Should we reinstate the DRAFT?

Question

Why or why not?

Some facts I know:

-Congress has the right to conscript women if they desire and considered doing so in WWII.

-If you have a family, the mother OR father must remain at home.

-The military is hungry for anyone they can get right now: a criminal background/drug charge can easily be wiped from your record.

Answer 1

Regretfully, yes. We need a standing military, regardless of what is happening in Iraq. The privitization of the armed services through the use of the militia (National Guard) and private, untrained contractors in not working. The soldiers are tired and worn out, and there is no end in sight. It's the practical thing to do, and most of the heads of the services committees are calling for it.

Conscription also brings the war home to more than the lower classes who are now most of the troops. Everyone becomes invested, as they were in WWII and Viet Nam to either win the war or get out because they know someone fighting in the trenches. It would take the military away from Halliburton and put it back into the hands of the people.

And, go ahead and give me the thumbs down now, it should include women.

Answer 2

It does taste better then bottled or canned. Federal level politicians may well be ruthless and corrupt but they cannot be stupid and get there - any little slip of the tongue could be the end of a career. There will be no draft unless there is a MAJOR war and that is unlikely for the foreseeable future unless the global economic system collapses.

The concept of the draft is a by product of the Industral Age and basically started with the French Revolution. The Industral Age is over. Large armies are nothing more then an easier target. The only affective modern military is an elite force and that can not happen with a draft.

Answer 3

No. There's no need for it because we aren't in danger by a large military force. As far as feeding the Bush War Machine, I dissagree with Mr Wrangle who thinks a draft should be imposed to make serving the Bush War equal among all Americans. His rational comes from the fact that it is usually the poor and ignorant who are dying while the well connected and intelligent are nowhere near Iraq.

If there was a draft the well connected and intelligent would still avoid it just as G.W. Bush and most well connected people avoided Vietnam while those with no connections or without the savy to avoid the draft were fed to the Vietnam War Machine by the thousands.

Answer 4

No. The only time we should be allowed to reinstate a draft is in a situation of pure emergency, the fact that people choose not to sign up and it's simply a problem for the government, isn't enough. Not everyone should have to die for their country, forcing people does no good. It has to come from within, the only way otherwise is if we were in *real* danger, not just imagined government "there might be something going down somewhere sometime" approach.

Answer 5

No: Not in its current form. All you are doing is pulling people off the street to do the dirty work for the government at minimum wage for two years. What we should be doing is having all citizens and legal resident aliens when they finish High School or drop out and turn 18 they should do two months of Basic Military Training. Then the our government would know if they are worth training further and offering them a reasonable wage to serve their country. Plus it would probable make better collage students out of them. They would know better what to do if attacked by a gun toting nut case. A draft army is a dope smoking, alcoholic mess that will just make things worst than it needs to be.

Answer 6

No. Right now we get the best of the crop the young people that know right from wrong and want to protect there country and also use the programs that the military has to get a better training and education. why destroy that with trouble makers that do not have any respect for themselves or there country? It used to be if you got into trouble you had two choices jail or military that is not an option now. Just try to get into the military with a criminal history.

Answer 7

No..the draft will not be re-instated. There would be too many dodgers and it would be a public relations nightmare for the gov. to try and prosecute all of them. If there is somehow a draft (say we do some silly thing like attack Iran) then guess what follows, Martial Law. Oh and women are on the ticket this time round too.

Answer 8

The Government should have some service requirement for all MALE and Females to serve their country like Israel has.

The majority of the young people are not really fit for battle but they could do Public Works projects for two year minimum requirements.

I think everyone would benefit from a "Peace Force" or a Military obligation that would be after they graduate from High School if they did not go to College..if they went to College they would serve after their education is completed.

Not everyone would have to fight a war but those who did actually fight for their country would be given more benefits when they came back from the war...

Answer 9

DEFINITELY...

That way, all the Liberal losers sitting on YA all day would have to serve rather than be armchair Generals. Only 7% of the military are Liberals, and they need to serve rather than letting Republican kids do all the fighting.

Your husband might be one of those 7%, but I do wonder whether he's doing his job properly, and whether the Republican soldiers can tell he is there out of self-interest.

Answer 10

My fellow Democrat Charles Rangel has an active bill on the floor to reinstate the draft. You can read the details on his web site (details below).