[t0duf0du]

I wanted to join the army as a kid, was infatuated by the forces. I had memorised spec-sheets, obsessed over the operations and used to be awestruck everytime I saw someone in olive green. Tried out a couple of times in college and was deemed medically unfit. I tried again last year but didn't make the cut either. Now I have crossed the age limit and will remain a code monkey for the rest of my life.

Nothing too bad. The life I live now is so much contrasting than the life I promised myself as a kid. I still have other hobbies and I still read a lot about the forces.

[pillefitz]

What's so great about the army? To me, it appears to be one of the most unethical occupations one could have.

[JR1427]

Travel, adventure, camaraderie, to name a few.

At university I started down the path of joining the infantry as an officer. At first it was great fun - getting paid to go camping on weekends away from university. But when the political side began being pressed home more and more, it didn't sit well with my beliefs. Oh, and I met my now wife at that time, and didn't want to go disappearing off.

I ended up getting a PhD, doing academia for a couple of years, then moving in to industry. Some of it was fun, but the itch for proper adventure has never really left.

Now with a young daughter, we have mild family adventures, which are fun in their own right, but I do hope to have bigger adventures one day. Hopefully with my wife and daughter.

[kakacik]

You can find that in many sports communities. Not everywhere by default, but folks are pretty open everywhere once its clear you have something in common.

You can get as much travel and adventure as your mind and wallet can handle, without strict orders that prevent you from actually having fun, without risk of being killed by some drone from above. Or killing another human being just because you were told so, maybe a father defending their village and family from invading forces.

Nah, you can do much better than those guys, and not lose your humanity and happiness in the process.

[pillefitz]

Thanks for sharing! This all sounds good, but like another poster said, most of it can be experienced without killing other humans / oppressing other countries. Seems like a huge sacrifice just to have fun.