Sergeant Bergdahl is a Traitor because 'he read too much and didn’t drink enough beer'

[JHB]

67. He enlisted in 2008, right? Potentially a lot of "enlistment errors" by then...

Army relaxes its standards to fill ranks / Critics say push to meet quotas may let unstable recruits join up
Anna Badkhen, Chronicle Staff Writer
Published 4:00 am, Tuesday, July 11, 2006

Pentagon officials announced Monday that the Army has managed to achieve its latest recruiting goals, while admitting that they have lowered some standards that had been set to ensure the quality of the force.

But as the military continues investigations into alleged atrocities committed by U.S. troops in Iraq, some experts worry that the Army, stretched thin by wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and under pressure to fill its ranks, might be signing up soldiers who should not be in the service.

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But not all behavioral problems can be spotted during these tests, experts warn -- and some may only emerge under the extreme stress of war.

"It's actually very easy for people like Steven Green to get into the military, because he is a reasonably intelligent, physically fit young man whose emotions are not close to the surface," said Loren Thompson, a defense analyst at the Lexington Institute in Arlington, Va.

http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Army-relaxes-its-standards-to-fill-ranks-2516428.php

At the time, neo-nazis and other extremists were also among those enlisting (they'd been banned since the Oklahoma City bombing) so they could get weapons and explosives training.

In short, a lot of people who would previously not be accepted were let in due to the Iraq War pressure on manpower numbers.

Ultimately, this is likely more fallout from the neocons using 911 as a pretext for launching their wish-list war to oust Saddam. Without the Iraq war, recruiting standards wouldn't have been lowered, making it more likely Bergdahl would have been screened out (without the war, would he even have enlisted?).