The U.S. is finding recruiting for the military is getting to be a tough job, notes Grumpy Editor.
“Due to attrition and retirement, the military needs to find more than 150,000 new recruits every year to meet its overall 'end strength' goal," reports Bloomberg.
“In 2020, the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines all hit their annual recruitment goals --- but those figures were distorted by a historically weak job market, as active-duty service members delayed plans to re-enter the civilian sector, reducing the need for new hires,” continues Bloomberg. “Last year’s target of 61,200 new Army enlistees, for instance, was 20 percent lower than in 2018, when the Army failed to meet its goal.”
Bloomberg points out “this limited supply compromises national security,” adding, “recruits tend to be drawn from a shrinking segment of the population --- from a small number of mostly southern states and families of veterans, a group whose share of the population is lower than at any time since World War II.”
IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…
SOCIAL SECURITY RECIPIENTS MAY SEE BIG BOOST. For the 69 million Americans who collect Social Security, estimates project they're on track to get a 6.1 percent cost-of-living adjustment, the biggest increase since 1983. Official figures are announced in the fall.
FLOODS HIT GERMANY, WESTERN EUROPE. While parts of the U.S. cope with a long dry spell, worst flooding in decades hits Germany, Belgium and other parts of Western Europe following days of heavy rain that swelled rivers.
U.S. OVERDOSE DEATHS SOAR. Overdose deaths soared to a record 93,000 last year in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, estimates the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, adding it eclipses the high of about 72,000 drug overdose deaths reached the previous year.
VENICE NIXES LARGE CRUISE LINERS. Declaring Venice waterways a “national monument,” Italy is banning mammoth cruise liners from sailing into the lagoon city.
NUMBER OF CRUISE SHIPS TO JUMP. Shipbuilders are busy. More than 70 cruise ships are scheduled to debut between now and 2027.
FRENCH FRIES AT $200 A PLATE. Serendipity3, a restaurant on the Upper East Side in Manhattan, creates the world's most expensive French fries to coincide with National French Fry Day: $200 a plate..
ANOTHER MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE FOUND. A 9-year-old girl visiting a Hawaii park with her family finds a message --- in English, Spanish and Japanese --- inside a mud-caked glass bottle that was launched from Japan 37 years ago.
BRAZIL DROUGHT LEADS TO HIGHER COFFEE PRICES. A drought in Brazil coupled with an increase in demand for coffee as the world reopens after the coronavirus pandemic leads to Higher Coffee Prices on grocers shelves.
$915,000 FOR ELTON JOHN'S PIANO. Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay adds to his vast music collection in buying at auction Elton John's Steinway & Sons Model D Grand Piano for $915,000. It was used on tours from 1974 to 1993.
