Freakonomics: Who chooses to serve in the American military?

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

About two and a half million men and women serve in the U.S. military. These days, it's a job that almost certainly involves serving in a war zone, as American soldiers continue to fight in Iraq and Afghanistan. So who chooses to serve in the volunteer military? In many cases, it's not people without other options. [Editor's note (9/23/2008): The number of men and women serving in the military was corrected.]

Guest: Stephen Dubner, co-author of the Freakonomics book and blog

Contributors:

Stephen J. Dubner

Comments [1]

Frank Mayer

I was certainly surprised.

Frequently, when I encounter an invalid stereotype it turns out to be outdated. Is it also the case here that the publicly perceived image of military demographics is 10 or 20 years out of date, or is the image completely groundless? In the former case, what's changed in society? In the later case, where does it come from?

Sep. 23 2008 10:23 PM

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