Sometimes it IS beneficial to volunteer, even in basic training.
While stationed at Lackland Air Force Base (AFB), Texas in 1964, our training instructor asked for a couple of volunteers for an unknown task. I didn’t make a mistake by volunteering.
As the remainder of my 50-man flight spent the day picking up used shells on the firing range, I was “forced” to sit and watch “I Love Lucy” reruns on TV while sucking on hard candies. We were guinea pigs for military doctors at nearby Brooks AFB who were conducting tests on human salivary glands. Glad I volunteered!