IQ 낮다고 합격? 미국 역사상 가장 부끄러운 '35만 명 총알받이' 프로젝트의 실체

During the 1960s, as the Vietnam War intensified, the United States faced a severe shortage of troops. It was at this time that a policy known as "Project 100,000" was introduced. Ostensibly intended to provide education and opportunities to impoverished youths, in reality, it was a method of lowering enlistment standards to send those who would previously have been rejected to the battlefield. College students could defer their conscription, and the middle class could avoid war through various means. Conversely, young people from low-income backgrounds, lacking educational opportunities, had almost no choice. Ultimately, this policy became not merely a military strategy, but an example illustrating who bears the risk within the social structure. In the field, insufficient education or training was provided, and many were deployed into combat unprepared. As a result, they suffered heavy casualties, recording a mortality rate higher than that of regular soldiers. Even after the war ended, the situation did not improve. Promised social opportunities were rarely realized, and some faced difficulties in employment and daily life due to dishonorable discharges. This incident is not merely a story of the past. It remains an important case study demonstrating the criteria by which a nation makes choices during a crisis, and how those decisions affect whom. #VietnamWar #Project100000 #MilitaryPolicy #SocialInequality #HistoryStory #TheDarkSideOfWar #ConscriptionSystem #USHistory #MilitaryStory #SocialStructure