Pentagon wants student directories.
Pentagon wants student directories.
The Army Times reports that the Pentagon “has announced a new get-tough policy with colleges and universities that interfere with the work of military recruiters and Reserve Officer Training Corps programs”:
Under rules that will take effect April 28, defense officials said they want the exact same access to student directories that is provided to all other prospective employers.
Students can opt out of having their information turned over to the military only if they opt out of having their information provided to all other recruiters, but schools cannot have policies that exclude only the military, defense officials said in a March 28 notice of the new policy in the Federal Register.
“The new policy is, in part, the result of a 2006 U.S. Supreme Court decision that upheld the federal government’s ability to use funding as a means of forcing equal access for military recruiters and ROTC units on campuses,” the Times adds.
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Obama will be the Pentagon’s new daddy. We’ll see.
April 2nd, 2008 at 10:00 pmBREAKING NEWS from the Joint Chiefs: Change course or START THE DRAFT.
April 2nd, 2008 at 10:04 pmAs if there isn’t enough reason to never elect rethugliscums ever again, a draft would seal their fate for a generation (until we forget the past as we are experiencing now).
And one can only imagine the fragging that would take place if a draft is again forced upon us.
April 2nd, 2008 at 10:22 pmMy guess is that they want them for much more than recrutiing. For instance: identifying those who sign anti-Shrub petitions, comparing students faces and names from MySpace and FaceBook and pictures of demonstrators, cross-referencing students registered as Democrats, identifying students using passports during travel abroad, comparing students names with gun purchases, identifying students who refuse to register for the draft, or singling out students who receive student loans or Pell grants.
You can bet that any information obtained by this (mal)administration will be used for nefarious purposes. Call me paranoid if you want, but I lived through the Nixon administration. “Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not after you.”
April 2nd, 2008 at 10:27 pmOh yea, because college students are their best target audience. And, after all, if they can get them after they receive their education, less money on the back end! The Pentagon is so about saving money…
Hope these students understand the “return to sender” option offered by our US Postal Service.
PEACE
April 2nd, 2008 at 10:43 pmI hope they call me. :-)
April 2nd, 2008 at 11:01 pmMore of the militarization of our culture. If it weren’t for the 60s, we would be in a full blown lock down paranoid police state.
Wait!! Aren’t we there already?
April 2nd, 2008 at 11:02 pmThey could simply go after the VISA, MasterCard and Discovery card sucker lists. Three data bases, detailed info, who could ask for anything more.
April 2nd, 2008 at 11:05 pmAfter the college and university directories, then they’ll go after the high school kids. Next will be the welfare lists.
April 3rd, 2008 at 7:03 amFollow the Facist brick road, follow the Facist brick road!
April 3rd, 2008 at 7:08 amThis doesn’t sound unreasonable, on the face of it.
It’s tough to see an argument against that sentiment. Fair is fair.
April 3rd, 2008 at 7:10 amThe military isn’t “an employer” so let’s get that lie out of the way right now.
April 3rd, 2008 at 7:48 amA person in the military is considered to be government property.
Directories are an important recruiting tool because they include the names, birthdates, phone numbers and academic pursuits of college students that can be used to identify people with knowledge and interests that are particularly useful to the military.
they just need you to be able to get KILLED for your country, that’s all they want…period!
April 3rd, 2008 at 7:52 amThe list will go directly to the “fusion centers”.
April 3rd, 2008 at 7:54 amIf a college or university accepts federal or state funds then they can’t discriminate against anybody. If they forego state funds they can do whatever they like.
April 3rd, 2008 at 8:09 amMia Kulper Says:
April 3rd, 2008 at 8:09 am
If a college or university accepts federal or state funds then they can’t discriminate against anybody. If they forego state funds they can do whatever they like.
Pentagon isn’t a somebody. It’s an institution. But, anyhow, if fair is fair, why the distinction here between receiving federal or state funds or not? Maybe the students attending institutions foregoing the state or federal money (most probably you’re thinking here of Republican leaning privately founded universities), are less patriots?
What should be ALL these options for recruiters, be it for regular jobs or the military is OPT IN. That would be fair. If not, the student has to do all the homework to sign off of who knows how many legal traps, as the one of the military, that happens not being a regular job, again.
April 3rd, 2008 at 8:37 am# Mia Kulper Says: @ 8:09 am
If a college or university accepts federal or state funds then they can’t discriminate against anybody. If they forego state funds they can do whatever they like.
And what world does the Fed gov have saying the just because a school gets STATE money they have to acquiesce to FED unlawful mandate? The Fed has been bullying states and people into doing UNCONSTITUTIONAL things for years now, ever since ROnnie Raygun pulled that shit out of his ass. Just ask the Telecoms, and the State drivers license depts.
April 3rd, 2008 at 8:58 amLike it or not, “equal access” DOES mean that if private employers have access to student information, the military and the U.S. government should have the same access.
However, like Evil Spaniard, I would prefer to see an “opt in” system instead of an “opt out” one. This puts more control in the hands of the students.
When one is looking for a job on monster.com, for example, they have a couple of choices. They can peruse the job listings available and respond to only those that interest them. Or they can post their own resume and leave themselves to the mercy of every pyramid schemer out there looking for victims.
This way, a student could opt into the system and have his/her information sent to any potential employer who wants it, including the military. When that employer recruits, the student can still say no. Those students who don’t wish to opt in may still contact employers they are interested in directly.
And if there are on-campus job fairs, the military is entitled to have a booth as well as other employers.
We have to remember that there’s nothing wrong with the military itself. What’s wrong is the policies of our current administration that have made the military a less-than-desirable career choice. But ostracizing the military from campuses perpetuates the myth that the military is only for the uneducated.
April 3rd, 2008 at 9:07 amI’m not really trying to distinguish between federal or state funds. What I mean to say is that if a college or university receives taxdollars from any level of government then they can’t (or shouldn’t) dicriminate against any one legitmate group. The “fairness” is a basic fundamental requirement of receiving the public money, is what I’m saying.
And I agree that students should opt-in to sharing their information with employment recruiters rather than having to opt-out.
April 3rd, 2008 at 9:24 amI’d suggest they go directly to Liberty University and Messiah College. Time for them to “walk the walk”.
PEACE
April 3rd, 2008 at 10:35 amAs long as there is no draft it is really rather simple. The student, and in the case of students under 18, their parents, can trump any and every tactic that the Pentagon, BushCo, and / or their privately owned and operated Supreme Court wanna apply.
So far, my HS Junior has received TWO pieces of lying, recruiter propaganda vis USPS mail; both were returned unopened, with the words: “REFUSED, RETURN TO GEORGE W. BUSH” written across their face. Never saw ‘em again.
Secondarily, I have instructed my child that if they find it impossible to avoid on-campus recruiters, they have my complete and total backing and encouragement to tell any and all military recruiters who might approach them to: “Eat *hit and Die!”. And, if that causes any difficulty on the spot, to use their cell to call me so I can come on campus and help explain to the recruiter, in even more clear terms, that until there is a draft that makes it mandatory to serve THIS butt munching, so-called commander-in-chief’s military, it ain’t happenin’. Plain and Simple.
So, to quote Bush himself, “Bring It On“!
April 3rd, 2008 at 10:59 amI’m not really trying to distinguish between federal or state funds. What I mean to say is that if a college or university receives taxdollars from any level of government then they can’t (or shouldn’t) dicriminate against any one legitmate group. The “fairness” is a basic fundamental requirement of receiving the public money, is what I’m saying.
I’m too for fair things for all the people. But in this case fair is defined too widely. Isn’t the same to provide your contact data to the private employer you want that to provide it to the military aka the Government. Once given, you can’t recover your private data never, even if you opt-out. Mind it, if you opt-out, your opt-out option is saved in a database, too.
April 3rd, 2008 at 11:07 amHere is an opt-out resource: http://themmob.org/lmca/
April 3rd, 2008 at 11:12 amForTruth Says:
April 2nd, 2008 at 10:00 pm
Obama will be the Pentagon’s new daddy. We’ll see.
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Obama has already said service to the country needs to be mandatory…military and other types of service corps.
April 3rd, 2008 at 11:47 amceltic cynic Says:
April 3rd, 2008 at 7:03 am
After the college and university directories, then they’ll go after the high school kids. Next will be the welfare lists.
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They already have access to our high schoolers. It’s called “Leave No Child Behind.” Unless the parent specifically requests to have their kids opted out, the high schools, under NCLB, must turn over the kids’ contact info to military recruiters.
I tried to opt my son out, but the school secretary told me it was up to him, not me. I reamed her a new one, but I have no idea if they took him off the list or not. We’ve had a couple of phone calls and a few pieces of mail directed at him from the military.
April 3rd, 2008 at 11:51 amI think we should let the OLD guys who are so eager for war go fight it themselves.
As an added benefit, if the DU warps their sperm, who cares?
April 3rd, 2008 at 11:53 amBTW, in MY database, no one of the Republican Congressmen or Senators or GOPers as opted-out to being deployed as practice targets for mortars outside the Green Zone in Baghdad.
April 3rd, 2008 at 1:16 pmWe went around with our high school when the recruiters set up tables every lunch hour in a locked down school. They were just “being friendly” according to the Principal. At first we were told the FEDS in the NCLB Bill allowed this. But actually the recruiters only get the same amount of time as other companies seeking applicants. Not every day. Parents have to complain and make the schools comply.
April 3rd, 2008 at 5:22 pm