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Paul Hoover

We asked Paul Hoover to write on the following:

"Until recently, recruits in their first several weeks of training had no choice in what they ate; they simply took the next available plate in the serving line. Now they can choose, from the first day. They can also eat dessert -- formerly a privilege to be earned -- and drill sergeants can no longer keep overweight soliders from eating fattening foods. Many drill sergeants find ways around this restriction, hovering near desserts, arms crossed: their presence is deterrent enough."

-- Brian Mockenhaupt, "The Army We Have," The Atlantic, June 2007

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