There are two main reasons why the military draft is being reconsidered, after 35 years of absence in America.
1. The United States military is stretched too thin in places like Iraq. Give it maybe another year and maybe our soldiers in Iraq won't be able to fight. We've been hitting the snooze button on the idea of "more troops or get out of Iraq" by making the same troops stay in Iraq and Afghanistan for years.
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20060626/howl
2. Politicans, especially African American politicans, are concerned that the people who make political and military decisions do not live and die carrying out those decisions. Many people serve in the military because they do not have alternatives or good alternatives ("the poverty draft"). Getting rid of the draft in 1973 did not lead to peace, instead, it created a majority in the United States that does not understand what war and killing means.
http://www.blackcommentator.com/24/24_commentary.html
The only way there will be a draft is if the leftists take over. It has ONLY been leftists calling for a draft and ONLY been leftists saying that we are going to have a draft. It is ONLY the leftists who want a draft and only the leftists who would institute it.
I remember all the leftist morons who were squawking and mewling about how a draft WOULD DEFINITELY HAPPEN by 2006 if GWB were re-elected in 2004. Of course, being leftist idiots, they were wrong.
Right-wing American politicians do not want a draft. Left-wing American politicians want a draft. Both of them have these positions from purely selfish and cynical reasons.
Well, if they do pass the draft, they might have some trouble getting people, since Asperger's, and even ADD are on the "optional" list where your draft notice gives you a choice if you want to go or not, as long as you have an official diagnosis.
Struck me kinda funny - that an AFFer would like neither the LEFT (leftist idiots) or the Right "Wing" - categorizing people using just one term - I would think that being accepting of opposing views and letting people have the freedom to voice them would be important to all of us here.
Yes, SILLY ME! How STUPID of me to forget that disagreement means that I am VIOLATING someones rights. Specifically quote wherein I stated that the idiots of either of these political sides ought not have the freedom to spew their idiocy. I raise the challenge--give the specific quote.
Hey, the view "kill all Aspergics" is one I oppose. Should I accept it? Obviously, YOU think I should. How about "The government should set up state-sponsored pedophilia havens." I certainly oppose THAT view, but I'm supposed to be "accepting" of it!
I don't recall anyone thinking that if GWB was elected there would be a draft
Were you ASLEEP in 2004? I'll be charitable and presume you were, since the alternative would be to presume that you are an idiot with a memory shorter than that of a fruit fly's. Here, but a FEW references to the idiot leftist screamers about how Bush was going to institute a draft if re-elected:
http://www.albionmonitor.com/0401a/bushdraft.html
http://www.usatoday.com/news/politicsele...-wed_x.htm
http://www.mndaily.com/articles/2004/10/29/10950
http://www.truthout.org/docs_04/103104X.shtml
http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/in...le/ID/2328
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6027815/
I am absolutely astonished at the denial and delusion on this issue whenever I bring it up. The left used it as a campaign stumping point in 2004 and now denies that anybody ever actually made the claims. Too bad about those inconvenient archives that are now publically available, though.
What POSSIBLE selfish reasons can there be to want (a draft) equality in service to ones country?
Selfish reason to support a draft:
It would galvanize popular support to leftist politicians on one issue (war) that they can leverage to supporting other of their pet issues.
You may have the last word on denial and delusion.
You are wallowing in denial and delusion. You deny that people claimed in 2004 that Bush was going to reinstitute the draft if re-elected, definitely delusional, on your part.
You're the delusional one, wallowing in denial. I linked to several items that showed this.
Like Marcia said, though I am from the US, I think that a draft would do exactly that. If more of the population was faced with even the prospect of their own paying the price - the population would stay more active and avail themselves more with what is going on with their government. Less war's of choice for sure!
This is exactly why there will never be a draft in the USA. The governing political parties do NOT want an active and interested populace. They want passive drones who say "I'm a Democrat." or "I'm a Republican." and then blindly support one party or the other, no matter what it does.
even have it - Iraq is being set up with a parliament - more like the UK, from what I can tell, and the UK has is better than what we have)
The UK is even worse than the USA when it comes to political parties and special interest groups controlling things, leaving the people out in the cold. Remember, the executive in the UK only gets his job by being the ultimate party insider, by being chosen by card-carrying, hardcore party members. There isn't even a pretense to a general poll for the executive position in the UK. Instead, it's 100% party. Likewise, since the executive in the UK is guaranteed a majority in the legislature, it means that the UK government is able to rape the people of the UK far more efficiently than in the USA.
You know, tomorrow is my 38th birthday, and 20 years ago was my 18th birthday (Sunday) and I remember Dad taking me to the Post office on Monday and watching me register for the draft. I put my hand on my brow because I was overwhelmed, my dad thought I was saluting the postmistress who was stamping my Selective Service application. Oh well. It's been a nice 20 years and I didn't think we'd get through it without a draft.
I support what BlackCommenter.com said about Rangel and the draft..... stopping the draft in 1973 only led to the armchair war movement of the 21st century.
They weren't so much anti war as anti draft.
Stopping the draft shut most of them up.
Now we have a minority of Americans doing a majority of the fighting and dying, and the majority (includes Congress and Bush) doesn't give a crap. An equitable draft would change that. Your 18 year old (I am not sure though, about all the way up to age 42) being in a potential body bag.... so think about war carefully. Yes you G.W. Bush What a mess an IED would make of a beautiful daughter.
The blunt allegation that Bush cares less for somebody's black daughter than his own white daughter. The poor trash, they were expendable, the slogan went. They can't make a poor child as valuable as a Bushie or Cheney but they can put the rich and privileged kids in harms way with a draft- the privileged do not want a draft any more than the masses whose kids generally do not fight now.
My kid? No way! Get that recruiter out of her face!
The kids die and the parents cry.
Maybe the upper age requirement can be voted down to 35 or less. 35 was the Vietnam era cutoff. I am not sure why 39 or 42 is so important from an enlistment standpoint except that we can't have a draft and we're trying everything else, including enlisting the Sunset Squad, to stave off the draft.
Any more synonyms for a division of soldiers aged 35 to 42?
The Viagra Brigade?
The Diabetes Division?
The Heavy Hundred?
A draft will also make the American people more careful about supporting a war because they won't be able to comfort themselves with the "they are volunteers so they knew the risks" canard.
You make a good and strong point for the idea of a draft - I believe.
I could comment on the situation in Iraq, Afghanistan but I won't bother.
Drafts don't really produce the best army unless the homeland is really threatened. The best soldiers are people who want to be soldiers and are carefully screened to keep out the crazies.
So? The "best" army from the point of view of combat effectiveness is not necessarily the "best" situation from the point of view of forcing government officials to actually act in a responsible manner. The more distant the threat of military service is from the majority of people, the more irresponsibly our government can get away with acting via that military.
No Republic can long survive the extension of its military forces as occupiers in hostile lands. Ultimately, it must either retire that occupation or become something other than a Republic in order to maintain that occupation.
I am beginning to wonder if the Star Wars saga is a warning for America.
So this is how freedom dies, to a round of applause.
-Padme
If the Empire dies, I might see if I have enough Finnish ancestry to get into Finland.