How would you solve the military recruiting challenges currently facing DOD?

A friend of mine was appointed to run the selective service under Trump. He said 80 percent of the recruiting age boys are too fat to serve. To fix the recruiting problem you need to solve that problem.

Should read the Bible. Bible addresses many of these ominous questions throughout life's many struggles.

Get out and be social, not anti-social or socialist... Get out there and advise the young, your way of life is just one step below the US Air Force's way of living. And forcing those into a decision is probably not a good idea, let them chose on their own. Cheers!

I come from a family who had males in the military in every generation going back to before the War Between the States,and for one branch, back to the Revolutionary War and the Texas war of Independence. Since I spent some time in the Army, my nephew came to me to talk about it. He was thinking about signing up. I told him not to. The military is actively passing over white males for promotion in favor of equity promotions. In what world does it make sense for a smart kid to sign up for a career in which he will be passed over because of the color of his skin? The military has decided to focus on equity when it comes to promotion and opportunities. It would be foolish of of him to sign up when there are other places that will reward him for his abilities and effort?

I'm in Port Hueneme,(home of the SeaBees), with NBVC- Naval Base Ventura County and Naval Base Point Mugu. What I find is too many mom's coming into recruiting offices or job fairs wanting their son/daughter to enlist for the GI Bill benefit for minimum requirement to qualify and guarantee that their kid will not deploy to a war zone. Here in California, Newsome's AG (now that Kamala is gone), is trying to seek some sort of lame angle of discrimination that would force recruiters to accept enlistment of those who claim Conscientious Objection status.

We can send recruiters across the country they can't we send recruits for a six month deploy up to a year to adapt their high school. See them in his class class for mandatory training and wed out the ones who really didn't want to be in the class. And fine the ones who wants to make a difference in today armed forces, I didn't care of of the other forces work together and training there's lucky future soldier becoming the best of the best and getting to learn how to lead how to get promoted how to succeed in life some might stay in and make it a career. I should have been SGM but no guidance and no help from upper leaders. I would not mind helping out future soldier become a elite soldier. And pass the ASVB, PT, LOSING WEIGHT show then the road map to succeed. Time for the leadership to look at the real problem facing neighborhood and in our schools. I will help recruiters up improve their goals and change the Young's person's life for the good.

Dump the DEI bullcrap. Quit usung the military as a social experiment and get back to the business of killing peoe and breaking things. The current "leadership" from C in C to Joint Chiefs to the Service secretarys need to be fired. We need warfighter mentality, starting from the top down.

Young people are less patriotic and they want what they want. The military need to go back to the way it use to be. i have been retired 18 years and i was shocked to see females can wear their hair down

An induction camp to ready boys for basic training, a halfway house

Make all the illegals serve . Minimum 4 yrs fir citizenship and one family member for every additional 2 yrs served ..fire all the woke bs DEI LGQT GENERALS . put people like mad fog matt is, admiral mcravin , and general jack keen in charge

When I enlisted in '78, Part of my understanding was that I would have the opportunity to be able to take College Classes at up to 90% Discount on the Tuition (with the standard caveat of "if I had enough time to take classes").
The Navy Also Trained me as a Mechanical Operator for Nuclear Power Plants. I took that Steam Plant Knowledge and Retired from a State University job in their Campus Heating Plant, Running Steam Plants.
When I was a Recruiter for the Navy, Every Public School that Got Federal Funding, was Required by Law to allow the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery of Tests to be Given. The Test results were Available to the School's Guidance Councilor's within a few weeks or so, and Six months or so later, we would get print-outs of the Test Scores for everyone who took the test. We were Only Allowed to Prospect amongst the Male Students, because at the Time, Congress prohibited prospecting Women, because they felt they would not be able to perform to the Men's Standards. All of the Enlisted "Positions" were Advertised as a Job in Various Fields, but they didn't specifically state that they were for the military, until they called asking for information. and we would tell them it would require enlisting and then offer to connect them with their local Recruiter's office to schedule an appointment.
One of the Stories were liked to tell, was of a Woman who trained as a Navy Hull Technician or a Plumber/Welder and after her four year enlistment, she Re-Enlisted for Non-Destructive Testing School and then got a job, after Eight Years in, as a Welding Inspector, at the San Onofrie Nuclear Power Plant between Los Angeles and San Diego, making $65,000 a year, in Early 1980's

My GI Bill only Paid for a years worth of College Classes.
I understand that Since That Time, the Rethuglican Politicians Cut the Veteran's Administration Funding, so that service members had fewer locations for medical treatment. I have no idea what the GI Bill has become, but with the Cost of College Going up, I don't believe the GI Bill kept pace.

I've Heard that Until the Rethuglican's killed it, that Military Service could get a portion of, or All of their Student Loan's Forgiven.

My Brother Retired from the Navy after Twenty as an E-6, but his 50% of his Base Pay, barely covered any of his expenses, and there was no way for him to get an Electrician's License, even with him having worked over Twenty Years as a Nuclear Power Plant Electrical Operator.