[tarheeljks]

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I'd guess a lot of them are in gangs in the first place because they don't have the discipline to put up with crap in order to achieve long-term goals.

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i think you are overlooking the fact that a lot of these people are joining gangs as kids and often times the guidance that would steer them in another direction is absent. how many pre-adolescent/adolescents would stay the course in the educational system if not for their parents bearing down on them? yes, at some point they come to the realization that getting an education will go a long way towards success, but somewhere along the line they got that push. generally we are not talking about adults who decide to go fight b/c they are old enough to do it as it is in the military. i'm confident that if the options were to join a gang or the military most would choose to enter the military.

the "you can't tell me" attitude exists towards presumed oppression. i'm not arguing that the attitude is justified, but i believe it could be molded to fit the mission of the military relatively easily.


i don't think the difference is as vast as you may think. soldiers and gang members seek to accomplish very different goals, but they operate in similar fashions. gangs nurture and value some of the traits that the military does, albeit in an unconventional setting. pride, conformity, and discipline are a part of functioning within a gang just as they are important to the military. i'm not saying i revere gang members or that i believe they are honorable , but they are "soldiers" in their own right.