[Morgeruat]

re tattoos, I know when got in close to ten years ago, tattoos were on the way out as well, The regulations then were that it could not be visible in the dress uniform (as well as no offensive tattoos), that may have been restricted moreso since then. Essentially the army being an all volunteer force is making more and more of an effort to look like a highly professional work force.

I have a friend who went through about a year and a half of trying to get the proper waivers and such to get into the military (first hurdle was that he had been diagnosed with ADD) and eventually he discovered that his test scores weren't high enough to get into any branch (IIRC the marines had the most stringent requirements), although they weren't low enough to disqualify him from service if they needed to draft him. (he's currently a nurse working on his degree) (whereas I was 1 point from maxing the test)