KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Chalk up another national-security threat — this one looming with each excess pound, failing grade and drug bust affecting young adults.
An alarming 75 percent of Americans ages 17 to 24 would not qualify for military service today because they are physically unfit, failed to finish high school or have criminal records. So says a new report from an organization of education and military leaders calling for immediate action on the early-education front.
Some experts voiced doubt that obesity and other societal ills would keep three out of four young adults out of the ranks, but the report, titled “Ready, Willing and Unable to Serve,” was endorsed by U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan, former NATO commander Gen. Wesley Clark and top retired admirals and generals.
Increasingly, applicants are disqualified for having asthma or for taking pills for depression or attention disorders. Nearly one-third have health issues besides weight that could keep them from serving, according to the group Mission: Readiness. If you’re the single parent of a dependent child without a support network, you’re out. If you carry too much debt, you’re out.
