Army Retention is Low...No, Wait. It's High.

From the NY Times: Young Officers Leaving Army At A High Rate.

"It was the second year in a row of worsening retention numbers, apparently marking the end of a burst of patriotic fervor during which junior officers chose continued military service at unusually high rates."

But on the other hand, USAToday reports: Army Surpassing Year's Retention Goal By 15%.

"The Army has met or exceeded its goals for retention for the past five years, records show. It was 8% over its goal for 2005, and 7% ahead of its targets for 2004. The number of re-enlistments has exceeded the Army's goal by a larger margin each year since 2001.

Soldiers like the Army, 'and the war is not causing people to leave,' says Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty, an Army spokesman. Through March, 2,325 U.S. troops had been killed in Iraq; 1,593 were Army soldiers.

The Pentagon announced in March that each of the armed forces was on track to meet its retention goal for the year.

All things being equal, I'm inclined to be a little more skeptical of (cough...Jayson Blair) the NY Times.

Posted by: Gary at 11:00 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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