Or, more likely, the reality that the US military industrial complex is built off the dream of upwards social mobility for impoverished Americans.
The US has very little social programs, on purpose. Those social programs ARE the military. If you need help to pull you out of poverty, you go into the military. Then you get education, healthcare, affordable housing, and guaranteed work - the typical social benefits you'd see in a modern democratic socialist nation. They're simply "rebranded" to fit the American dream, and, in turn, provide the military with a steady supply of warm bodies.
The military, at it's core, is nothing more than a work program and tiny little socialist nation within the US.
The rich don't join the military because they don't have to. These social benefits are for average to poor Americans.
The three schools around me are among the richest in the state and all have recruiters visit regularly. What’s your source for that belief?