RumRunner

Okay, that's it; been over 6 months. I refuse to let this thread drop out of sight.

OK I'm new here - but was 8th Corps. Funny how few of the 8th post or post much of anything other than brief "hellos." I've stayed completely out of touch since 1987.

GrouchoMarxJr weighed in on this one:

Groucho - I was two years earlier than you which means you are WAY too old to remember that kind of detail...:) This is my first post here so let me see how much trouble I get myself into. I left in 1987 after attending the infamous Chris Geer clergy meeting at twi HQ. It was pretty obvious things had gone south for some time - but that meeting was like looking into a sewer. Back to the topic of the post:

For the 8th corps they were still promoting the corps as twig leader training. Of course, everyone had higher expectations based on the percentage of graduates getting larger "assignments." There had been a pretty explosive growth in the mid-late 70's through early 80's and most graduated to larger assignments.

HOWEVER.... this promoted a mentality that when assignments were announced and some poor stoshu got only a twig leader assignment they were viwed as a failure of some sort or other - just like the mentality of "the right stuff."

Lessee - if you are serious about God - whatever your version - then a "lifetime of service" TO GOD - makes sense. Ya know if you believe in something that powerful then what else are you going to do? BUT BUT BUT - who defines the services? LCM? VPW? The pope? Bin Laden? Well logic ought to dictate no - but somehow all over the world people are duped into letting their designated conduit to Got determine their service, what (branch leader, stolen 767 pilot) where (Oakland, New York City), when (1985, Sep 11 2001),

how (blind faith, blind faith) etc - My $0.02

"...And another thing that bugged the &$*# out of me while in residence, were their bait and switch

tactics. When I signed up, I made a FOUR YEAR commitment. That was it! It was optional to take

assignments upon graduation...at least, that's what they said in WRITING! A couple of months into

the training, at Emporia, they tell us all that we have made a LIFETIME commitment to the corps!...

and if we don't 'understand THAT'...then we are 'spiritually out to lunch'.

I sat there listening to this crap, muttering under my breath that I only committed for 4 years,

getting angrier by the moment as everybody just sat there with a glazed look on their faces

saying 'yup, yup'..not me! I regret not packing my stuff up and splitting right then and there!"