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Thursday, Nov. 05, 2009

Report: More than 800,000 young Georgians ineligible to serve in military

According to a report commissioned by the Bush Administration, 75 percent of Americans between the ages of 17 to 24 are unable to join the military because they fail to meet enlistment requirements. That would mean that more than three quarters of a million young people in Georgia are ineligible for military service.

Data compiled by Mission: Readiness, a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C., paints an even more alarming picture.

According to Federal Bureau of Investigations data, one in 13 Georgians are in prison, on parole, or on probation — by far the highest of the 50 states. Enlistment applicants with a criminal record are disqualied from entering in the military.

More than a third, 37 percent, of Georgia children between 10 and 17 are obese — the third-highest obesity rate behind Mississippi and Arkansas — according to 2009 U.S. Department of Education figures.

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan will join retired Gen. Wesley Clark today in Washington to discuss the data.

To contact military writer Thomas L. Day, call 744-4489.