Part 2 Testing Manhood -J3- Try Americorp or religious voluntary service organizations Get a full scholarship to American University (their public service scholarship). In Americorp you can receive almost $10,000 in tuition vouchers for their law program for two years of service. -C- The military is not an appropriate way to train himself as a man Read "War is a Force that Gives us Meaning" by Chris Hedges; "On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War, by Lt. Col. Dan Grossman-Army War College Professor If he wants a challenge he should work his way through college on a shrimp boat, or as a Guardian Angle walking the streets, or as a Fireman When troops or vets stress out it's the life of the wife and children they will then threaten, not protect, as with the 4 wives killed at Ft. Bragg by their husbands back from Afghanistan. -M- Volunteer at a summer camp or at a YMCA! Nothing like being surrounded by a pack of kids to test one's manhood. Be a camp counselor and learn life-saving skills and experience nature (hiking, camping, swimming) without constant fear of death. Habitat for Humanity, Boys and Girls Clubs and Red Cross are good places to volunteer. Building houses is pretty physically exerting and Red Cross trains people to be disaster relief agents in communities. See http://www.volunteermatch.org/. Working at a gym might be a good way to have better physical discipline. "Boot camp" is really popular at a lot of gyms right now. This is just a way for people to pay to workout in a boot camp format. Volunteer to help veterans. -P2- Enforced discipline does not make a man at all. A real man has SELF DISCIPLINE and does not need a nanny or a drill sergeant to motivate him. The Marines/Army are very good at making soldiers, but not at making MEN. We have hundreds of thousands of mentally ill soldiers in VA care to prove this point. -K2- Get on the backpack and travel on foot around Europe and just survive… if that doesn't do it nothing will! Study some form of martial art. A good instructor will not only help him with the "macho" thing but also teach him discipline and serenity all at the same time! And he won't need to sign his life away to the government as a killer. -J2- Outward Bound and other physical disciplines Join the Peace Corps Try working as a deminer around the world -J5- There should be some sort of "peace corps" that teaches restless young men the art of non-violent conflict resolution, (with rigorous mental and physical discipline) and then send them, 'unarmed' into situations where they could bring about positive change? -R2- Try mountain-climbing. Try volunteering for social work in crime-ridden inner cities. -C3- Try groups that do leadership training in the great outdoors, like Outward Bound They may have an obstacle course training (physical ed with ropes, ladders, etc.), and leadership skill building as the military, but without risking anyone's life. -D4- A person does not need the military for that. You're a man the day you accept responsibility for your actions and the consequences that ensue, and put duty (to yourself, family and the world before your desires. -W- If you want to "prove you're a man" (or woman) drop your pants and look in the mirror. -J8- For testing "manhood" try a rigorous and challenging college curriculum, including legal training. -J6- Learn martial arts. -L- Join the Peace Corp. . Part 3 Travel -K2- Get a certificate teaching English in places like India, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand, Ecuador, Korea, South America with little or no experience. The cost is usually minimal and these programs will train him and often furnish him room and board as well… If he's a student he can get on exchange programs in Europe. Or just get a backpack and head out - Cheap places to stay are at Hostels and work can be had along the way! It's an incredible experience and you don't have to kill anybody! -N2- Peace Corps. hitchhike. Work for a while, save up some money, and BACKPACK wherever you want to go. I am Deaf, and that didn't stop my deaf wife and I from backpacking all of Italy one summer months about 4 or 5 years ago. We were even broke college students. I don't think we spent more than 1000 each, total, for the WHOLE summer, including flights. Campgrounds there were like 10 bucks a night. Where there's a will, there's a way. -P2- Make plans to get out there and see it!! Volunteer, do Relief Work, Charity Work, Teach English, or just go for it! I worked for 6 months, saved, and traveled freely. I also found a little work along the way. The sober truth is, after a man has traveled outside his country independently, made amazing friends, and experienced his own amazing adventures... he will never consider a military career. -R2- The military isn't really a good way to see much of the world. Read books about working one's way around the world Many NGOs (non-governmental organizations) can use help and will provide transport and room and board to many parts of the world. -J2- Handicap International, International Campaign to Ban Landmines, Peace Corp, Human Rights Watch, Church World Service, etc. -M- Cross cultural solutions and Peace corps are two options. Study abroad programs through college are also options, which may include financial aid. Google on "see the world" and "volunteer" -W- Get a job with the merchant marines if you want to get paid, travel, see the world. Become a flight attendent for any major airline. -J8- Every American should have the experience of living in a developing country for an extended period of time, developing personal ties with people there. -J5- Go backpacking! -A- Join the merchant marine. . Part 4 College Financing -P2- Go to University. It's a myth that in this day and age one needs to sell his or her soul to the 'GI Bill' or the R.O.T.C. in order to get a top-flight education. The price of your own freedom, and the price which Iraqis are paying in this case, is much too high to justify a decision based on "College Money". You cannot put a $$$price on your own integrity. I worked during school and on breaks plus a little financial aid, and a little help from my family, I had the best College education available on the West Coast bar none. Do legal training during college, you can intern. YOU make it happen. -M- Major in Political Science or English. There are pre-law programs at many universities. Turn in FAFSA and apply for scholarships. Volunteer on campus and seek scholarships within the religious community or religious schools Getting volunteer hours helps to get a scholarship grant. Many jobs look for college students, may be flexible and may help with tuition. Develop multiple interests at an undergraduate school, Many undergraduate majors are helpful to lawyers. If interested in the military, be a history major -N2- Major in political science. Then, do internships with law firms, or better yet, in the institutions that deal with the outskirts of our society. (city problems, medicare issues, medical liability), or even do an internship in DC related to politics. Then apply for a scholarship to a decent school, with all of those experiences. And you will be a better lawyer, for having seen the dark underbelly of our society, and the dredges from within that exist (but which everyone else conveniently forgets) -K2- Have him get a public and/or college library card and study the subject on his own and see if it is something he really wants to do. Law offices may be of help to point him in the right direction. -W- Take computer courses in legal training in your spare time. -J2- The majority of vets do not ever use much of their college money because the paperwork is hard to understand. Recruits are promised their every whim by recruiters, but seldom get them fulfilled. 2 friends were promised to become photographers, but neither was given this opportunity. -A- Do any work in any legal firm with the aim of learning paralegal on the job. Many paralegals are so successful as to consider really becoming lawyers a waste of time! -R2- Some states have programs to pay the cost of professional (medical, legal, etc) education in exhange for a commitment to work under-served areas of that state. Check with the various state educational offices for more information. -J7-There seems to be a website that scours all the scholarship opportunities out there and brings them to you in one place. -K3- A Better Deal is STAYING ALIVE