Stop The Draft - Political Forum

CHUQ · 12-30-2006, 04:49 AM

With the calls for a draft echoeing around Washington and the possible immigrant enlistments for a fast track to citizenship. Not all are happy.

Whenever U.S. Rep. Charles Rangel, the New York Democrat who will soon chair the House Ways and Means Committee, calls for resumption of military conscription, a host of powerful figures, Republican and Democrat, civilian and military, chime in at once to repudiate his proposal. They respond that the U.S. military doesn’t need or want a draft. It’s good to hear them say that, and let’s hope they mean it. The draft has no place in a free society because it is slavery, the kind that can get you killed or put you in a position where you might kill someone else

End Draft Registration!

CHUQ · 12-30-2006, 05:12 AM

Another similar opinion on the draft.

"To many politicians," explained Rep. Ron Paul, the Republican Texan libertarian congressional loner, "the American government is America," thus explaining why every war or national "emergency" creates a national fervor for a draft. "Conscription is wrongly associated with patriotism," said Paul after Rep. Charles Rangel tried recently to reintroduce a draft, "when really it represents collectivism and involuntary servitude." For whatever reasons, including opposition to the Iraq death trap, most Americans have for now turned against a draft and its illegitimate child, compulsory national service for all eighteen year olds (girls and gays too?) which Gold correctly described in a 2004 article in Washington Law & Politics as a "kind of allegedly desirable work done via the creation of a monstrous new teenager-herding bureaucracy.

No Slave Armies by Murray Polner

Any thoughts?

Izzibeth · 12-30-2006, 08:58 AM

I do not believe that the American public will accept a draft in this time. If it were a war in which more than 50% of the people felt there was a just cause that could be won and in which we had had a good strategy for victory from the beginning it would be a different story.

However, this was a rushed war with no real strategy that has gotten more of our soldiers killed than died on the day that "caused" it. Less and less people believe in this war and you can bet that not many mothers are going to be willing to allow their sons (and daughters? Will they put women on the draft list as well?) to be taken from them to kill and die in a war they do not believe in.

Dono · 12-30-2006, 01:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Izzibeth

I do not believe that the American public will accept a draft in this time. If it were a war in which more than 50% of the people felt there was a just cause that could be won and in which we had had a good strategy for victory from the beginning it would be a different story.

However, this was a rushed war with no real strategy that has gotten more of our soldiers killed than died on the day that "caused" it. Less and less people believe in this war and you can bet that not many mothers are going to be willing to allow their sons (and daughters? Will they put women on the draft list as well?) to be taken from them to kill and die in a war they do not believe in.

I agree. Reinstating a draft to fill Iraq manpower requirements would cause Canada's population to increase and cries of "Hell no, I won't go" to be heard in the streets again.

george.d · 12-30-2006, 02:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dono

I agree. Reinstating a draft to fill Iraq manpower requirements would cause Canada's population to increase and cries of "Hell no, I won't go" to be heard in the streets again.

But, since the Patriot Act, only in designated areas by permit with LE containment far removed from public officials. The land of the free.

Scribbler1 · 12-30-2006, 02:55 PM

The sheep will DEMAND the draft be reinstated, as long as the "need" is properly presented. A few terrorist attacks in the US and if we get spoon fed the need to police the world because of them there will be a call to reinstate it, but fast.

Remember, almost the entire country supported our invasion of Afghanistan after we learned that was where OBL was. The fact that the Taliban was such a supremely rotten regime was just an added incentive, although we never had a problem with them when we supported them against the Soviets.

george.d · 12-30-2006, 03:13 PM

[quote=Scribbler1;12420]The sheep will DEMAND the draft be reinstated, as long as the "need" is properly presented. A few terrorist attacks in the US and if we get spoon fed the need to police the world because of them there will be a call to reinstate it, but fast.[/OUOTE]

Can't argue with that. Throw in a few flag-wrapped patriotic slogans and they'd support a draft to attack Canada.

Quote:

Remember, almost the entire country supported our invasion of Afghanistan after we learned that was where OBL was. The fact that the Taliban was such a supremely rotten regime was just an added incentive, although we never had a problem with them when we supported them against the Soviets.

The DEA was giving millions to the Taliban to buy off tribal chiefs to stop poppy production right up to the invasion.

FRYandBENDER · 12-30-2006, 08:55 PM

I'll probably sound like a dick on this one, but I was thinking the other day that mandatory military service, like they have in Israel, might be a good idea. But I was thinking more along the lines of the discipline that it would give our citizens. Hear me out, we have a ton of fat asses waddling around, I bet that having everyone go through basic when they're 18 and meet a required "health level" until a certain age would help out a lot. Also, I think it would help out on the responsibility factor for a lot of people. I hear that boot camp "makes you a man," you know, a responsible adult and that would probably help out on the whole sorry asses that don't want to work factor. Over all I would speculate that it might help bring the country together a little more also. Right now we are divided horribly and I think that if everything had that one life changing experience, it might help us come together a little more.

Scribbler1 · 12-30-2006, 09:37 PM

How about a national service for a year or two as opposed to military service? Right out of high school, or a deferment if entering college and a year of service after leaving that?

I'm not so sure military service is guaranteed to make you a better citizen. What we need is a better educated populace and a little LESS bullshit from the manipulative bastards we call our leaders. They only divide us to keep us from keeping a closer eye on THEM, or for some other gain of their own.

CHUQ · 12-31-2006, 05:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dono

I agree. Reinstating a draft to fill Iraq manpower requirements would cause Canada's population to increase and cries of "Hell no, I won't go" to be heard in the streets again.

The only prob with that is that the Canadian govt does not give political asylum for war anymore, except in extreme cases, so anyone heading North will be an "illegal" alien. I may be mistaken but I believe I read this earlier in a piece on the anti-war guys.