I don't think it is crap to tell the person that they must have a desire to serve the country and to serve in the military. If you don't have any small bit of that in you, your time in the military, no matter how short, is going to be very very long.

Is going through ROTC a bad thing? ROTC demands high morals, high physical fitness, leadership, public speaking, and good grades. What employer wouldn't want that in everyone it hires?

Even if you don't get a pilot slot and you have to do 4-years in Podunk, IA, you can still get a leg up and select a career field which is going to pay once you get out. And once you become a Captain, you'll start getting emails from the head hunters looking for people looking for new careers.

Goodluck!