Originally posted by: BigToque
I've been doing some serious thinking lately and was starting to think I might want to join the military (I was considering the intelligence officer position - although I'm sure I'd have to do some time as regular infantry first).
That's not true at all for enlisted types.
As an officer, though, depending on your entrance exam scores, and your top-3 list of choices, you're much more at the mercy of "Needs of the Army." Still, if you score high enough, you may be able to branch MI straight out of OCS. Worst case scenario will be as you guessed -- you might have to do something else for a little while, but you can ALWAYS do a branch-transfer to MI later!!
If I could do it all over again, and I was young, motivated, and single, I'd do it like this:
Army enlisted Infantryman -> airborne -> ranger -> Special forces, with primary: Intel, secondary: weapons, for a few years -> Special Mission Unit(s) -> OCS -or- retire and join civilian intelligence agency.
I've ended up in the same place, but the route(s) I personally took to get here were much less... direct... LOL!
JUST DONT GO REAL INTEL -OR- SPECIAL FORCES IF YOU DONT WANT TO WORK YOUR ASS OFF 25 HOURS/DAY... your heart and body REALLY have to be in it, or don't bother...
Remember this though:
You ALWAYS fight, and possibly die, for the men and women with you. Everything else - the political nonsense, altruistic rhetotic, media judgements, etc - is secondary. You'll realize this the first moment you ever enter combat; and, if you're smart, you'll hold onto that knowledge forever.
Everything you do from that point on must be done from that perspective. If you ever stop and try to place yourself within the context of some intangible "bigger picture," you'll quickly get lost and flounder. So, just keep your eyes on yourself and your team, and you'll be fine. If/when you move on to a strategic position, never forget who it is you're really fighting for... once again,
the men and women who are with you.. the warfighters..
Good luck!
Edit: I didn't realize this part...
Originally posted by: BigToque
Well, I'm Canadian, so I'd end up in Afghanistan. I get what you're saying though.
uhgg.. ok... well then, just do the Candian equivelant of what I suggested.
And, since you would only ever go to Afghanistan, and probably never to Iraq, then know this: The mission in Afghanistan is noble and justified, and we ARE making a positive difference throughout most of their country. Don't let anyone ever tell you otherwise.