More than two-thirds of America's youth
would fail to qualify for military service because of physical,
behavioral or educational shortcomings, posing challenges to building
the next generation of soldiers even as the U.S. draws down troops from
conflict zones.
The military deems many youngsters
ineligible due to obesity, lack of a high-school diploma, felony
convictions and prescription-drug use for attention-deficit
hyperactivity disorder. But others are now also running afoul of
standards for appearance amid the growing popularity of large-scale
tattoos and devices called ear gauges that create large holes in
earlobes.
A few weeks ago, Brittany Crippen said
she tried to enlist in the Army, only to learn that a tattoo of a fish
on the back of her neck disqualified her. Determined to join, the
19-year-old college student visited a second recruiting center in the
Dallas-Fort Worth area and was rejected again.
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