Joke Of The Day, Provided By The Naval Reserve
Did you know that the US Naval Reserve has an email “Joke of the Day” service? I didn’t. But this morning I found one of their emails in my inbox. It was soooooo funny, that I feel bad not sharing it.
Dear SpoonFighter,
Did you know that your particular skills and interest in law enforcement or the intelligence field could help you secure a better future in the U.S. Naval Reserve?
We currently have opportunities available for Master-at-Arms, Intelligence Specialists, Cryptologic Technicians and Intelligence Officers. Serving in one of these positions, you will play a key role in our nation’s defense as you acquire exceptional training in your respective profession.
In exchange for your part-time commitment, you will be provided with many benefits and rewards. You will also work with the latest technologies and anti-terrorism techniques as you gain invaluable experience in crime prevention, physical security, threat assessment, and more.
One of the greatest benefits of joining our force is that you won’t have to sacrifice your personal life to serve. Your training sessions will almost always be with the Naval Reserve unit located closest to your home.
To learn more about the Naval Reserve, we encourage you to visit navalreserve.com.
Part time commitment. Training close to home. Yeah, and I’ll bet I can work from home, too, when my unit gets called up to man a ship bound for Iraq.
What’s sad and not very funny about this letter is that it completely ignores the fact that there’s a war on in Iraq that is heavily dependent on the service of National Guard and Reserve soldiers. According to Wikipedia,
National Guard members and reservists now comprise a larger percentage of frontline fighting forces than in any war in U.S. history (About 43 percent in Iraq and 55 percent in Afghanistan). There are now 183,366 National Guard members and reservists on active duty nationwide who leave behind about 300,000 dependents, according to U.S. Defense Department statistics.
Source Wikipedia
The New York Times reports that this number has fallen from a high of 220,000 to 138,000, largely because so many reservists and guardsmen have reached the end of their two-year involuntary service limit. Link
August 19th, 2005 at 10:49 am
I feel so inadequate. The Navy hasn’t called me since I was in high school.
The part they don’t tell you is that the nearest reserve unit is in Iraq. I wonder if you get airline miles?
August 24th, 2005 at 4:53 pm
um, not so many in the Naval Reserve are sent to Iraq. That’s still primarily the domain of the Army & Marines and their reserves/guard. but point taken.
September 13th, 2005 at 11:15 pm
At first I thought that was directed to me. Now I want to know how come I didn’t get one? (I found this site through an indulgent search–must keep tabs on the rest of the Gideons).