Lately I've heard radio ads paid for by the U.S. Army (i.e. paid for with our tax money). The ads urge people to get in teenager's faces and push them to attend school regularly and don't drop out.
Why is the Army spending money on this? The government recently cut benefits for veterans because the government needed to save money. The Army can't get enough enlistees because they can't offer soldiers enough pay for the risky job of fighting a war. But they spend money on these ads?!
How does the Army benefit from this expenditure? Is it because our schools promote submission and discourage students from thinking for themselves? That would certainly prepare them to join the Army. Is it because our schools promote jingoism and right-wing views that support the military?
So far, I've only heard this ad on Air America, a network with limited appeal to teenagers. It seems the Army is not as interested in lecturing young people as they are in getting old dudes to see the Army lecturing young people. Perhaps their strategy is to convince parents the Army is a good place for their children to be, a place that promotes "good values" like going to school, obeying your parents, and eating all your vegetables.
Whatever their reason, I think our money could be put to better use.
When I was a high school student, I often cut class so I could hang out at the library and learn. I ultimately grabbed a GED and dropped out of school so I could pursue an education, and I still believe it was the best move I ever made. (I'm currently a student teacher, so I know our high schools haven't gotten much better.) Now here's the government spending my money and yours to lecture us that students should be pushed into attending classes regardless of the quality of those classes.