[Puke]

i decline to comment on wither or not i was kidding, but it does not need to be like you describe.

one of the largest challenges that the military faces is with retaining troops, and convincing soldiers to re-enlist. they invest in the initial training, but then dont get to reap the benefit of that investment.

now im not saying that people should be condenmed to unemployment after leaving the military, that would shutdown the largest sources of employees in our private armies. im just saying that maybe there should be some precautions in place.

maybe soldiers should be allowed to take jobs at private firms after serving two tours. maybe three, i dont know where the break even point is for the ROI. if its two, maybe they should be under a non-compete for four years (typical tour length) after their first tour is up, if they dont re-enlist.

and they could always TAKE a job at a private firm after their first tour is over, but they would be legally responsible to pay penalties. just like in the private sector.

The same thing exists in many police departments. Officers that pass the accademy often sign contracts that they wont take jobs with other police departments in other cities within X number of years of their graduation - because training is expensive and the department that trained them wants to see that return on investment.

and it wouldnt be for all security related jobs, just for professional mercinary work. perhaps the distinction would be that they can work domestically, but they cant work abroad for a "security company"

of course, this might cause a problem with soldiers changing their citizenship after their term of service, so the our guys go work for british mercinary companies and their guys come to ours.