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I have known some marines and former ones. Not many. The few I have met were pretty much jerks (i'm using way milder language than I would like). I'm sure there are some that are not so bad, but I've yet to meet them. I hate to lump all of them in the jerk category, bit I'm pretty sure most of them probably are. Of course there is always the exception, but they are probably married. Of course at my age even the jerks probably found some poor chic.
A military spouse won't always have optimal decisions. For example if a spouse wants to finish a degree, he/she is limited to the academic institutions in/around the base at which their military spouse is stationed. This isn't so bad if you are in San Diego, but isn't so great if you are in 29 Palms. Career and work options are often limited. Also, housing can be a challenge, too. You want so badly to have the optimal layout of furniture items in your home, but when you move so often, it's a challenge. Then you find the perfect place and about the time you settle in, it's time to leave and go somewhere else! You also get separated from friends when your military spouse gets moved due to orders.
opOf course, the poster to whom you asked the question may have other examples or mean something else entirely, those are just some thoughts that came to mind when I read that post.
My personal point was along these lines, more or less. I'm not a military spouse, just a girlfriend, but I'm well aware of the lay of the land. Ultimately, orders are orders...and that can be a big thing to someone who is steeped in civilian life, accustomed to a large degree of personal independence, and is accustomed to jobs that if you don't like what you're told to do, finding another job or career if necessary is a viable option. The decisions you make in your life are fair game to be trumped by the needs of the military/govt, and not everyone is wired for that. The other stuff is not a big concern to me...I don't care about moving around, rather, I'm generally up for it. I don't care about furniture layout, etc. Moving around a lot can be lonely, but I've already been a bit of a nomad, and generally don't have a problem keeping in contact with my friends and loved ones I no longer live around. I've always been something of a dabbler in various types of work, so I'm not on any one long-trajectory career path that I'd be sacrificing if I were married to someone who moves around a lot with the military. I would be concerned if there weren't SOME employment for me, but I'm also not worried about losing where I'm at on the corporate ladder or anything like that. Some people would be.
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I think because they know that they will eventually be given an opportunity to lead or take charge. Type A personalities also tend to be decisive, which is a quality that the military values. You want to see the troops get frustrated? Put a leader over them who doesn't know how to make a decision when one is required. Drives us crazy! Type As tend to embrace challenges, and even daily routine life in the military can often be full of physical, mental and ethical challenges. The military also recruits people with a low risk aversion, which is also consistent with many type As.
Of course, not everyone in the military has a type A personality, and even within type A personalities exists a lot of variance, but these are general qualities that tend to be consistent with people in the Marines and probably the other branches of the service as well.
Yep. My SO is not the stereotypical military man, at least as far as you'd figure by interacting with him socially. If you didn't know he was military, and one in a fairly high-up leadership position at that, you'd never guess it. He's softspoken, easygoing, sweet natured, kinda geeky. He was a middle school teacher before he was in the military. He's a joker. Kind of a softie. Or so you'd think. When he's on the job, though, he's ALL BUSINESS. I tease him about his "Chief Voice." You can tell when he gets a Navy call. His entire demeanor changes.
I'm sure it's no surprise when I say dating a guy with a military background isn't for everyone. Some when find those traits attractive while others just dont. And, of course, you really cant generalize but I do think the stereotype exists for a reason. As far as Marines, they are reprogrammed to be bad arses because they are often the first to hit the front line of our national defense. I, for one, have come to appreciate that pride and attitude, but not all have the ability to shut it off when it comes to interacting with civilians.
Old thread, but I'll play. Back in my early to mid-20s, military men, mostly Marines, were dang near the only men who would approach me. The D.C. area is loaded with military bases, so part of it was location. But if you're a young woman and you go out to the bars on M Street downtown, they're loaded with guys from Quantico, usually lieutenants attending TBS (basic school). Or, at least they were back in the late 80s, early 90s. The joke used to be that when they went through TBS, they were issued wives or girlfriends from Washington. I ended up dating one for two and a half years, as his post-TBS training was in Virginia, and then, hey, I was young with no responsibilities, so I went to Hawaii with him.
Point is, no, it's not impossible to date Marines. You just have to have the personality for it: Independent, capable (because you'll be taking care of things at home on your own), flexible (don't get too used to him being either home or gone because it changes--a lot), able to make friends or at least not be put off by having an insta-network when you arrive somewhere new, and able to hold your liquor in a game of Ship, Captain, Crew. Also, eyes wide open. The base where my then-beau was stationed was known as the Divorce Mill of the Pacific. Some of those guys had entire second families in the Philippines. Plus, this was during the Gulf War, so a lot of the guys were gone and their wives were running amok--the cheating worked both ways. And that is why I dumped him.
Lilac, when I attended TBS (2006) it was all I could do to pick up Chinese takeout and a movie rental on my way home on Friday night. I didn't know how the single guys went out and partied on the weekends. I was always smoked by the end of the training week. Especially if we had been in the field. We'd go out on Monday mornings and come out Friday morning and spend the rest of Friday doing weapons maintenance. Throughout the week the only sleep we'd get would be 15 minute catnaps here and there. They would rotate instructors in so that they would always be able to drive us a little harder. Of course you have no choice throughout the week but to keep truckin' along, but when I'd get home on Friday evening, I'd be done!
My wife and I had our first baby while I was at TBS. She was still just a couple weeks old and I'd come home at night and tell my wife, "Hey, the baby slept through the night last night!" She would just glare at me! Like this:
Arrogant self-centered jerks? Damn. I'm going to have to come up with a way not to mention those years if a girl asks what happened during the time I was 18 and 21. Gloss over it so to speak... "Those missing years, oh, ah, I was working overseas, the people were a little hostile, not worth talking about really"... O_o
Lilac, when I attended TBS (2006) it was all I could do to pick up Chinese takeout and a movie rental on my way home on Friday night. I didn't know how the single guys went out and partied on the weekends. I was always smoked by the end of the training week. Especially if we had been in the field. We'd go out on Monday mornings and come out Friday morning and spend the rest of Friday doing weapons maintenance. Throughout the week the only sleep we'd get would be 15 minute catnaps here and there. They would rotate instructors in so that they would always be able to drive us a little harder. Of course you have no choice throughout the week but to keep truckin' along, but when I'd get home on Friday evening, I'd be done!
My wife and I had our first baby while I was at TBS. She was still just a couple weeks old and I'd come home at night and tell my wife, "Hey, the baby slept through the night last night!" She would just glare at me! Like this:
HEH! My friends and I used to go out on Saturdays. That could explain it. But once I had a boyfriend, he would materialize at my door on Friday evening about 6:30, and he'd go back either Sunday night or, once he was in classes for his MOS, Monday morning before the HOV lanes switched.
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Also, eyes wide open. The base where my then-beau was stationed was known as the Divorce Mill of the Pacific. Some of those guys had entire second families in the Philippines. Plus, this was during the Gulf War, so a lot of the guys were gone and their wives were running amok--the cheating worked both ways. And that is why I dumped him. 
