Pentagon: 7 in 10 Youths Would Fail to Qualify for Military Service, by Nolan Feeney.

Approximately 71% of the 34 million 17-to-24-year-olds in the U.S. would not qualify for military service because of reasons related to health, physical appearance and educational background, according to the Pentagon.

The ineligible typically includes those who are obese, those who lack a high school diploma or a GED, convicted felons, those taking prescription drugs for ADHD and those with certain tattoos and ear gauges …

“The quality of people willing to serve has been declining rapidly,” Major General Allen Batschelet, the U.S. Army Recruiting Command’s commanding general

Karl Denninger adds:

What I have noted as an extremely alarming trend is the radical increase in extremely “fragile” young people when it comes to emotional stability.  I’m talking about people who do not get through a single week without at least one near-heart-attack style panic attack, those who have had to leave a retail sales floor because they were “triggered” and literally couldn’t complete a basic function (like helping someone find a pair of shoes!) and similar. …

If the basic part of our military cannot accept 7 out of 10 young people from 17-24 what role do those very same people have in our economy and the future of our nation?  If 70% of our youth are unable to perform a push-up, are emotionally unstable to the point of not being able to interact with others or do a basic job on a reliable basis, commit felonies for fun or have decided to tattoo racist messages all over their lower arms and face how is our nation ever going to economically survive and prosper, say much less defend itself should the need arise?