the thing about poorly educated / too dumb to even get in is so crazy to me. i know you're right and that its ballooned into a real "problem" for recruitment. i grew up stable during middle and high school and my mom was up my ass about school the whole time. my friends were less lucky and out of my high school friend group, i was one of the few "going to college on scholarship" outliers. probably 80% of the guys went into the military. this was pre-9/11, so the "jobs" angle was far louder than the "patriotism" angle in those days. it was such a different vibe, i considered it for a little bit. took the ASVAB, etc. most were out before Iraq invasion, and literally only 1 even used his GI bill: the marine who came out hating the military and referred to the US as "a joke" lol. guy changed a lot from age 17-22 lol.

i have family that barely graduated high school and lacked any self-discipline for skill development. just 100% no fucks given drinking at 16+. they went in and have drunk all the koolaid about it, deciding to go career in some handing-out-socks-in-a-tent ass job. i think theyre at like 8+ years now. definitely the kind of clown that would never do anything productive unless someone was threatening to fuck them up, otherwise. so of course they have all the asshole tattoos and wallow in the thank-you-for-your-service ass kissing they get for emptying trash cans in georgia or wherever while letting people think they planned the Maduro kidnapping. absolute douche bag.

i met a handful of guys who were post 4-year enlistment in my 20s. only a few even tried to use their GI bill. most didn't like their time in, decried the crime on base or on ship, and the daily institutional and individual idiocy. they couldn't wait to get out once they were in and rolled their eyes at "career" enlisted.

those that served in some kind of situation that earned them VA benefits like tricare explained how it sucked and required the level of paper shuffle bullshit that most guys who go into the military do not have the aptitude for.

ultimately, i have the respect for any job-side enlisted i do for anyone who has worked some shitty job and i only deride the assholes that talk it up like it's great or honorable, because those guys are out there poisoning the minds of impressionable young looking for meaning and experience and stability in a society that doesn't offer much of any.

i dropped out of school initially and spent most of my 20s working some dogshit jobs. i learned a lot about myself and power, but i would never encourage someone to follow my path without warning them of the long term / hidden cost of those kinds of jobs where human life is cheap and pain is dispensed freely.