The Tufts Daily editorial for Thursday, Nov. 2, 2006, argued that John Kerry's already infamous comments regarding education and military service were spot-on. Kerry said, "You know, education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. If you don't, you get stuck in Iraq." It is outrageous that the Daily would support such a disrespectful and asinine comment disparaging America's soldiers.
Like most Americans, the Daily did not accept Kerry's longwinded explanation of what he had meant to say. The Daily, in fact, argued that Kerry was correct in his original statement: that military service is the indirect consequence of economic and educational deficiencies.
"The reality that a high school diploma no longer guarantees an adequate job, coupled with the skyrocketing prices of college in this country has led thousands of young people to enlist in the army as their best option for their futures."
It is undeniable that many men and women enlist in the military straight out of high school for lack of a better option. But it is also undeniable that military service offers these teenagers precisely what they need most: discipline, moral guidance and, above all, a sense of service before self.
I have personal experience meeting young soldiers who frankly told me that they joined the military because they found themselves disliking the people they were becoming.
Not one expressed regret. They were quietly thankful for the new direction in their lives and reveled in the challenges they were facing. They were focused, motivated, and several talked about their ambitions to pursue a college degree and a commission through ROTC after their service in Iraq.
As Kerry pointed out, these kids are not doing "well." They do not drive BMWs and Range Rovers. They do not have parents who cheerfully cough up $45,000 every year for their schooling. They do not complain about overzealous police, their lack of sleep, or even a lack of paper towels. Actually, they do not complain about much at all.
Why? Is this another manifestation of their not "making an effort to be smart"? Or do they find more satisfaction than money can give in their service to the nation?
The Daily's editorial made military service out to be some sort of penal servitude that only a poor, uneducated person would subject himself to as a last recourse. In reality, many military members joined up not from desperation, but from a sense of duty and a desire to serve a cause larger than themselves. Many walked away from cushy civilian jobs or educational opportunities.
After Sept. 11, West Point experienced a wave of resignations from its cadet corps. Cowardice? Not exactly: Cadets could not stand to remain in class while the war was being waged against terrorism. They dropped out, forfeiting a free college education, and enlisted to reach the front lines faster. Nathaniel Fick, a classics major from Dartmouth and a Marine Corps veteran, speaks in his book of his admiration for a private in his platoon. John Christeson earned an appointment to the Naval Academy but turned it down to enlist in the Marines and fight in Iraq.
Most American 19-year-olds are freshmen in college. Their every need is met, and their only challenges are intellectual. But some cannot stand to live in comfort while others their age fight for them. They serve on principle, not desperation.
At Tufts, 21 students will become officers in the armed forces upon their graduation. The Daily has done an admirable job highlighting these cadets and midshipmen. But it has not discussed the obvious question: Why do so few students from Tufts choose to go? Are these 21 students merely an aberration? Did their education fail to save them from the plight of being "stuck in Iraq" at some point in the future?
Hardly. These students are neither ignorant nor stupid. They simply do not share Kerry's goal of "doing well." They recognize that someone must serve in the U.S. military and see more satisfaction in serving the nation than in the six-figure jobs their classmates crave. What better use could there be for education than to lead soldiers wisely and ethically?
Clarke Burns is a sophomore who has not yet declared a major.
