From: Jasper
Date: Thursday, August 30, 2007
Time: 07:19:33 PM
Solitairea1, …Now I think I get it. Fuhrman didn’t JOIN the Marines in 1970, he got drafted! That’s why you get so many soldier (Army) references in his movie links where you would expect to get marines (Marines). And that’s why pride – something that normally goes with being a marine (usually capitalized, whereas soldier, sailor and airman are not) like teeth go with a bulldog is notably absent in his McKinny tapes references to the Marines. He didn’t CHOOSE the Marines initially; the Selective Service Board chose HIM for the Marines. …………In 1979 every male in the United States was required by law to register for the draft on his 18th birthday. In that Mark Fuhrman quit high school in his senior year, the draft board would have placed him high on the list for involuntary induction in the Armed Forces. The overwhelming majority of involuntary inductees were sent to the Army. That’s where the manpower need was the greatest because of the large number of soldiers required for duty in Germany, Korea and, of course, Vietnam. However, when other branches of service experienced a special need to add to their numbers an inductee whose number came up at that time when to that branch of service – Air Force, Navy or Marines. …………Your military obligation was for 6 years, part of which was spent in the Reserves. There were three levels of Reserves, Ready, Standby and Retired. Only the Ready Reserves required you to pass proficiency tests and perform your military duties at regular intervals. The difference between a volunteer and a draftee was the length of active duty enlistment. Volunteering for the Army was a 3 year active duty commitment with three years of Reserve time. If you enlisted in the Navy or the Marines you were committed to 4 years of active duty with 2 years of Reserve time. All of the above is why Bailey asked Fuhrman about active or reserve time. …………The only way Fuhrman’s time in the Marines plus his nine months attending the Tacoma Community College add up is if he was drafted, did his two years, got out and went back in as a volunteer. If he’d waited a year he would have had to go through Boot Camp again. Considering the times (large-scale reductions in military personnel) and his prior experience in the Corps, he might have been able to cut a deal for a 3-year re-enlistment or gotten an early out. ………….This doesn’t tell us what Fuhrman did his first two years in the Marines or when he became a military policeman. But it does explain the service dates. And that’s something we didn’t have until Fuhrman’s Tacoma Community college attendance cropped up at such an odd time. –Jasper