Serving in the military does more harm than good.

I thank F-16 for this fun and informative debate. I really want to talk about some of his round 4 points, but as per format, I'll only defend my case from his round 3 argument.C1: Economic advantageA: Up-front moneyPro's claims military crew work "long hours". Since he hasn't actually said how many hours this is, I have found the numbers for him. The Bureau of Labor indicates that servicemen often work standard (40 a week) hours (1). This only goes up if deployed on a long mission. My opponent criticizes living in the barracks because they're crowded and offer little privacy. This is just false. According to Rod Powers, most soldiers get their own rooms (2). Additionally, "Many bases (in all the branches) are converting to more modern dormitories, which include two to four bedrooms with a shared living room and kitchen." Increasing in rank also allows soldiers to move off-base for free, which would solve my opponent's Sex disadvantage.This shows that the barracks do maintain a stable quality of life. As before, this means soldiers don't pay a house or utility payment, which can easily amount to an extra $10,000 in saved money each year, plus the $50,000, tax-exempt base pay.B. Indirect moneyMy opponent claims that you can get health insurance and retirement in regular jobs. This is contradicted by the fact that 44 million people have no health insurance and another 38 million have inadequate service (3). Also, only 31% of regular workers get offered a standard retirement pension (4). Contrast this to the military, who gives these benefits to the vast majority of its members and lasts well after they have retired from service.C. Specific advantagesPro says you can use a scholarship to get into college, rather than using the military benefit. Actually, you can use both. Use the military benefit to pay for college, then keep all the scholarship money for yourself, since aid comes in the form of direct cash or credit. Thats thousands more dollars in your pocket. Medical carePro criticizes military medical care by listing one facility in bad condition. However, this evidence is outdated. The Walter Reed facility he refers to was closed months ago (5). Additionally, the flaws in this facility drew attention from the higher-ups, and in 2007 the Department of Veteran's Affairs ordered a review of over 1,400 military hospitals in an effort to maintain or improve overall quality (6). Medical care is quite improved since my opponent's 2007 link.C2: EmploymentMy opponent writes two paragraphs here but they both use the same argument: Relevant work experience outweighs the veteran's preference when getting a job. This is responded to by my Experience argument under C3, which indicates that those in the military do get practical experience in the field of work, since the military offers training in just about any occupation. This gives them both years of work experience AND veteran's preference, which is basically an instant hire.C3: Personal improvementsA. Physical healthThis point is basically conceded; he's never disputed that virtually everyone in the military gains strong physical conditioning and health. He does say that the "high risk" of physical harm (0.1%) outweighs, but this is already responded to. He also says that the average civilian can work out as well to gain strong physique. But according to WebMD Health, over 61% of Americans are overweight (7). So non-military persons don't exercise as much as my opponent thinks. B. Work experienceMy opponent has conveniently left out his source's info on Preferences, where the jobs the member would like to have are taken into consideration.As far as soldiers sometimes having to go to a job where they are needed, my opponent refutes this himself when he says that this is only for first duty assignments, and afterwards you have much more of a choice of which job you can go to. Pro says there are "restrictions" on this, but the only one his source talks about is difficulty getting a job in an overseas base. Getting a job you'd like here in the US is not that hard. Therefore, extend that soldiers will get work experience in the desired field, in addition to Veteran's Preference. This makes achieving one's dream job that much easier.C4: Most people who join the military don't regret itMy opponent doesn't actually respond to this point and instead makes new arguments about high suicide and homelessness rates among Vietnam vets. But remember, the US had the draft during Vietnam. One reason the military offers so many benefits today is because its all-volunteer, and needs to give incentives to join. Back during Vietnam, they could just force people to sign up, meaning they didnt have to give good soldier pay, veteran's preference, or any significant benefits to encourage people to join. This contributes to the high rate of homelessness among them today. However, today's military gives so many advantages after discharge that this is a non-issue in current times.Pro brings up that veterans commit suicide at twice the normal rate. Well according to his own source, the actual rate of death is 18.7 per 100,000. This is a 0.02% chance of suicide. The standard rate of suicide is 0.01%, so he's making a big deal over a difference of one hundredth. Remember what this argument is actually about: 91% of Vietnam vets are glad they served in the military. He has dropped the argument that modern support is even higher because the current wars aren't near as horrifying as Vietnam. So we're probably looking at a 95-96% chance that if someone joins the military, they will be glad they did so. This shows that the people actually in the military feel that the benefits do outweigh the harms. Once again, thanks to Pro for this intense and competitive round. Learned a ton on both sides. 1. http://www.bls.gov... 2. http://bitURL.net...3. http://bitURL.net...4. http://bitURL.net...5. http://bitURL.net...6. http://bitURL.net...7. http://bitURL.net...