I've been down both roads.

A better way of saying it is that the lowest common denominator for pilot skill is higher in the military than the civilian world...there are civilians who really have no business being in an airliner.

Employers know this, so military guys get some benefit of the doubt that civilians do not.

Obviously not every military guy is a better person than every civilian but again the LCD is higher. You will definitely experience more personal and professional growth in the military than doing the puppy-mill/cfi/regional track. In the latter case you might get a one-hour powerpoint session on leadership during upgrade training. Maybe.