[sendtoscott]

WWIII is starting to look more and more like WWI.

[OWK]

The draft is of course, foundationally immoral.

OWK US Army Vet.
Volunteer.

[MetalHeadConservative35]

2 days after the attacks i was almost certain that by today i would be in afghanistan but im not ...although your right..the draft may occur..and if it does theres a good chance id get picked..but you know what im not afraid and ill tell you why im not...i believe that there is a time to be peaceful and a time not to i also believe that in the event that i would get drafted i am confident that god will be with me every step of the way..and when i die i will be in his kingdom im far from a model christian but i do know that god exists and is not the same god that our enemy believes in ..as far as this whole thing goes im willing to die for my friends and my family if my death helped to keep america safe..then so be it..right now U.S soldiers are insuring my freedom and i am eternally grateful.

god bless america

Michigans Madman

[weikel]

The draft would tie our hands as the president can dispatch volunteers where he needs them more easily than draftees. If there aren't enough volunteer soldiers than he could use mercanaries given all the mountains in Afghanistan I recommend hiring all the Gurkhas he can find.

[LiveFree99]

To solve our short term manpower shortages, I recommend the following:

1. Substantial reduction in ground forces in western Europe.

2. Immediate withdrawal of all American military personnel in Kosovo and Bosnia.

3. Suspension of enforcement of the no-fly zones in Iraq.

In the long term it's looking more and more likely that the US will be sucked into a prolonged ground campaign, our leaders' initial reassurances to the contrary not withstanding. This may be in Afghanistan, to "help" the NA a little in its march to Kabul, Iraq, or some other armpit of a country. If that happens a reinstatement of the draft would almost be a necessity, bringing with it vastly more discontent and opposition here on the home front.

[freeeee]

Let's see if I have this straight:

America's military is overextended because of nation-building commitments and defense of perfectly capable countries in literally dozens of countries including Europe and elsewhere.

Because of this misuse of our military for uses aside from its intended purpose (defense of the US), our military is now shorthanded and isn't enough manpower to fight a legitimate war.

And because of this, I'm supposed to cheerfully submit to the slavery of conscription?

DREAM ON!

[Stefan Stackhouse]

What I have always favored is universal military service somewhat along the Swiss model, but for homeland defense only. We older guys and the 4Fs could serve in something a little more in line with the UK's WWII Home Guard, or in units like the Civil Air Patrol or Coast Guard Auxiliary. The younger, physically fit guys would get the periodic combat training and essentially do most of the domestic stuff that the National Guard units do now.

Overseas deployments, however, should be left strictly to PROFESSIONAL VOLUNTEERS. Our Army/Navy/Air Force/USMC are high quality precisely because everyone on board wants to be there. These services should be tasked exclusively with overseas force projection missions, and have no domestic tasks. Homeland security should be the responsibility of all of us guys who are not presently serving in one of the four main service branches.

We could probably set it up so that those who serve time in one of the 4 overseas forces could earn release time from their homeland defense obligations.

Having a homeland defense force in which every male citizen participates is a good way to "pre-train" a large pool of prospective volunteers should the 4 overseas services need more manpower in wartime. Some additional training would be needed before the volunteers could be deployed, but they wouldn't be starting from scratch, so the turnaround time could be greatly reduced.

Need I mention, too, that having a universally armed citizenry who have been trained to work together to secure an area would do wonders for our crime rate!

[GCSmith]

Out of interest, as I'm really not decided on this matter, I have a few questions for anyone from either side willing to answer. To those who want the draft, especially those who think the US should never have dropped it and it should be used during peace time, can I ask:

1) Would it include:
a) Women?
b) Legal immigrants?
c) Those with minor or educational disabilities (deafness, dyslexia, ADD, etc.)?
d) Gays?
e) University students?
f) Children of affluent, or non-affluent but stable families, and who have benefitted from a decent education, who don't apparently need the military to have discipline, further education and a trade, etc. (basically, should there be profiling, based on class or intelligence, to decide who needs the military training to build their character up and who doesn't)?

2) If you have answered "no" to any of the above, what alternatives, if any, would you suggest for those who are not included in the draft?

3) Would you let people off the draft if they were:
a) Conscientious objectors to any war or military conflict (on religious or political grounds)?
b) Conscientious objectors to a particular war or military conflict (on religious or political, personal grounds - Muslims not being willing to kill other Muslims, for instance - or on the grounds, such as in Vietnam, of no direct threat to the freedom and security of the USA)?

4) Which of the following would be an acceptable punishment for draft-dodging (Heinlein is useful for this):
a) A prison term, equal to or greater than the period of compulsory military service (which)?
b) Refusal, throughout their lifetime or for a certain period (which), of certain citizenship rights, such as voting, gun-ownership, standing for political office, etc. (nominate particularly rights if you like)?
c) Restricted future employment options (in other words, legal, maybe even encouraged, discrimination against conchies in the work place; or active, federal regulations on who an employer can or cannot employ)?
d) Exile from the USA?

5) Would any of those punishments for draft-dodging be acceptable extended to those ruled-out by question 1?

6) Would it be justifiable to continue discrimination against volunteers for the military, on grounds of gender or sexuality (not allowing gays to serve, not allowing women to fight), if a country is simulatenously forcing certain people to join the military?

7) With regard to peace-time conscription, given the military objections to it - that a soldier who doesn't want to be there is a negative influence - is it justified to impose a social welfare role upon the military, and how do you think the military hierarchy might respond?

8) For those who think that members of street gangs, and young criminals in general, should have a couple of years at boot camp: Do you really think making criminals fitter, tougher, stronger, handier with weapons and more quick-witted is likely to improve things?

To those who oppose the draft, can I ask:

1) Just what the hell does America do if there aren't enough volunteers during war time?

2) Do you believe, despite objections based on military service being "involuntary servitude", that the military would (or could) be a positive influence on current generations of youngsters, especially (and mainly) those who have grown up in poverty or with broken homes?

3) To those who object but aren't ex-military, would you volunteer for service if you felt it was needed and just to do so, and how would you react if conscription were in effect and you were drafted?

[Equality 7-2521]

Why don't we revive slavery while we're at it. If we accept that one person has a claim on another person's life or that society's demands somehow trump the rights of the individuals who comprise that society, then there is no moral basis for prohibiting slavery.

If, on the other hand, we believe that each individual has the right to his (or her) own life, philosophy, ideology, mind, and body, then forcing him (or her) to fight, kill, and die for something which he (or she) might not even agree with is just as evil as slavery... if not more evil.

[NC_Libertarian]

If our government is desperate for soldiers and they would take me (and that would certainly mean they are desperate :p ) then I will join. But if someone comes to my house to TRY to conscript me then the only firefight I will engage in would happen then and there.

[BikerNYC]

I wasn't calling for a resumption of the draft so much as I was trying to break the taboo on public discussion of the issue.

If the draft is resumed, it should be for people 25-35 years old.