US Marine Band

[JCradler]

So I just turned 35. Until this moment, I didn't really feel that old. I knew that the age cut-off for most service bands was around the mid-30's...I was kinda hoping it was 35. I just noticed, though, that it's 34. So, I'm an old fogey, it seems. Can anyone explain why that is? Not why I'm an old fogey, but why 34? I know some current service band members who are OVER that mark, so why is it important to put that age limit on potential new members? Especially with a non-militarized band like the Marine Band. I mean, I can see why 34 might be a good cut-off for those who will have to go through BOOT CAMP upon winning...even though I know some 60-YEAR OLD dudes who could probably handle it no problem...but why 34 for the Marine Band?

Thanks in advance for any input.

-The Old Codger

I'll try to answer here, but please don't take it as "Official" by any stretch.
I think the age cutoff is put in place at 34 because the Marine Corps says so, simply put. We are part of the Marine Corps, and we all know there are places in this world where the tail doesn't wag the dog. Many people serve in the military that are well beyond 34, but they obviously began their careers at a younger age. Age is not the only qualification in place for service, physical disabilities also come to mind. For example, one might be the best flute or trumpet player we've ever heard, but if they are wheelchair- bound or the like, they cannot be hired. If the age were to be raised, certainly there would be another person asking the same thing you are asking (Why can't it be just a bit older?) The line needed to be drawn somewhere and it was drawn at 34.

Regarding your use of the term "non-militarized", I'd like to suggest the more accurate term of "non- combatant". There is plenty (believe me!) of "military" about our jobs. As I was saying earlier, we are members of the Marine Corps and are serving on active duty.

John Cradler

Just a thought... Wouldn't 34 years old (With 20 years of active duty) put you at 54 to be able to retire. That would allow any member who joins the possibility of serving a full career if they wanted to.

Yes. But what point are you trying to make?

[PMeuph]

Just a thought... Wouldn't 34 years old (With 20 years of active duty) put you at 54 to be able to retire. That would allow any member who joins the possibility of serving a full career if they wanted to.

Yes. But what point are you trying to make?

That they wouldn't allow members to join past a certain age not to do the members any disservice. If a 50 year old would join, he would have to retire soon. Not only is this costly for the Marine Corps, it leaves the person without any kind of Retirement Pay, Right?
That would be doing everyone a disservice...

[Bob Kolada]

The military seems to be chucking people into the retirement pile quite a bit now.
Dvtuba, it doesn't hurt to ask. You can get waivers for a lot of things.

Army minimum age is 39. Go Army!

[Bob Kolada]

Just a thought... Wouldn't 34 years old (With 20 years of active duty) put you at 54 to be able to retire. That would allow any member who joins the possibility of serving a full career if they wanted to.

Yes. But what point are you trying to make?

That they wouldn't allow members to join past a certain age not to do the members any disservice. If a 50 year old would join, he would have to retire soon. Not only is this costly for the Marine Corps, it leaves the person without any kind of Retirement Pay, Right?
That would be doing everyone a disservice...

Irrelevant and inaccurate.

[PMeuph]

Irrelevant and inaccurate.

Then what is the answer? Why 34?

I was not providing an answer, merely throwing out a random thought....
I was just using the only logical deduction I could think of. FWIW, North of the border the max enrolment age is 57! ( Mandatory retirement is 60, so HQ figures 3 years to get trained and then get out.) I have heard and known people who have joined in their late 40's early 50's.

[Tony Halloin]

I think we've taken the wrong perspective here with a touch of misinformation. I'll attempt to explain my opinion of why the max first enlistment age is 34. I am, by no means, an authority on this matter, nor is my opinion speaking for the armed forces.
I think John had it right but didn't quite go far enough in explaining. First off, remember the enlistment age limit is set by "big military" and is the general rule for all the services. They don't (usually) make exceptions for one particular job in the military. I think the age limit is for good reason, as in 99.9999% of the military, a first enlister is going to be an E-1 to E-3 out of boot camp, which means they'll being doing the VERY hard work that would be difficult for a 40 year old back. Obviously there are exceptions. Also, the vast majority of personnel in the military are these first and second enlisters between the ages of 18 and 40 with the majority of those being very young. It is far cheaper for the military to tend to the health care if most of the personnel are between the ages of 18 and 30, as opposed to much older. Hence they have to spend more money on someone who enters after 40 and stays until 60 or 70 (?!).
Again, this is totally my opinion and observation.

[imperialbari]

On a tangent:

This forum as well as some other brass forums in between have references to US Marine web sites. And last I was in on the DC band pages several years ago there was interesting music performances to download for free.

Unlike the US Army, the US Navy, the US Air Force, and the US Coast Guard the US Marine demands ones web address being ping-able to be allowed seeing the contents of their pages. However my previous router as well as my fairly new combined cable modem & router had/have very tight hardware firewalls making it impossible to ping my address.

What to do to get in on the marine’s band pages without reorganizing my own web access set-up?

Klaus

[Rick F]

On a tangent:
<snip>

Unlike the US Army, the US Navy, the US Air Force, and the US Coast Guard the US Marine demands ones web address being ping-able to be allowed seeing the contents of their pages. However my previous router as well as my fairly new combined cable modem & router had/have very tight hardware firewalls making it impossible to ping my address.

What to do to get in on the marine’s band pages without reorganizing my own web access set-up?

Klaus

Hmm? I have my router set to 'not answer pings' and can download mp3 files from the Marine Band's website. I just checked again to make sure here:
http://www.marineband.usmc.mil/audio_re ... rtures.htm

When I go to Steve Gibson's site 'Shields Up' and run Internet vulnerability test, I come up with 'Stealth' results with no ping replies or any evidence of ports being seen. Are you sure it's your router causing trouble?

Looking forward to seeing/hearing The President's Own Marine Band next month in Boca Raton, FL

[imperialbari]

I don’t claim any expert knowledge on web matters. I used to be able to go to the Marine DC site. When I no longer could, I assumed it being about try access from outside the US. In a horn list context ex-marines told they couldn’t go there either and suggested non-pig-ability being the reason.

Just took the vulnerability test. Full stealth on all ports. And your marine link didn’t work.

Klaus, mystified

[Alex C]

So I just turned 35. Until this moment, I didn't really feel that old. I knew that the age cut-off for most service bands was around the mid-30's...I was kinda hoping it was 35. I just noticed, though, that it's 34.
Thanks in advance for any input.

-The Old Codger

If a corporation advertised a position and put in an age cut-off, there would be a monumental lawsuit which the company would loose. It is telling that the government allows age discrimination to themselves but not to others. Something we should remember as the government passes more laws.