His attitude bugs me too because it reflects the classist tenor of our times.<p>In WWII and even Vietnam you had sons (and even a few daughters) of the elite who were either drafted or volunteered -- this is not often the case anymore.<p>On the other hand,  the modern U.S. military spends around $1 million to train a warfighter to the base level where they are sent into real combat.  That&#x27;s much more than PhD training costs.