Which branch of military would you go into if you had to choose one?

[OtterMan68]

Yes, I know the Marines are technically a branch of the Navy.

Air Force

Army

Coast Guard

Marines

Navy

Updates

11 mo

Personally, I choose Coast Guard, so I won't be sent to fight and die in some desert country's civil war.

Updates

11 mo

I still maintain the Coast Guard is the best, so you aren't shipped off to some third world place like Iraq or Syria to become a mercenary in another country's civil war

[libsaretards]

I was in the Navy and worked with all branches (except Space Force since they did not exist when I was in). Also my mother was Army, 2 cousins Air Force and Marine Corps uncle.

If I had it to do over, I would choose the Army. Depending on chain of command, the Army is more forgiving for mistakes made. I had a rotten attitude when I first joined the Navy and I made 2 mistakes when I served. That was enough to get me kicked out.

Also, Coast Guard DOES deploy to war as well. When I was in Iraq, there were Coasties over there as well. Coast Guard can also be absorbed into the Navy in times of war. Also, Coast Guard bootcamp is harder than all the other ones besides the Marines. They have a law enforcement role as well as military duties.

Here is the order of Basic Training by difficulty (as of when I went to basic in 2012. Also, this is Basic Training, not training after and not including special warfare units):

1. Marine Corps: 13 weeks, which is the longest Basic training. Toughest physical standards and hardest weapons qualification.

2. Coast Guard: 8 weeks. They learn MOST of the same things as the Marines in basic as well as laws. The Army has a harder PT test than the Coast Guard, but the overall training of Coast Guard basic training is harder.

3. Army: 12 weeks. Their basic is similar to Marine Corps when it comes to weapons qualifications, but the scores are not as stringent. They do not have a sea element to their training. When I was in the military, their PT test was the APFT, which was easier than Marine Corps PT test. With the ACFT, I am not sure if their PT test closed the gap with the Marines.

4. Navy and Air Force

Navy: 10 weeks (was 8 weeks when I served): Navy and Air Force have the easiest PT tests of all the Basic Trainings. In the Navy, you have 3 written tests, a swim qualification, handgun course and a final event (not allowed to discuss, but it is well-known). If you pass those and can handle some yelling, you can BS your way through the rest of Basic.

Air Force: 7.5 weeks. I am not up to date with Air Force. When I served in the military, Navy and Air Force had basically the same PT test. 1.5 mile run, push-ups and sit-ups. However, while Navy push-ups and sit-ups were as many as possible in 2 minutes, it was 1 minute for Air Force. Physically the Air Force does more throughout their basic, but their version of RDCs/Drill Instructors were more respectful to recruits than Navy was.

[RedInnocent69]

Navy or Coast Guard. Family connections.

[Dinklex3]

Army brat here ✋

Parents told me to join the Air Force because I wasn’t “army material” so that’s what I did.

[D_Bone_Steak]

Difficult. I was in the Navy and we had guys join us from the Air Force because they simply couldn't advance. The Army guys seem cool... Marines... eh, nah, I've been around that, and it has too many of the elements I didn't like about the Navy... the more "gay" (1990's use of the word) elements.

Yeah I'd probably pick Army, so I will vote as such.

[Chazmatazz269]

No, you’ll just be killed by the cartels in the war on drugs. That’s better! Ell oh ell! Or, i suppose you could sell out for some of that dirty cartel loot.
The marines are only technically Navy by organization of the military departments at the federal level. Otherwise, they are organized and run very differently in almost every way.
I’d choose the air force. Then they could reject me for my eyesight and i could go back to my merry way! Ell oh ell!
Never quit a job when you can make them fire you instead!

[handsomelad70]

I'll drink to THAT, Chazmatazz269 !!!

[abc3643]

Where's Space Force?

I'd join that. Back in 1992-4, when "Space Force" did not exist, but USAF Space Command still did, they used to be the primary customer for my organization, an FFRDC. So, I'd be a natural fit since I have knowledge and experience in that domain.

This was one of our bibles...

[abc3643]

RESPONSE TO UPDATE:

Maybe you should exclude the US Coast Guard from this question since it is no longer under the Department of Defense (and Navy of which it was a sub-branch). It is now under the Department of Homeland Security. It is still one of the 8 US "Armed Forces" and, in war time, can go under the Navy.

[OtterMan68]

i don't understand why space force isn't just a branch of the air force

[abc3643]

Because it should not be.
This is what I wrote in the New York Times yesterday as a comment to this article:

www.nytimes.com/.../...-military-russia-china.html
New Star Wars Plan: Pentagon Rushes to Counter Threats in Orbit
Citing rapid advances by China and Russia, the United States is building an extensive capacity to fight battles in space.

I wrote:

I can't stand Donald Trump, but the best thing his administration ever did was create the US Space Force.

30+ years ago, I was working for _____, a Federally-Funded Research and Development Corporation (FFRDC), which is a fancy term for a non-profit think tank funded by the US Government. "_______", as it was nicknamed because of the logo, was involved in aerospace and space domains mostly investigating in a non-partisan fashion issues relevant to the US Air Force. While working there, I was somewhat shocked to learn of the decentralization of space activities under the US government with there being, at the time, a US Space Command and a separate Air Force Space Command. With the Space Force becoming separate from the Air Force, there is now a united US Space Command dedicated to space defense under the Space Force. This is a good thing.

[KostasKouvalis]

Air Force. They rarely see combat and when they do, it's from the safety of a plane

[OtterMan68]

Coast Guard doesn't get sent off to fight in foreign wars!

[KostasKouvalis]

You still have to arrest smugglers though and you can still get murdered.

You're telling me you don't want to go to Iraq and Syria?

[KostasKouvalis]

What the? One of those was supposed to be the Great Mosque and Spiral Minaret of Samarra

upload.wikimedia.org/.../...%D8%AF%D9%84%D9%81.jpg

[KostasKouvalis]

Point being, they're interesting countries.

[OtterMan68]

I'd love to go to Iraq as it has some of the oldest ruins in the world, but not right now! Not syria either. It's not like US troops there are out sightseeing on their off hours, and they're not protecting their country like the Coast Guard is

[Anonymous]

If I could do it all over again, I would have been a Navy SEAL. Instead, I ended up in the National Guard got screwed over one time after another by hypocritical, incompetent, or absentee "leaders".

[handsomelad70]

As a boy , the USAF song which began "Off we go into the wild blue yonder" always intrigued me, plus I have many relatives who were Canadian and U. S. veterans.(Also, what chap wouldn't want to be a flyboy?)

[exitseven]

I was in Air Force ROTC in college so I go with that.

[BCA6010]

Already did my time and deployment in the Army. I'd probably pick the same branch again or just not care because virtually everything I didn't like about the Army is a persistent problem across all branches and much of the government.

[AviatorTom]

I'm too old for that now, but I always wanted to learn to fly.

[deus_ex_sisyphus]

How can you include Coast Guard, but leave out Space Force lmao?

[TheSpaceGnome]

None of them, if there was a draft I'd just relinquish my citizenship and move to another country. I'm not fighting in a war, I don't care who started it or why its happening, I'll take no part in that nonsense.

[Static_In_The_Attic]

Space Force

[Bricealan]

Air Force, like my brother so I could fly and drop explosive ordinance on the enemies of my country.

[SotiCoto]

I don't think one can just walk into a military base and shoot it up as though it were a school... but if you gave me enough high-tech sci-fi weaponry I'd give it a try.

[DarkLegacy]

I hate being in the air or at sea so i choose the army. I would not want to be a Marine

[Benitomussoloni]

I don't care about the American army. I'm a nationalist Italian on the path of Mussoloni. I'd rather join the black shirts

[DrPepper12]

Always had a soft spot for AF. Finally got to fly a Cessna AND jump out of it and my thirst for flight is insatiable still

[JacobJordan]

Green Beret just switched back to active service after seeing the flood of Jewish hate.

[Apple1996]

Air force is the easiest

[dolemite58]

A sailor of some sort so I can spread my seed at we go from port to port

[Apple1996]

The navy is notoriously gay af. They only spread their seed to each other 😂

[dolemite58]

@Apple1996 why would they sail around the world only to give each other butt babies? I wanna impregnate exotic women in far away lands

[Apple1996]

They literally join so they can be gay together without others knowing 😂 so definitely not caring about exotic women

[Agape93]

Army or coast guard

[shortster]

Space Force

[mickeysmonkey]

Space force

[mickeysmonkey]

I was in the army