Army Poster Conveys It's More Fun Not to Join Up

Ironic Sans points out an ad for the Army that, perhaps, sends the wrong message. In the ad, citizens are shown smiling and army personnel are shown with stern, even angry or sad expressions. To us, it looks like being a citizen is a lot more fun then joining the army. We're guessing the top brass is of the opinion smiling soldiers convey a weakness, hence the bad ass, military facial expressions.

by Steve Hall Mar-13-06 Click to Comment
Topic: Bad, Outdoor

Comments

I think you're missing the point. The Army national guard is a volunteer army where you serve like 2 weekends a month but you're a civilian the rest of the time. The ad was showing how people can live these double lives and be both a happy civilian and a badass soldier serving their country.

It's not a particularly good ad, but your criticism is strangely off�especially since you decided to lead the newsletter subject line with it.

Posted by: Jenny Burns on March 13, 2006 1:45 PM

I agree with Jenny. The army has used the term "Citizen Soldier" for a while now. I think this shows you can have fun and be a bad ass soldier. Of course these days you're bad ass in Iraq much more than happy citizen at home.

Posted by: Dave. T on March 13, 2006 2:21 PM

Okay, this is the straw that broke the camel's back. Dude, LEARN TO SPELL! It's not "bad ass," it's "badass." Bad ass conjures up images I'd rather not have in my head. While I'm a fan and am thankful for the entertainment, the lack of proofing is killin' me! Some good advice I've picked up from writers over the years: RE-READ what you've written. Check for errors. With three-sentence blurbs, it takes about two minutes. Give it a thought.
Now to re-read what I've just written.

Posted by: Jeff on March 13, 2006 2:21 PM

I'm not going to correct it just to further annoy you, Jeff:-)

Posted by: Steve Hall on March 13, 2006 4:07 PM

Uh, what? "The Army national guard is a volunteer army where you serve like 2 weekends a month but you're a civilian the rest of the time." That, Jenny, is a complete JOKE these days! National Guardsmen have been deployed outside of this awesome nation's borders straight to Iraq. I must wonder, do you read the news or just the recruiter's releases? Once you're signed there's not that much to smile about, they can extend your tour of voluntary participation AT THEIR WILL, you are a soldier and the Department of Defense controls your life if they choose to control it. That is the truth. Period. I know folks who were informed their period of participation had been extended - that is not voluntary, but it is military.

What about 'bad-ass'...?

Posted by: mordacious on March 16, 2006 2:38 PM