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Constant deploy-

lar way.44 Complains Patrick Pexton, man-

Research Center observed that "should any

aging editor of the Army Times, "Pilots and

mission turn bad, the response could be huge-

ment is believed

ly negative."50

airmen don't know when their next 30-day,

to be the most

45-day, 90-day or 180-day deployment away

important rea-

from home will come."45 The pressure trick-

The Expense of Recruiting and Pay

les down to almost everyone in the service.

The military already spends an average of

son for declining

F-16 crew chief Staff Sgt. William Simmons

$7,187 per new recruit, up from $5,460

retention of Air

(adjusted for inflation) a decade ago.51 The

explains, "I'm just exhausted with all the

changes, the continuous deployments."46

Force pilots.

Army's cost runs $11,187 per recruit. Falling

numbers of recruits results in increased pres-

The prospect of simultaneous four-month

sure to hike bonuses and compensation to

tours in Saudi Arabia for weapons specialist

improve recruiting and retention. George

Staff Sgt. Kathie Iorga and her husband

caused her to quit the Air Force.47

Wilson wonders, "How much is too much for

recruiting an all-volunteer force?"52

The Pentagon responds to criticism of

endless peacekeeping, peacemaking, no-fly

The Unrepresentative Character of the AVF

enforcement, and other missions by argu-

ing that soldiers at least appreciate their

Enlisted soldiers are "disproportionately

mission in Bosnia. The Department of

minorities, such as African Americans, and

Defense proudly reports that first-term sol-

the less advantaged, paid at such low levels

diers serving in Bosnia reenlist at about the

that they live on the edge of poverty during

same rate (57.6 percent) as do those in other

the nation's greatest economic boom,"

regions of Europe (57.8 percent). However,

argues former health and human services

secretary Joseph Califano.53 Similarly, jour-

those soldiers reenlisting in Bosnia collect a

tax-exempt bonus; even then their reenlist-

nalist Jacob Weisberg complains that

ment rate barely matches that of their

"instead of a draft, which distributes risk

counterparts stationed in other regions of

fairly, we have a volunteer force that hires

Europe. Moreover, midterm soldiers in

mainly minorities and working-class whites

Bosnia reenlist at a noticeably lower rate--

to bear the burden on behalf of those with

brighter prospects."54 As evidence, Weisberg

70.2 percent--compared with 76.3 percent of

their counterparts. The New York Times has

points out that two of the three soldiers

reported that "the combat readiness, morale

captured by the Serbs on the Macedonian

and effectiveness of the troops appears [sic]

border during the war against Yugoslavia

to plummet after six months of duty."48

had Hispanic surnames.

Unhappiness with the military's role on the

The Lack of Connection between Political

part of even a minority of soldiers and their

Leaders and the Military

families will have a noticeable impact on reten-

President Clinton is emblematic of an

tion and ultimately recruiting. With a force

increasing number of members of Congress

whose members are older, have married in

and other policymakers who have never

greater numbers, and have more children than

served in the military--in contrast with

the old conscript military, such dissatisfaction

is almost guaranted to rise.49 (See Appendix,

most of the policy elite of the post­World

War II generation. Wall Street Journal reporter

Table 1.) Should future "peacekeeping" enter-

Thomas Ricks complains, "Even after

prises misfire, as did the mission in Somalia,

bungling an inherited mission in Somalia

exploding public dissatisfaction would be

and then using U.S. forces to feed Rwandan

quickly transmitted to the military. The public

refugees, invade Haiti, and enforce a peace

appears ready to acquiesce in the Clinton

agreement in Bosnia, the Clinton Adminis-

administration's penchant for promiscuous

tration did not see fit to follow Pentagon

intervention so long as the costs are largely

suggestions that it appoint someone with a

hidden. However, Andrew Kohut of the Pew

5