Do you think the Military basic training will ever stop getting softer?

Until you stop having outside influences, social media ect in BCT and OUST it will continue down the path it is.
This should be hard physical and demanding. Currently it's not

While I don't agree with everything you said, some of your points are very accurate. I will broadly agree that Basic Training has gotten much softer in terms of learned discipline and expectations of recruits both in the beginning and end. I will caveat that by saying that much of this is the fault of a weakened NCO corps, and until we take responsibility for that not much else should be addressed. That said, civilians and politicians have had quite a hand in the pot the last ten years and have sadly been responsible for many of the actual changes you have noticed. The Army has the unfortunately large footprint that makes it perfect for cultural experimentation and "test" studies that lead to some non-traditional changes within our ranks. Sheer size and obscurity is essentially what protects the USMC from these same issues. I absolutely hate the profound civilian presence that continually meddles in what I still consider a professional Military force, despite their undying attempts at turning the Army into a corporate franchise. But the one thing I hate more is the declining professionalism within our NCO corps that not only facilitates the meddling but seems to exacerbate it as well. There are unlimited tools at the Drill Sergeant's disposal to use in training a better prepared and more capable Soldier than we have ever seen. Many of those NCO's just are not the caliber necessary to what is required. For this I blame both the Army and the individual NCO. The truth is that the Army should better support IMT by not only assigning more and better qualified Drill Sergeants, but also better qualified recruits. I don't believe that the softest guy or girl should be able to meet low quals and then be automatically transformed by some burnt out DS who has been running a PLT singlehandedly, into a super warfighter. That is complete bullshit. I still view Basic Training as part job interview, and many people just don't belong in the Armed Forces in any capacity. To say that this is a generational problem that we (as Drill Sergeants) have to overcome is ridiculous. Do you think Russia, China and Iran are recruiting lifelong couch potato lazy asses into their warfighting forces? Absolutely not. Having made that point as well do I think many Drill Sergeants could be doing far more with those that do oath into our Army? Absolutely. I hope I succeeded at engaging that fairly and impartially.

No. I do not understand why they can't succeed without whining and simple 9 weeks with no gadgets.

The way basic training in the Army is being conducted now is a joke. Soldiers can have cell phones all the time and aren't allowed to be smoked or get too stressed out. I don't see it stopping anytime soon because the Army is allowing this new generation of Soldiers to be catered to. If the Army thinks the suicide rate is high now, wait until all these Soldiers that were never subjected to stress and allowed to always be on the phone have to fight in a country with no internet, no hot chow, and no bathrooms/showers. They won't be able to handle it.

Our influx of personnel is a direct reflection of the country's culture (and its decay), so this is something we will always see going on, sadly. I share the OP's sentiment, Basic Training should remain rigid, demanding, and non accommodating, this is the only way to ensure that we allow in only the best.

Downvoted because you think stress cards are still a thing. This has been an urban myth since I came in over 16 years ago. They didn't do it then and they don't do it now, especially in today's setting when everyone knows it's a myth.
As for Air Force BMT, it's been in a wierd place for a couple of reasons. First the abuse scandal, but I've also heard the head of the BMT program didn't feel that the yelling was effective leadership or a teaching tool. That person has since retired so we may see a change come down. In retrospect, I think the yelling was there simply to rattle us. As for cell phones, I've talked to my troops, none of them were allowed cell phones. I have heard however that some intructors would allow them during the reward breaks the trainees would recieve if they did well enough, but this was solely at the instructor's discretion.;

I was watching a video of Coast Guard basic training recently and it actually looked a lot more physically challenging than when I went through.
I met an old WWII Coast Guard veteran in Harbor Beach, MI once and he told me that he went to basic training there during the war. His basic training consisted of 6 weeks that were mostly spent rowing a row boat back and forth from the lighthouse to the pier. Once his orders came through he was sent to convoy duty in the Atlantic. He said he had never been on a ship and didn't have any idea what to do.
Today, basic training seems to be much more focused and set on developing sucessful recruits rather than just knocking them into physical shape and weeding out the cry babies.

I agree with you. It was 8 weeks long when I went and then they changed it to 9 weeks and I think now, it's 10 weeks long. So they have an extra week for training and are still producing soldiers who cannot meet the standards. I got one phone call a week, if I was lucky and my platoon wasn't stripped of privilieges. Mail Call was the biggest event of every day. I undertand the push with technology and wanting to remain at the forefront of technology, but 2 months without your technology won't kill you. Posting pictures of yourself during Basic Training? Ummmm, is anyone reviewing any of these for OPSEC violations? I'm an older solider, when I enlisted there was no war, I grew up in the garrison type of Army. I understand that we tranistioned to an Army at war. But aren't we still trying to produce Soldiers, not just teens in a uniform? We are a profession, not a Facebook status.

Well as with all branches I am assuming... there is always someone somewhere who wants to change policies, to which we all see as "softening up" of boot camp. We all just adapt to new changes as we all do and eventually it becomes the new norm. Most of the changes are safety concerns someone had. We all know that we have different strengths and weaknesses, so there must have been some safety issue that had happened to prompt some of these changes. After all we don't want to put anyone's life in danger just to pass boot camp or do we?

oh and I do not agree with the cell phone thing. I heard about the cell phones in boot camp and I call BS...

Well, everyone else is commenting on your post, but I want to comment on the picture. One look, and even I could tell that one of these things is not like the other! Where is that private's gloves???