Originally Posted by
blastoff
Honestly, its not enough that it should turn a kid away from the reserves. It also depends on Airframe. If dealing with just a little (we're talking VERY little) more crap turns you're stomach, you don't belong in any component of the Air Force. We're talking about street hires with no prior service, they're getting a pretty sweet deal for a free Commercial-Multi and various type ratings, and career stability. You might spend a month or two deployed longer than in the Guard over a 20 year career. Not a big deal. And while it is easier to activate an entire Reserve Unit, it's still hard to do. Honestly, the BS you're talking about shouldn't even be on the radar of a 21 year old, and most of that is at Reserve Associate Units. There are still plenty of Unit-Equipped Reserve Units that operate just like the Guard in every way.
I agree that it is going to be unit/airframe specific. Several guys from my guard unit have transferred to reserve units and all I'm doing is passing along some of the gripes I've heard from them. These same gripes I've heard at my civilian job from reservists. If a 21 year old wants to chaff it off, fine. I'm not telling them the reserve is crap, just that there ARE differences.
BTW, the guard isn't perfect either. There are some bad squadrons/units out there.