Military Musician
 

I want to be a musician when I get outta school, but I know how hard it is to make it as a musician. I know that the Military (well, I know the Navy does it, and I'm 99% sure the other branches do too) recruits (well, recruited... I've talked to a guy who was a navy musician back in the 70's/80's) musicians to play rock, like, at recruitment rallies and stuff. The musicians are paid hansomely, and also have military benifits (housing allowance, medical, etc). I have considered doing this once I get out of school, but...


I'm a pacifist, very vehemently anti-war, and Buddhist (well, the Buddhists here in Taiwan put me to shame, but I try). I don't know if I could let myself recruit people to kill or die.

...Well, I probably could, but I don't know if I should.
Your thoughts? Those of you in the military, do you know details about how this works nowadays? Has it changed?

EDIT: and yes, I did mean to put this under philosophy, because it's my philosophies and ideologies that is the issue here.

If you are a committed pacifist, you'd probably get pretty chewed up inside doing this. A huge problem for you, in this is endevour, is that you can sign up and be told you're going to be a musician and end up carrying a rifle.

According to that former navy musician dude, you can't. If you sign up as a navy musician, you are a navy musician, period. If that's changed there's no way in HELL I'm signing up.

He's probably right, but you need to be sure. I had a Prof that was a Navy musician, interesting old bird.