I'm just finishing the huge bestseller, "Hillbilly Elegy" by J.D. Vance. It should be required reading for a number of reasons but the over-all theme, to me, is about how hard it is to escape a chaotic life. It seems like a strange concept but, a a crucial time, the Marine Corps provided structure to bring about calm in J.D.'s life.
The Marine Corps assumes maximum ignorance from its enlisted folks. It assumes that no one taught you anything about physical fitness, personal hygiene, or personal finances. I took mandatory classes about balancing a checkbook, saving, and investing. When I came home from boot camp with my fifteen hundred-dollar earning deposit in a mediocre regional bank, a senior enlisted marine drove me to Navy Federal - a respected credit union - and had me open an account....In the Marines, my boss didn't just make sure I did a good job, he made sure I kept my room clean, kept my hair cut, and ironed my uniforms. He sent an older marine to supervise as I shopped for my first car so that I'd end up with a practical car, like a Toyota or a Honda, not the BMW that I wanted.
J.D. Vance went from living a chaotic hillbilly life to graduating from Yale Law School. His story reminds us of how much of, if not most of, America lives.
The marines were certainly not the only thing that saved him. He was a smart kid growing up with a bunch of dysfunctional hillbillies - but he was well loved. Read the book.
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