Army Recruiting Falls Short Again

For the second month in a row, the army has failed to meet its recruitment quota. Only 7,000 new soldiers signed up in June—15% short of the 8,400-recruit goal. The recruitment quota came up 7% short in May.  "We're not taking this lightly," said an Army spokesman.

The shortfalls, in the midst of a Pentagon attempt to beef up both the Army and Marine Corps, are being blamed on increasing dissatisfaction with the war in Iraq, a strong economy that offers better alternative job prospects, and the fact that seven out of 10 would-be recruits are failing to meet military standards for weight and education. (More Iraq war stories.)