BRING BACK THE DRAFT

(Rod Powers, Yahoo Opinion)

(David Sturdy, Walter Dierk, Linda Gill)

(Melvin & Carol R. Ember, Frazer Chronicle)

 

The United States has, at the present time, an all volunteer military force. There are several important reasons why it is so, and there are many more reasons why it will remain so. Together we will travel down the road to get to the best answers for the underlying reasons that those powers that make decisions with regards to which is the best path for our country to go with regards to filling the quota for the five branches of the military whose job it is to protect our country.

 

There are two ways that a country, any country, can staff it’s military presence; by the act of military conscription (mandatory) or national service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and continues in many nations to this day. The thinking behind this mandatory draft is kind of like paying your dues for being born in a particular country.

 

At a certain age, usually 18, a young person is required, in many nations to enlist in military service, or some sort of national help initiative. People do get paid during their time of service, usually at a reduced rate and they receive room and board at the nation’s expense.

 

Modern day conscription, massed national military enlistment was devised during the French Revolution, enabling the Republic to defend itself from attacks by the European monarchies. Deputy Jean-Baptiste Jourdan gave its name to the September 5, 1798 act. The first article of the act stated that: Any Frenchman is a soldier and owes himself to the defense of the nation. It created the Grande Armee, what Napoleon Bonaparte called the nation in arms which overwhelmed European professional armies that often numbered only in the low tens of thousands.

 

During this time, 1798-1813, more than 2.6 million fighting Frenchman were inducted into the French military. This early practice of a draft proved to work so well that within a short time other nations were copying the French style of recruitment for military protection as well as invasion.

 

During my research I discovered some very interesting anomalies with regards to the rules for a draft or conscription, and an all volunteer military. Israel exempts Muslims and Christian Arab minorities from mandatory service, as well as the Druze of the Golan Heights. Male Ultra-Orthodox Jews may apply for a deferment of draft to study in Yeshiva.

 

Many countries that do have a draft system, or service situation for its young adults, their stint of service is geared towards all sorts of programs that are more service than military orientated towards it’s citizenry. These young people usually furnish this double duty, service orientated and military at the same time.

 

During the first decade of the 21^st century, many nations no longer conscript soldiers, relying instead upon an all volunteer (professional military) to meet the demand for troops. This concept of an all volunteer-professional force relies on several presupposed predictabilities, like war-fighting requirements, the scope of hostilities and the probability of pre-emptive military invasions.

 

IT’S THE SIZE OF THE BITE STUPID, NOT THE BARK

Without a doubt the manner in which man fights another has changed probably for the foreseeable future, it’s now computer screens, and push button warfare, and precision bombing, and satellite directed military action.

 

It seems that our world-wide military leaders can’t come to grips with the fact that modern military activity has changed completely over the past 65 years. Oh sure you still get the terrorist bomber who weighs 140 pounds soaking wet, but is wired with an almost equal amount of explosives…..but how modern is that.

 

Nut jobs have always been around, terror hasn’t got a lock on the 21^st century, these types of people have been around for over a hundred years. They are called martyrs, doesn’t matter what their called, they are…..at the end of the day they’re nut jobs and you can’t defend against them.

 

From Afghanistan which numbers a total of 200,000 military personnel to Brazil with its two million man army, or Central African Republic and its 3,150 man force, to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea with (are you ready for this),  9,495,000 in its military force. It would seem that some people got the 21^st century right, while others use military service as a huge public service. I mean what in hell would the People’s Republic of Korea would do with an additional 9 million people looking for work.

 

The United States is down the list of military personnel, 2,291,910, but I gotta ask the question right now…..what in hell is the reason for the huge military forces unless there’s a war, an invasion, or some sort of conflict where somebody or something (usually an idea)  needs to be put down.

 

These numbers of military forces always intrigue me, it’s kind of like boys with toys, these military muck-a-mucks, most are over fifty, so they have a history of military strategizing, and thinking, and I’m sure that they play games with computers all the time…..how else could they pass the time, and rationalize their existence?

 

AND THIS MY FRIEND IS THE SKINNY

The United States has been, on the prowl, on the world’s stage since 1945, right around the time that Berlin was sectioned off into different parcels. It coincided with the realization that the U.S. had conquered the atom…..and in so doing had developed the worlds most powerful…..and most feared weapon.

 

Korea came along…..and the standoff that followed really pissed off some in the military, and then there was Vietnam, and more people, and some of the same from the Korean action became more pissed off to the point that they felt that they were getting pissed on and they decided to do something about it.

 

The protests of the Vietnam era were sending a message to Capitol Hill, the Pentagon as well as the countries industrial military complex. Something needed to be done to protect the cash cow that was getting the crap kicked out of it on at least two fronts, the enemy as well as the citizenry of the United States.

 

Draftees were burning their cards, or moving north or south of the border, flags were being burnt, and post offices, and other buildings were being bombed. For these Generals, and industrialists, things were serious…..changes were in order.

 

And that is exactly what happened…..the draft or conscription in the United States which had been in place since 1940 was repealed, and was no longer the law of the land. This single Congressional act brought to an end to homeland conflict regarding the peacemakers and the military community.

 

 

 

Protests weren’t needed and with the exception of Granada military invasion, activity gradually settled into a cold war…..until the fall of Russia, almost tranquil. Of course 1981, 2001, 2003, and bla, bla, bla brought war back to our shores, and once again the raise of military might.

 

We now come to the crux of this blog…..it is my opinion that if conscription or the draft was reinstated, wars, invasions, military protection, and our foreign policy would all make a dramatic change from the current attitudes that are in place.

 

Do you know how sick and tired I am of war, and the world pestilence, degradation and waste that are wrought on the nations of the world? Well let me clue you, it’s immense…..and getting bigger all the time. How much longer are we, as individuals going to have the defining moments in our lives related to some sort of barbaric military act, or mission?

 

What’s going on around the globe under the guise of protecting our way of life is a joke, unless you figure that the Taliban, some misdirected Muslim, or some poor sap with a hundred pounds of explosives is going to be a threat to obliterate how we live. Get real.

 

HAVE A NICE DAY!