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Reader suggests , “Maybe that’s what this country needs for our high school graduates to go into the military for a good year to straighten them out”

stripes DI1

Are you kidding me. This is getting to be ridiculous now. There’s a lot of opportunities if one joins. Other countries you’re forced. Maybe that’s what this country needs for our high school graduates to go into the military for a good year to straighten them out teach them reality, and some common sense make them strong and tough not sissies.

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2016’s Most Patriotic States – WalletHub Study

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June 30,2016

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

 

Ridgewood NJ, With the Fourth of July just days away, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its list of 2016’s Most Patriotic States as a follow-up to its recent look at the Best & Worst Fourth of July Destinations.

To identify the country’s patriotic hotspots, WalletHub compared the 50 states across 12 key metrics such as military engagement, voting habits and civic education.

Top 20 Most Patriotic States
1 Virginia 11 North Carolina
2 Alaska 12 Vermont
3 South Carolina 13 Idaho
4 Colorado 14 Wyoming
5 Georgia 15 Maine
6 Hawaii 16 Mississippi
7 Montana 17 New Mexico
8 Alabama 18 Wisconsin
9 Washington 19 Missouri
10 New Hampshire 20 South Dakota

Key Stats

  • Red states are more patriotic, with an average ranking of 22.5, compared with 28.3 for blue states (1 = Best).
  • Alaska has the highest number of veterans per 1,000 residents, 100.8, which is two times higher than in New York, the state with the lowest, 45.5.
  • Georgia has the highest percentage of residents who enlisted in the military (non-prior service), 0.063%, which is three times higher than in North Dakota, the state with the lowest, 0.022%.
  • Minnesota has the highest percentage of residents who voted in the 2012 presidential election, 74.37%, which is two times higher than in Arizona, the state with the lowest, 37.98%.
  • Utah has the highest volunteer rate, 45.2%, which is three times higher than in Louisiana, the state with the lowest, 18.2%.
  • Vermont has the highest number of Americorps volunteers per 100,000 residents, 58.91, which is eight times higher than in Virginia, the state with the lowest, 7.42.

For the full report and to see where your state ranks, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/most-patriotic-states/13680/

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Five Ridgewood residents from same neighborhood serve in the military

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incle_sam_wants_you_theridgewoodblog.net_

Five Ridgewood residents from same neighborhood serve in the military

FEBRUARY 25, 2015    LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2015, 6:25 PM
BY LAURA HERZOG
FOR THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

When Sam Combs, Pat Kiernan, Ryan Mansbach and Ben Rogers were small-yet-rough-and-tough neighbors growing up on South Irving Street and Arden Court, they played together a lot: riding scooters in the street, playing manhunt and street hockey, and doing bike jumps in the nearby woods.

It was a fun time, and a good time for bonding for four Ridgewood kids living on a dead end block, with each other’s houses in sight.

But years later, the four friends, plus Masbach’s older sister Melanie, have given up the kid stuff in favor of more strenuous activities – manning submarines, surveying the Pacific Ocean for mines, or piloting Army and Navy aircrafts.

Grown up and scattered around the country, the five neighbors now also have U.S. military service in common.

Melanie Mansbach, now 29, was the first on the block to express a military interest, attending West Point several years ago and becoming an officer. She was later deployed to Afghanistan.

The four neighborhood “boys” are now all either officers or soon-to-be officers in the U.S. Army or U.S. Navy.

Subtle neighborhood inspiration might have a little to do with this, but there was no consensus on that among the four young men, since they all took different paths into the military and had several influences. (Melanie, who is in training, was unavailable for an interview.)

https://www.northjersey.com/community-news/five-ridgewood-residents-from-same-neighborhood-serve-in-the-military-1.1277802