Is the Draft around the corner?

Rangel and Hollings are rattling the draft sabre again and this time, he may find some support. When the Brooking's Institute says...

Michael O�Hanlon, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, said he does not think the Democrats� support for the draft was politically motivated.

�I would acknowledge that there is a big problem with reserve operational tempo,� he said. �I do share the worries that motivate the congressmen about the draft.�

I get concerned. More excerpts:

Key Democrats in the House and Senate will renew calls for the military draft as part of a critical barrage they are preparing to launch against President Bush over the length of troop deployments and the heavy reliance on reservists in Iraq.

Military experts outside Congress say there is a political advantage to be gained by Democrats who want to make the president squirm at a time a growing frustration among military families and other Americans over the occupation.

But they also say that there are legitimate policy grounds for re-instituting the draft, which was phased out after the Vietnam war.

www.hillnews.com...

Hopefully it is because this generation has gotten too soft.

a draft could be possible if there are any more conflicts involving the U.S. and others. A draft for the iraq war i would not see as likely. Either way, they didnt want me when i went to apply for the militarycause of my hearing loss. (Hearing loss = to 65 year old who worked in a foundry their whole life) I can't hear high pitched tones like my watch beeping, or other high pitches. Although sometimes i swear ill hear a tone noise, now thats annoying.
Sorry, returning to the topic Draft. I feel many would not look favorable upon a draft at all.

I don't see the Administration having enough political capital to talk about the draft, but with dems talking about, makes it a little easier to swallow.

I agree theneo our youth have gotten soft, but I have a sibling who falls in the range and MOST DEFINATELY DO NOT WANT HIM TO BE DRAFTED!!!

thats easy for you to say NEO, I might have to go overseas and become a 19 year old killer or be killed. maybe a little exposure to bloodshed, destruction, death and pure fear will harden me up. maybe the fight for something "real" will open my eyes to the "real" world. have you ever been forced to fight for your elected officials? i wouldnt be fighting for america thats for damn sure. thats why they shelved the draft after Nam in the first place. They were killing kids for nothing forcing kids to fight. It's total BS, I am 100% against the draft and the conotation of the word should be erased from the dictionary

[Edited on 8-10-2003 by insite]

It is time for people to realize what they have and to pay for it.

It is also a time to take sides because a great reconning is coming up IMHO.

I do sympathize with anyone that would go and has family that goes as I do also.

But it is selfish behaviour to want to protect ourselves when others die for us.

Throwing children into a war situation to make them "men" is an outdated theory, NOBODY should be exposed to war unless they expressly want to do it.

Cvilians and soldiers are different, they signed on that line knowing that they could die for their country, you cannot say that we are not pulling our weight as teens because they have made that choice.

Nobodies loading me onto a C-141

If it was any other conflict than an Imperialistic March towards Hegemony, I'd sign in a heartbeat. But with Rummy and Bush at the helm, I'd be a Canadian citizen in two days flat, with any serious Draft development.

theres a difference between those people who get paid to put their lives on the line and those who are forced to by legislation. if you dont think americans are proud of their military and support their military then you are insulting all of us who fear for the lives of the soldiers, and that's, in my estimation from what i am exposed to every day, 100% of the population. no one takes our troops lives for granted and everyone sees the social consequences of going to war. war sucks, no one should have to fight, especially when the benefits are not even observable

OK TheNeo,

Then how about we stop sending those to "die for us"? Pull all of them back and protect only our boarders.

This war, just like Viet"f'n'"nam was a war about POLITICS. Why were we there? I do not remember ever hearing, reading, or seeing anything that said Vietnam attacked us. POLITICS

The draft is BS. The only good I see for it is to pull people (read kids if you will) to fight ON AMERICAN SOIL. Call me soft, call me a pussycat, call me a bitch. But if my country comes under attack, ON MY SOIL, I WILL FIGHT without a draft. I will have all guns locked and loaded and I'll be hunting THEM rather than DEER.

But if the US wants to draft me to another country to fight a political war, F them and F anyone who thinks I am a pussyassedbitch.

Actually we went to Vietnam for alittle more then just "politics" (though it may classify it as that, its alittle bit deeper.) France rules Vietnam as a colony, and was oppressive to it much like England was to the American Colonies. A faction revolted and came to us for support to become free, because of France being are alley, we denied their support, so they went to Russia for support, and agreed to be communism. Now we entered the war against North Vietnam for two reasons.
The first is actually the most prominent, France "forced" us to do it. They threatened to drop out of the U.N. and break allianceship with the U.S. if we didn't help them fight in Vietnam, needing all the "allies" we can get against Communism, we reluctanctly agreed. The moment we got there, France pulled away and said "see ya, good luck" and pulled out of Vietnam. The second was an issue of enduring the freedom of democracy and the world. With the theory of chain reaction of communism, and with the loss of the northern section of Korea, we were fearing that vietnam becoming communist can cause even more trouble as they may try to invade and conquer other countries, or just politically influence them to become communist. These are the two reasons we enter Vietnam, please don't suggest it's bureocratic politics, because thats B.S. We we trying to protect the freedom of democracy, and just like in Iraq, we are trying to spread Democracy to a place in dire need of it.

Thank you WolfofWar. In an indirect way, you said exactly what I did. Politics.

Ally - Democracy - Communism - War

Those are the keywords you used. They all boil down to political stances. I am not mocking you, so please don't take it that way.

My main point was, no one attacked US in that war. No one. We went there based on politics, and sent many of our boys into a slaughter house at the hand of our governtment.

I will NOT do that. Like Kukla, I will move to Canada in about 24 hours.

Now, if attacked on our own soil, I will not need and army draft, I will stand and fight on my own, or in an organized group.

I love my country and it's people, but I damn sure hate it's govt.

Those who oppose the draft are products of this depraved society. Every great society had the draft, from the Romans, to the Spartans, to the press gangs in England. The draft is a fundmental building block of our society.

Its not about weapons, its not about rights, its about instilling dicipline, developing good social skills, creating motivation, teaching new subjects and socialising a people who forget that they are only part of a greater society, that they are not here to be served, but to serve others.

Every male should spend time in the military, this is a necessity to clean up those who are increasingly living on the edge of society, who are disinfranchised with the greed of making money and posessing goods. And who feel that drugs and crime are their only future.

This lost generation needs the draft to replace the absent parenting and negligent education that has failed them in the past. You need the draft for your own self development.

Bring it back, quickly.

Ha, what a crock. Come on Mr Dilemma.

Ok, I was rejected by three branches of military when I tried to sign on. Air Force first, next the Army, then the Navy. But you say I need them. B f'n S man. If I need them, then they need me. It is quite obvious they did not need me or they would have taken me.

This was not an academic issue either. I graduated, with honors, in the top 5% of the class. #2 in the class to be exact. So I need no military experience.

As far as family, love, and healthy socialism. I got that, I had that. My father was never military, but sure knew how to bring up children. I am a college grad, with a loving wife. I take better care of her than ANY of my peers will EVER take care of theirs. Hell, most of the guys I went to school with are either in there second or third marriage, or gave up after the first. Only one I keep in touch with is still married to the first, and he has only been married two years.

You need to open your eyes as much as you are trying to open others eyes. While many of you points are valid, you are generalizing EVERYONE in the generation I am in, and not ALL of us are the way you perceive our generation.

I would go head to head with any man from your generation when it comes to the game of life. I am as mature as anyone twice my age. I was forced to become this way.

Feel free to ask for any details, and I will hand them to you on the silver platter you THINK you deserve, but I expect from you my friend, to hand your thoughts and generalizations back to me on that same silver platter.

a "great" education in the military won't do you any good if you're a dead, futureless corpse of a former CHILD. Do not bring back the draft, do not place the forgotten responsibilities of a parent in the hands of a government who pushes young people into war for personal gain. How can you learn to overcome greediness and self-centeredness when you're out there fighting for a country's own greediness or self-centeredness?


[Edited on 8-10-2003 by insite]

Gotta go with theneo....have a draft age son...would not like to see him go but so be it...bring back the draft.

Also believe its time for some of the siblings of politicians to get up and do their duty....serve and fight!

Good Parenting (good per'ent ing) v. [Colloq.]

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Originally posted by GeneralDilemma
Its not about weapons, its not about rights, its about instilling dicipline, developing good social skills, creating motivation, teaching new subjects and socialising a people who forget that they are only part of a greater society, that they are not here to be served, but to serve others.

tracer,Care to give any reasons why you would like to see the draft come back, especially with a son of draft age, your opinion would be the most valuable of the "pro-draft" party

[Edited on 8-10-2003 by insite]

tracer,

thanks for you maturity,

what I would like to see is all the traitors to the US drafted first and used as the cannon fodder.

that would make a stronger country