of gender for the day. No responsible person wants to surround themselves with blue haired kiddies who can't figure out which set of genitals they are packing today. it's a losing proposition.

Add to that the military intentionally hobbling itself by booting out it's best and brightest because they didn't want to be guinea pigs for an experimental vaccine, and the draw towards a military career diminishes even further. There are better choices for career in the private sector. I'm not sure the military can ever offer enough incentives to overcome that deficiency without first eliminating the drawbacks of an all pansy volunteer force.

So now they are playing it off like it was a plan, done on purpose to buy more technology in lieu of a boots-on-the-ground capability. That will not turn out well, I think, but I'm well known for being a Luddite who fails to see the advantage of tech that will break just exactly when you need it the most, in accordance with Murphy's Law. That's why I won't even buy an AR without sights - even though it is more expensive, and therefore clearly super-duper advantageous to own an expensive gun that you can't even aim. Last time I was in the market for one and shopping around, a guy tried to sell me one for 125% of what I finally settled on, and it had no sights. So I said "where's the sights?" and he explained that it was "optics-ready". So I said, "yeah, that's fuckin' great, but WHERE ARE THE SIGHTS?", to which he only shrugged like I was some kind of idiot and repeated that "it's optics-ready, don't need any sights". As gently as I could, I informed him that a gun without sights is not ready for ANYTHING - it's just a goddamned expensive paperweight.

And that is what the US military is galloping towards - being "optics ready" and in need of batteries that die at the most inopportune time, while at the same time getting rid of the iron sights that it used to be effective with.

Why would anyone with half a brain and a love of country volunteer to get himself into a losing proposition like that? Especially if he knew ahead of time that he's just be volunteering to babysit a bunch of pink-haired idjits who had no sense of responsibility themselves?

Losing propositions - the best and the brightest run away from them.

.

[EndtheMadnessNow]

So do you Rogues think that the military of The USA is weaker today than what it used to be.? Or stronger, but maybe not even close to the strength it could be, in optimal conditions (No wokes, No recruiting problems, great VA?)

I would really like a strong American military. Our countries could be allies soon. I hope that happens, but it is not my call. It is the call of a Turkish dictator.

I exited the Navy shortly after Clinton granted women on combat ships. I was about to re-enlist, but thank my lucky stars for getting out. A few of my buddies had stayed in and within 2 years were slaughtered due to saying the wrong words. Post 9/11 really did a number on the younger generation and their kids into a weakened, childish snowflake society high on emotional fear, confusion, hopelessness & social media rage. AND now woke roaring 20's appears to be devastating. I know there is youngsters that see right through the woke crowd, but they're overwhelmed by them. This culture war will eventually pass, but it's going to be awhile.

Can hardly wait toward the end of this decade when I think the pendulum will swing the other way. We're either going to start seeing alot of secret highly advanced formidable weaponry being rolled out, or a whole lotta marketing fluff that's been sold to the Pentagon generals & congress that doesn't work very well in the real world.

"You would think intelligence would count for something in the intelligence business. But, do you want to know what it really is? What really sets the agenda? Military-industrial happiness.

You keep the coffers open in Congress, you keep the money flowing to the contractors."
- Hank Forrester, Snowden movie

[NightskyeB4Dawn]

So do you Rogues think that the military of The USA is weaker today than what it used to be.? Or stronger, but maybe not even close to the strength it could be, in optimal conditions (No wokes, No recruiting problems, great VA?)

I would really like a strong American military. Our countries could be allies soon. I hope that happens, but it is not my call. It is the call of a Turkish dictator.

I exited the Navy shortly after Clinton granted women on combat ships. I was about to re-enlist, but thank my lucky stars for getting out. A few of my buddies had stayed in and within 2 years were slaughtered due to saying the wrong words. Post 9/11 really did a number on the younger generation and their kids into a weakened, childish snowflake society high on emotional fear, confusion, hopelessness & social media rage. AND now woke roaring 20's appears to be devastating. I know there is youngsters that see right through the woke crowd, but they're overwhelmed by them. This culture war will eventually pass, but it's going to be awhile.

Can hardly wait toward the end of this decade when I think the pendulum will swing the other way. We're either going to start seeing alot of secret highly advanced formidable weaponry being rolled out, or a whole lotta marketing fluff that's been sold to the Pentagon generals & congress that doesn't work very well in the real world.

"You would think intelligence would count for something in the intelligence business. But, do you want to know what it really is? What really sets the agenda? Military-industrial happiness.

You keep the coffers open in Congress, you keep the money flowing to the contractors."
- Hank Forrester, Snowden movie

At work at the hospital. On break, will make it breif.

I had responsibilities as a child. The family worked because we worked together.

Most children today have no responsibilities. Not even to themselves. Parents thought they were making life easy for their children. Life is not easy. So they are not ready or prepared for the hell fire that they will have to swim through.

[EndtheMadnessNow]

So do you Rogues think that the military of The USA is weaker today than what it used to be.? Or stronger, but maybe not even close to the strength it could be, in optimal conditions (No wokes, No recruiting problems, great VA?)

I would really like a strong American military. Our countries could be allies soon. I hope that happens, but it is not my call. It is the call of a Turkish dictator.

I exited the Navy shortly after Clinton granted women on combat ships. I was about to re-enlist, but thank my lucky stars for getting out. A few of my buddies had stayed in and within 2 years were slaughtered due to saying the wrong words. Post 9/11 really did a number on the younger generation and their kids into a weakened, childish snowflake society high on emotional fear, confusion, hopelessness & social media rage. AND now woke roaring 20's appears to be devastating. I know there is youngsters that see right through the woke crowd, but they're overwhelmed by them. This culture war will eventually pass, but it's going to be awhile.

Can hardly wait toward the end of this decade when I think the pendulum will swing the other way. We're either going to start seeing alot of secret highly advanced formidable weaponry being rolled out, or a whole lotta marketing fluff that's been sold to the Pentagon generals & congress that doesn't work very well in the real world.

"You would think intelligence would count for something in the intelligence business. But, do you want to know what it really is? What really sets the agenda? Military-industrial happiness.

You keep the coffers open in Congress, you keep the money flowing to the contractors."
- Hank Forrester, Snowden movie

At work at the hospital. On break, will make it breif.

I had responsibilities as a child. The family worked because we worked together.

Most children today have no responsibilities. Not even to themselves. Parents thought they were making life easy for their children. Life is not easy. So they are not ready or prepared for the hell fire that they will have to swim through.

I wasn't that adept at 8, I think around 11, but yes solid points!! Too many youngsters are looking for free hand-outs and little to zero effort.

[ChiefD]

So do you Rogues think that the military of The USA is weaker today than what it used to be.? Or stronger, but maybe not even close to the strength it could be, in optimal conditions (No wokes, No recruiting problems, great VA?)

I would really like a strong American military. Our countries could be allies soon. I hope that happens, but it is not my call. It is the call of a Turkish dictator.

Well, I know that the Navy is nowhere near what it used to be. I was active duty in the 80’s, during the Reagan 600 ship Navy. My God, to think we had almost 600 ships compared to what there is now is just mind blowing. There are memes on other social media sites as to what people spend time doing in the military. The joke is that 99% of the pie graph is training on not killing oneself, and raping people and other stuff, with the 1% being their actual job and war fighting. 

It’s kind of scary how weak the American military is now. They think that automating everything and using drones will fix the problem. It won’t. You need boots on the ground. I hate to think what would happen if there were actually another war. Very scary.

[Snarl]

The cost of contractors to perform the roles of military members is fine as long as the tax payers are willing to foot that bill. Pound for pound, a Private in the Army or any branch is your most economical way to defend the nation. A contractor on the other hand is about the most expensive way to go. The tax payer pays twice. They pay Uncle Sam to train them and them pay a contractor 5-10X to hire them after they get out. 

But the bill payers in Congress are not concerned about that. They benefit financially from the MIC playing a bigger role.

I've heard real horror stories about working in recruiting. Almost SMH wondering how the senior staff could abuse their people as badly as I've heard.

When I retired, I think I was getting $37K/year pay & benefits. Couldn't land a full-time job to save my life. Took a temp job as a dishwasher making $5/hour. When 'the call' came ... well ... that was a no-brainer. I came home 18 months later and took 'a position' paying $25K/year. Hard to believe looking back.

The outfit I used to get calls from hasn't in a while now. Maybe, because even as hard as I work this property, I'm getting fat ... LOL.