I spent almost 7 years in the US Military. The first four years as a Marine, 8 months in the Arizona National Guard and then another 2 years 3 months in the Marines, although the last 9 months of the second stint in the Marines was while on appellate leave.
Over the last year I have seen several articles about how the military was giving waivers to recruits whom had been in trouble with the law. They were granting these waivers to meet their recruiting goals and as they say to give these men a second chance in life. I don’t have a problem with that, in fact I applaud it! We should all be granted second chances.
What I have a problem with is when that same military won’t give one of their own a second chance. Let me explain. I served honorably my first four years in the Marines and received an honorable discharge in 1988. I joined the Arizona National Guard where I served for 8 months before I was released when I decided to rejoin the Marines.
My second stint in the Marine Corp didn’t go as well as the first. After about a year I started making decisions that I am the first to admit were not honorable and were in very poor judgment. At that age (23) I didn’t have very good judgment when it came to my finances. I ended up writing $1400 dollars in bad checks at the Base Exchange on MCAS New River.
In the civilian world while you can be taken to court over bad checks, it is rare. However in the military they don’t mess around. The Exchange notified my command and they proceeded to prosecute me under a Special Court Martial. Because my wife had written one or two of those checks the Exchange was debating on bringing charges against her. She was pregnant at the time with our third son. I made a deal where they would leave her alone and I plead guilty at the court martial for all of them. I was sentenced to 6 months in the Base Brig and was reduced in rank and given a bad conduct discharge.
Fast forward to 2001. Not long after 9/11 I tried re-enlisting in the Arizona National Guard. I was told at the time by the recruiter that he could get a waiver for my re-enlistment code. However it was not to be, he told me that the rules were changed and he was unable to do it.
I sent letters to the Marines, the Army and even the Navy asking for a waiver that would allow me to re-enlist and serve my country in this time of war. Each time I was told they couldn’t give me a waiver and that before they would even consider it that I would need to get my re-enlistment code upgraded as well as my discharge. I researched how to do that. While I did I ran across a document on the internet that gave the decisions by the Naval board that processes those types of requests. I read through well over a 100 of their decisions and even when applicants had help from groups like the American Legion, I did not find one time where the board approved the request. Now I am not saying it didn’t happen, but I couldn’t find any. So I gave up.
Fast forward once again to 2006. My now 19 year old son told me he wanted to join the Arizona National Guard. I had some misgivings on that choice but it had nothing to do with what had happened to me. It was more on making sure that they would pay for my son’s education since I would not be able to do so.
My son’s mother and I spoke to the recruiter regarding the Guard paying for his education and after we were confident my son was getting a good deal we approved and signed the paper work that would allow him to join before his 18th birthday.
My son told his recruiter about me and what had happened to me in the past. Regarding my discharge and my attempts to re-enlist. He asked my son for me to give him a call. I was doubtful, but I gave him a call. After talking to him he said he was really confident he would be able to get me the waiver I would need that would allow me to enlist.
After several months of waiting and him asking for more information beyond the basic information I gave, he came back with the answer. I had tried not to get my hopes up because I didn’t want them dashed, but I was very hopeful I would be able to get in. Unfortunately, that was not the answer he had. He was told that I could not re-enlist. Again I was told I would need to get my discharge upgraded along with my re-enlistment code.
I checked into it again, and found that it would take a minimum of one year to process the request and then again there would be no promise that it would be approved. Again I found that document on the internet that showed all the declined upgrade requests. I said the Hell with it and gave up for good!
Fast forward two years and the news articles I found online where Sen. Waxman was conducting a hearing on the military letting in recruits convicted of misdemeanors and some felonies, all in the name of giving them a second chance.
Yet they won’t, as my son of two years in the National Guard, now in Maryland with his Navy wife says, they won’t give a man who wants to serve badly who is former military, who is almost 20 years older now a second chance. The same man who has said that if allowed he would volunteer to serve over seas in a heart beat. This same man who is encouraging his third son to join the Marines.
I am that man. I have six sons; my oldest one decided the military wasn’t for him so is not serving, even though I keep trying. My second son is in the Guard. My third son is going to join my alma mater the Marines. My fourth son is talking about joining the Navy when he is old enough, which is in less than two years. My two youngest sons are too young to be thinking about that now; however the 10 year old is already talking about.
While I try not to be bitter, because I do recognize the fact that what happened to me was my fault, it is very hard. Especially when they are allowing convicted felons to join to give them a second chance in life. It is very hard.
All I want is a second chance.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment