Do you think every American should serve a term of no less than two years in the military?

Question

In most countries this is the norm. I think we should implement it here too..

Everyone wants to enjoy all the freedoms we have but many do not want to stand up and protect those freedoms...

I guess what they say about us is true. Americans are greedy. They want and want but never want to give up one ounce of their perfect little cozy lives...

wants=want

Answer 1

Able-bodied Americans-absolutely. Look at all we have. It isnt free.

Answer 2

WOW!!!
I was drafted out of a good paying job, while I was going to evening college to become an engineer.
I would otherwise never have gone into the military, being drafted was not the answer.

I'm now writing a book...

A NARCOLEPTIC in the U.S. Army

I can only thank GOOD that I survived my 13 months in Vietnam, not to mention the mental anguish I suffered at the hands of D.I.'s, and the crapy way I was treated by the "old brown boot" lifers when i got back and still had 12 months to serve (I took an extra year to stay out of the infanry as an aviation mechanic).

So the answer is a firm no, for heavens sake look around you. Do you want some of the riff-raff you see walkng the streets defending your freedoms??

Answer 3

Not at all. The military changes many people mentally. Any one in the armed forces faces the risk of seeing combat. Many Americans are not cut out for it. But there are more than enough of us willing to go to war for our country. Just as ther are many people against war. To make service mandatory would cause many to despise our country, resulting in a less than efficient military. Anti war activist groups would rise up suddenly and before you know it, the citizens would protest causing more problems for our government. this would produce anti war terrorist groups sabotaging our own military thus blurring the lines between foreign and domestic terrorism. Eventually new laws such as national curfews would come into play followed by a state of martial law. At that point our country would be at it's weakest. Our foreign enemies would use this opportunity to perform a mass attacks on American soil. Every major city with a "City Hall" will have their widen streets of their center city cleared out to support space for military tanks and air crafts, because those streets are the only ones with ready made areas to support room for aircraft landings and take offs. Every thing would be a mess a we live panicking in our homes under red alert! The short answer is "No"

Answer 4

Nope, for a very simple reason.

We can not afford it.

There are

2 million 18 yr old males
2 million 18 yr old females
2 million 19 yr old males
2 million 19 yr old females.

A two year national service, we would have a military of atleast 9 million, more likely 10 million.

Thats vs the 1.5 million we have today.

We do not have the bases or barracks to house 10 million service members.

We would have to convert every stateside Base we have now, just to get them thru Basic training.

We currently put about 150,000 people thru basic training a year now.

With a two year national service, that would increase to 4 million a year.

We would need almost as many DI's as the Marine Corp currently has Marines.

And again, what would they all do all day ?

With a 2 year enlistment, they couldn't be trained to do anything technicial, not enough time.

Answer 5

As a Veteran, I really do think that every American should serve a couple of years service to the country.
The way I think it should be set up, two years after high school and before college, no actual service designation just military. Second year the different branches of the military would be allowed to recruit for 4 to 6 yr. enlistments.
Absolutely under no circumstance would they be allowed to serve over seas nor fight in any undeclared war.
Also realizing the military is not for everyone there would be allot of exemptions.

Answer 6

yes i do think that every able bodied american, male and female should serve their country in some sort of civil defense position. not necessarily the military. police, fire, ems, etc.

as a veteran i can tell you that the military is not for everyone, and i sure as hell dont want someone watching my *** that doesnt want to be there. thats one of the fastest way to end up in a bodybag. ive seen it, and its not pretty, but i do think that everyone who is capable should give something back to thier country.

i also belive that military service is, and should always be just what it is. a choice, not an obligation.

on the other hand, it might do the youth of this nation some good. instill the disipline in them that thier parents cant, wont and from what i see on a daily basis, dont. who knows, i could be wrong, but thats my opinion

Answer 7

If we assume that the average person will work from age 22 to age 65, that's 43 years of their working life. If we assume that each person works 2,000 hours per years, that's 86,000 hours of life spent working, which is a total of almost 3600, days, or 9.8 years working for a living. If you figure a standard tax rate of 15% plus the 7.51% FICA, that's calculates as about 2.2 years of the average American's life spent just to pay federal taxes.

And you want two more?

On a more basic philosophical note, the Constitution prohibits "involuntary servitude", and despite the Draft having been effected before, there's no way to conscript in the United States without violating the Constitution. Even for those of you who can perform the mental gymnastics necessary to overlook this, there's no way to refute an assertion that having a Draft totally contradicts anyone's notions of "freedom" such that if America has a Draft, America isn't America.

Answer 8

No.

I wish that everyone would on their own volition as I did. But I think it would infringe upon our personal freedoms to mandate military service in a time such as this. Mandatory service was necessary during WW1, and WW2 because of the circumstances; however, times are different now. I believe that the government should have the right to draft people (under specific circumstances), but otherwise I would keep our military as a volunteer military.

Answer 9

Do I think they SHOULD? Absolutely - if they're able-bodied and wish to preserve the freedoms that we all enjoy, then yes. To those who say that military members are poorly educated, I beg to differ. To those who say that the military is "stupid," I say you're wayyyy out of line - if there were no United States military, YOU would not be able to sit here and type uneducated, disrespectful things.

Do I think it should be mandatory? No. People who don't want to be there will drag morale down for everyone and cause terrible division among the ranks. Our Army would no longer be a great team.

I am so angry that people view the troops as "stupid" and "mindless." The Soldier's Creed dictates that we protect their right to feel that way, though, and I'll fight for it to my dying breath. I'll also fight for other countries to have the freedoms that we enjoy - it's not right at all for people to be afraid in their very own homes, no matter what their ethnicity or country of origin.

War aside, even, how do you people think that foreign aid gets brought to countries who need it? Do you think Angelina Jolie brings enough rice and water for entire villages in her backpack? Nope. WE, the military, deliver it.

You don't have to support this war - we servicemembers make sure that you have the freedom to disagree. But don't bash the troops - we, no matter what you civilians think, care about our people so much that we're willing to die for you. If someone tried to invade the United States, we would take care of the situation. What's that? You say that no one IS trying to invade us? OF COURSE THEY'RE NOT. Would you like to know why? BECAUSE THEY'RE AFRAID THAT WE WOULD ANNIHILATE THEM - and for good reason.

Quit bashing the troops - we don't bash civilians even though they haven't the courage to stand up for what's right. Understandably, there are those that can't serve for medical or other reasons - and that's ok, because we know that you would if you could. Thank you for trying!

So, in short, I think Americans SHOULD serve, but I don't believe it should be mandatory.

Answer 10

Amazing how much anger and hate this question sparks.

My opinion is no because manditory military service would be impractical and too expensive. The US does not depend upon massed manpower as a military strategy. While it would prove to be an eye-opening experience for many who take living in this country for granted, pushing large numbers of conscripts into the military would prove to be more trouble than its worth.

Answer 11

Although i do beleive in duty to ones country, both civic and otherwise, i do not feel as though compulsary military service in our country is best.
Sure it does work in other country's, and well in most. The best example is Isreal as far as i am concerned. But this sense of duty in part of their upbringing, and further more, they have an enemy that is a real and everyday threat to their exsistance, reguardless of your political views.

Also, not everyone is cut out for militray service. An all volunteer force ensures that you have people that are ready willing and able to do what is needed of them. I, and im sure i can speak for everyone in the armed forces, would not like to go to war with someone that does not beleive in what they are doing. Now im not talking about the battle, but rather the career they are in. For the US at this time period, no, it is not a good idea.