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What do you do when your dream job turns into a nightmare?
Rick Brindle was a third generation military child. His father and grandfather served their whole lives in the Army, and all he wanted to do was join up.
But for Rick it was more than just the job. Growing up on Army estates in Germany, he wanted to keep hold of the sheltered lifestyle that he’d enjoyed all through his childhood.
Having left school, and after three years of trying and failing to become an officer in the Army, Rick was still determined to pursue a career in the armed forces. So in 1989 he joined the RAF Regiment as an Airman.
Life in the Regiment, though, was a world apart from being a forces dependent, and Rick’s dream quickly became toxic. Facing a culture of bullying, beatings, verbal abuse and sexual harassment, the privileged community he wanted to be a part of became more like a prison. Most people around him went along with the abuse, some agreed with it, and some joined in, while the chain of command routinely looked the other way.
But Rick refused to accept the mob mentality. Worse, his love of heavy metal, combined with his unconventional dress sense quickly made him a target. He found out in the harshest possible way that he should never have joined up.
Set over thirty years ago, this story still resonates today, because one thing remains the same: committed individuals probably shouldn’t join the armed forces, and this book is a testament to what happens if you do. It's Not For Everyone is essential reading for anyone considering a military career. Sometimes funny, sometimes shocking, and sometimes sickening, it’s one person’s unprecedented true story of life in the RAF Regiment, and the strength it took to remain an individual.
Rick Brindle was a third generation military child. His father and grandfather served their whole lives in the Army, and all he wanted to do was join up.
But for Rick it was more than just the job. Growing up on Army estates in Germany, he wanted to keep hold of the sheltered lifestyle that he’d enjoyed all through his childhood.
Having left school, and after three years of trying and failing to become an officer in the Army, Rick was still determined to pursue a career in the armed forces. So in 1989 he joined the RAF Regiment as an Airman.
Life in the Regiment, though, was a world apart from being a forces dependent, and Rick’s dream quickly became toxic. Facing a culture of bullying, beatings, verbal abuse and sexual harassment, the privileged community he wanted to be a part of became more like a prison. Most people around him went along with the abuse, some agreed with it, and some joined in, while the chain of command routinely looked the other way.
But Rick refused to accept the mob mentality. Worse, his love of heavy metal, combined with his unconventional dress sense quickly made him a target. He found out in the harshest possible way that he should never have joined up.
Set over thirty years ago, this story still resonates today, because one thing remains the same: committed individuals probably shouldn’t join the armed forces, and this book is a testament to what happens if you do. It's Not For Everyone is essential reading for anyone considering a military career. Sometimes funny, sometimes shocking, and sometimes sickening, it’s one person’s unprecedented true story of life in the RAF Regiment, and the strength it took to remain an individual.
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