My son at 14 wants to be a marine and kill Osamas in the desert

Yeah, no offense to the dad though, it might not be his fault.

He might want to kill me too in 4 years (assuming I make it to RMC), because I'm gonna be a Redcoat near Fort Henry

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He's only 14 you don't have to take his idea seriously as yet. On the other hand if he really wants to be a marine by 17 and 18 talking to vets won't change his mind too much. Some soldiers are born way before they're made.

 

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that is not good.. a 14 year old wants to go over seas with full intent on killing people...

 

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Little boys have been playing war since the beginning of time, they don't all grow up to be warriors even if they fancy the idea at the time. Its more childish to assume he's really interested in 'killing people' than he is caught up with the idea of being a strong warrior scaling walls and getting the enemy. He's a boy for christ's sake!

 

Not good for the Islamists!

 

Running around on a game like Call of Duty, Battlefield or Counterstrike isn't the same as the real world. After all you get killed you just wait a few seconds for a re-spawn in a game, in the real world, that's your ticket punched.

Having the intention to go out and kill is not something I would promote, most of the problems in the world are caused by just this sort of attitude. The intention of a man on the ground isn't so much about killing people, it's about trying to resolve the issues that certain people, groups or countries cause. This could mean standing guard on a checkpoint, protecting a convoy delivering food or building materials, or even actually being involved in trying to re-engineer destroyed or damaged infrastructure so that the indigenous people of the area can have running water (reducing the risk of diseases and famine)

When people talk of honour in war, it shouldn't be about the bodycount, as far as I'm concerned the higher the number of lives taken the larger the failure.

 

Whom is that addressed towards? Surely you're not thinking of the 14 year old who's knowledge of life, death and history is next to nil.

Why anyone would worry about the fleeting aspirations of a 14 year old is beyond me. If he's 18 and makes the decision there still isn't anything anyone can do about it save support or disapprove.

 

The young are impressionable and as they grow older if those impressions are left to their own devices, later on they could suffer from delusions which could become problematic.

I'm not suggesting any singular point of view should be enforced on the young, however they should be at least taught to try and see things from more than just one angle, as it will aid in later life.

 

Oh jesus you must have forgotten what its like to be 14 when your fascinations changed from month to month. The impressions of a 14 year old rarely remain the same unless you believe there is no growth, if you're addressing naiveté that can continue way into ones mid-20's. To call a 14 year olds ideas about life 'delusions' is the same as calling a playful fantasizing toddler 'delusional', its not the appropriate adjective. I doubt Jmpet hasn't discussed the down side of being a soldier, I know men who's father's, grandfathers and uncles served and came back with stories all funny, sad, heroic and horrific and they still went ahead and joined anyway. You cannot call the mind of a young person which is still essentially that of a child 'delusional'. Delusions are symptoms of a mental disorder not of youth itself.

What I would suggest he tells his child is not to join if he's thinking of money for college or benefits of that kind, he should join because its what he wants to do in and of itself as either a stint or a career. I would also tell him to go to college under ROTC so he can join the services with immediate rank, a straight line to being an officer. I would also have him read about great war battles and introduce him to documentaries of various sorts that allow him to see the diversity of experiences from past wars and then I would have him have a decent understanding of what goes on behind the political decisions that create a great deal of wars. That's as much as any parent can do, keep their child educated and informed.

 

What's wrong with wanting to be a soldier? It's an honorable profession.

 

Nothing. There isn't anything wrong with being a soldier what's difficult is being a good one.

 

In fact SunTzu said the best Generals and Leaders win wars without even fighting a battle.

The most perfect victory is to turn an enemy into a friend for a common purpose.

 

Have you done that with Asguard yet? Just joking. On a serious note Sun Tzu's advice is directed towards commanders not the soldiers and in the modern world its not the generals who decide when and how to fight but the president and congress.

 

This is the quote Leaders in the U.S need to study:

 

So? What does that have to do with Jmpet's son wanting to be a warrior? Civilization isn't in Sun-Tzu's time and go back and see how many battles the Chinese fought both during and after Sun-Tzu's time. Theory doesn't always translate into reality. The Chinese were conquerers remember, they didn't build their empire by 'making friends'.

 

14year old boys have a better grasp on life than you think ur really assuming this kid is an idiot

 

One can be an idiot at any age, a 14 year old doesn't have any grasp on life and death in war especially if he is living in the West. Its you remember who claimed he wanted to go out there an 'kill people' an assertion I think an error which would make the child look sick but not an idiot, after all you don't have to join the military if your goal is 'killing people'.

 

Are you really calling me out for getting off tangent on a fairly obtuse topic? lol

Nothing has changed at the high strategic level from Sun Tzu's time. Absolutely nothing. Some of the book is outdated (but even information about say ...river crossings, simply needs modern unit types inserted), only when it (rarely) gets into detail, can the book be deemed slightly anachronistic.

So - more appropriate to this thread:

 

No I'm telling you that Sun Tzu's wisdom has nothing to do with ones desire to go into the military, it has nothing to do with a 14 year old deciding he would like to join the service. You pick out his wisdom about avoiding war but forget all those chapters on the strategy and tactics of war. Sun Tzu was no pacifist simply a wise tactician with his advice geared towards those in command.

 

He was not a pacifist, but if victory(or strategic aims) can be achieved without battle it is always the better course.

True, at the soldier level all he wanted was simple obedience (including to take prisoners rather than kill mercilessly). He killed the Emperors concubines to prove this point when they disobeyed orders during a demonstration on discipline.

So as others have already said, if this 14 year old keeps with his current attitude he will be in Leavenworth.