Jmizzou, something like 85%-90% of any modern army is non-combat. A crucial part of any draft system is an extremely efficiant personnel allocation body - a unit that ensures that every recruit serves in the position he’s both most qualified for and most desires.
A mandatory draft does not preclude volunteering.
You think we have disgruntled youth now? If this ever happens, you will see more distruntled youth than you can fire an M-16 at. I would like to go the other way with this: have a limit as to how large a particular branch of the services can be. The last thing we need is more laws telling us what we can and will do, then shoving all this “freedom and liberty and free choice” crap down our throats. This guy is on acid or something.
C’mon, numbers, people. If you currently induct every 18-28 year old for a mandatory term of two years, how many people are you removing from the labor pool? What positions are they in? (Say goodbye to most of the tech field, to start with… or at least the grunt work). How big will the armed forces be, and how much more will they cost to run?
Source: U.S. Census 2000
Males age 18 to 28: 21,537,865
Both sexes age 18 to 28: 42,282,265
So, we have 21 million people out of the job market! Isn’t it wonderful? We’ll have full employment! All we need is… to pay for them. Well. So, 21 million people in the armed forces. What can we do with them? I think Basic Training, first!
Unnecessary, grossly impractical, and hideously expensive… One of the stupider conversational gambits by a Kongress Kritter, ever.
Fuck that mandatory shit.
There are probably too many government employees as is without forcing another 20 million into bullshit jobs they don’t want to do.
You can force someone to be somewhere at a a particular time and work on a particular task. You can’t force them to do it well.
I don’t really see how having some meathead scream at you and doing pushups prepares you for regular civilian life.
I would certainly agree with Rangel that having a draft will create less sympathy for war. But I don’t see why this factor needs to be added. As it is now, those who are in the army are those who signed up for the risk of war, and while they should obviously not be thrown into war like cannon fodder, if a situation arises that requires war, that’s what they signed up for. By contrast, having a draft would be creating an artificial obstacle to war even in cases that it is necessary, by creating a large number of reluctant warriors who would exert political pressure out of (legitimate) self-interest.
And his minority claim is just more racial junk. Minorities make up a disproportionate percentage of the military, but not nearly enough for ostensible racists to be thinking “let’s go to war - the casualties will all be minority anyway”.
Rangel is actually a pretty intelligent guy, and a major political figure in NYC. He is also guaranteed re-election - he typically faces token opposition, if any.
Semper Fi
Izzy, I’m literally Up The River. Ossining. So, yes, I’m aware of Rangel, reasonably, and it depends on how this blows, but if it gets a second or third soundbyte, this guy could be really vunerable.
Also, as noted, mandatory military service for all would simply create… well, bloat. We could, maybe, use a few more good men. We don’t need all of them. And, rule of thumb, one in the field for 19 behind him. Most of the soldiers will wind up safe. Why is that creating pressure against war? It’s more likely that people will decide, hey, we have this huge army… we should use it.
It’s spelled sound-bite.
A “soundbyte” would be, I’d guess, 8 bits worth of a digital sound sample – which (assuming stereo audio-CD-quality sound) would comprise 1/4 of a full sample lasting 1/44,000 of a second. Even considering how short sound-bites have gotten on the news recently, they last a little longer than that.
It’s called a stupid mental typo creating a new portmaneau. Hm. What would a soundbyte be? I guess a brief .avi. I’m aware of the proper spelling, my fingers slipped.
If a new draft was voted in, I wonder how many draft dodgers you’d have? I bet, ahem, “tourism” would sharply increase in Canada 
Some random thoughts:
I believe some form of institutionalized dues-paying is a good thing. I don’t think it has to be military service. But military service should be one way of satisfying the obligation.
While it’s inevitable that the affluent and well-educated will be more able to exploit the loopholes present in any system of conscription, the volunteer army doesn’t even bother making us go through that hassle; it simply gives us a bye. I think there’s something really wrong about that.
A conscripted army is still ultimately a tool, but it’s one that the nation as a whole has more of a personal stake in. The policymakers may still decide how to use the army, but they know they’re playing with fire unless the nation strongly supports their goals (at least, as long as Vietnam remains in our memory) - and the nation’s going to think about it a bit more, too, the more people there are who know persons who might find themselves in combat.
In short, a conscripted army tends to be more restricted to being an instrument of national purpose, as opposed to the tool of policymakers. One can argue if that’s good or bad, but whichever, I think that’s a significant difference.
Not a chance. That man can do what he wants and say what he wants.
I don’t know if a volunteer army has to be any larger than what we have now. I imagine that we’d have fewer career military people and more short-term conscripts. It could average out to about the same.
But I am opposed to it.
More like a brief *.mp3 or *.wav file.
One of the things that makes us fortunate to live here is that the USA is not some facist state that requires mandatory service. We have the freedom to be selfish and self centered and not contribute to the common good.
I pay taxes. That is the extent of the dues I am required to pay.
I am willing to bet that the military consists of soldiers from all walks of life, including the sons and daughters of the wealthy and upper middle class.
And what are you basing this theory on? Conscription was used in Vietnam and the war lasted for years - in spite of all the protests. If anything the reverse is true. Everyone want’s to kick ass and blow up shit when there’s no war.
To me, this means that the draft is used only when the military needs people in combat-related positions; I can’t see them calling a draft because they need people skilled in a particular field. Thus, it seems that my chances of being on the front lines in the event of a draft are pretty darn good.
I do realize that volunteering would ensure that my skills are used efficiently. I’ve talked to recruiters from all branches of the military recently, and I know someone with my skills and background is in heavy demand. As I’ve said, I have no problem with national service, just not a military conscription.
Look at it this way: would you build an aircraft carrier and allow only one plane to land on it? Of course not! It’s a waste of resources, and things are much better off when you use it for the purpose for which it was made.
Just wanted to shime in here with a few thoughts. The idea of mandatory military service sounds, to me, like we’d be telling 18-year olds “Cngratulations, you’re an adult now! You don’t have to do what your parents tell you anymore, but now you have to do what we tell you! Hope you’re looking forward to Basic Training.”
Another thing - why is it so hard to belive that military service is not for everyone? Yes, there are many, many things that a soldier can do in the military and most of them are not killing people. But they all involve taking orders - have you ever known someone that doesn’t take orders well (especially once they’re legally an adult)? Guess what - that’s allowed in this country. If the military is fighting for our freedoms, I think that we (all of us) should actually get those freedoms. Including the freedom to serve or not serve our country.
Oh, one thing people have mostly missed: It’s the Selective Service because it selects. Even when there was a draft, not everyone was called up. Only so many people as were necessary to fill the gaps between the volunteers and the needs of the services. You’re not about to be drafting millions, but actually only tens of thousands. And you might see the Recruiters taking a lower profile.
Still impractical, unnecessary, and way too expensive.