I'm watching Democracy Now and just got floored! An Army recruiter in Texas told a potential recruit he would go to prison as a deserter if he didn't enlist!
If you aren't outraged now, you will be after you follow on...
This speaks for itself:
Army Recruiter Suspended for Threatening Recruit
An Army recruiter in Texas has been suspended after he threatened a potential Army recruit who was having second thoughts about joining the military. The recruiter, Sgt. Glenn Marquette, warned the young man, Irving Gonzalez, that he would be sent to jail if he decided to go to college instead of joining the military, even though the teenager had signed a non-binding contract that left him free to change his mind before basic training. This is part of what Marquette told Gonzalez.
Sgt. Glenn Marquette: "As soon as you get pulled over for a speeding ticket, they’re gonna see that you’re a deserter. Then they’re going to apprehend you, take you to jail. So guess what. All that lovey-dovey ‘I want to go to college’ and all this? Guess what? You just threw it out the window, because you just screwed your life."
After the Texas station KHOU broke the story, Republican Congressman Ted Poe hinted Congress may have to investigate Army recruiters. Poe said, "Our country cannot deceive its citizens. Since the Army hasn’t taken the initiative, now Congress may have to get involved."
HINTED? What... is that a poke to the Army to get on the ball whitewashing this over BEFORE Congress gets involved?????
The joke to the rest of the active duty is when recruits get to basic training and say, "but, my recruiter told me". However, this is, frankly, the worst lie ever told by a recruiter to a recruit and it's rank intimidation of the highest order to garner new recruits.
Can we now guess just how the Army is meeting its recruiting goals?
WASHINGTON (Army News Service, Jan. 31, 2008) -- The Army is on track to meet its fiscal 2008 recruiting goal of 80,000 new active-duty Soldiers, said the U.S. Army Recruiting Command's top officer.
Do you think this is an isolated incident? Think again. Here is the CBS report about this incident.
Army Recruiter Used Scare Tactics
Teen Who Signed Non-Binding Contract Told He'd Be Jailed If He Didn't Join Army
WASHINGTON, July 28, 2008
Now, here is the CBS report from the prior 2005 incident where an Army recruiter threatened a new recruit with arrest.
Hardball Recruiter Gets Promoted
Soldier Threatened To Have Potential Recruit Arrested
July 14, 2005
Now, notice something? You should!
Sgt. Thomas Kelt – the Houston soldier that caused a nation wide stand-down of recruiting offices after it was discovered he had threatened a young man with jail – was tracked down by Mark Greenblatt of CBS’s KHOU-TV.
Turns out even though he violated the Army’s strict recruitment guidelines -- and officials promised swift corrective action – Kelt has instead been transferred to another recruiting office where he has been promoted to supervisor.
Guess who broke the 2005 and 2008 stories? KHOU-TV! That's right, BOTH INCIDENTS OCCURRED IN HOUSTON, TEXAS, AT THE EXACT SAME RECRUITING OFFICE!
Marquette has been suspended from recruiting pending an investigation and both young men have been told they are free to get on with their lives. But this is not the first time this particular recruiting station has been caught using unethical tactics.
Three years ago, KHOU overheard Sgt. Thomas Kelt leaving a threatening voice mail for a young man who wanted to cancel an appointment he'd made to meet with him.
It is PAST time to get on the phone people! Do NOT let this GOP Senator prompt the Army to sweep this under the rug AGAIN! Remember, the first recruiter was given a change of station and was subsequently PROMOTED. His "punishment" must not have been too severe and the Army's "stand down" to retrain recruiters must have been a failure if it happens twice in the same office.
You can actually listen to the phone conversation here, and, I'd advise it (warning: contains strong language). This CBS story (with video and audio) reports on BOTH stories! Watch the recruiter (really, go here and WATCH the story) in question say, on camera, he had "no idea" what the reporter was talking about even though there is a tape of it!
This is beyond me being pissed off when our youth are being threatened with prison to get them to enlist!
Is the Delayed Enlistment contract binding? I'm going to cut to the chase here:
On the other hand, it's DOD's official policy that anyone can request to be released from the Delayed Enlistment Program.
That policy states:
E3.A1.1.5.5.1. Basis. A person who is in the Delayed Entry Program may be separated because of ineligibility for enlistment under standards prescribed by the Secretary concerned or upon his or her request when authorized by the Secretary concerned.
This file (.pdf) has a lot of information on the "Delayed Enlistment" program and how to opt out. If you think this type of intimidation is only isolated to two instances, think again.
Even though recruiting commands forbid threatening involuntary activation, some recruiters will go so far as to threaten arrest or large fines if the recruit does not report for active duty.
Recruits who enlist under the "delayed enlistment" program can opt out of that contract, thus, it is not a binding contract set in stone! Threatening a potential recruit who is under the Delayed Enlistment Program is forbidden under U.S. Army recruiting regulation:
Under no circumstances will any [recruiter] threaten, coerce, manipulate, or intimidate DEP members, nor may they obstruct separation requests. At no time will any [recruiter] tell a DEP enlistee he or she must ‘go in the Army or he or she will go to jail,’ or that ‘failure to enlist will result in a black mark on his or her credit record,’ or any other statement indicating adverse action will occur if the applicant fails to enlist.
The above comes from USAREC Reg 601-95 §3-1.b. (see also USAREC Reg 601-45 §2-3.h.) (.pdf formats). Keep in mind that this regulation works so well the recruiter who did just that in 2005 got promoted!
Potential recruits can call 1-800-FYI-95GI, the number for The GI Rights Hotline.
Get on the phones to your Congress critter and demand an inquiry! If you don't know how to get in touch with your Congress person, start here.
Remind your Congress person that this is now the second known instance of rank intimidation, blatant lying, and threats of imprisonment, all to garner recruits -- so it's obvious the Army can't manage their own.