will the draft be reininstated?

Arabella Figg 2003

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See http://www.startribune.com/stories/1557/4844069.html

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Although there hasn't been a draft in more than 30 years, 22-year-old Minneapolis college graduate Nathan Mittelstaedt is worried that he might be forced into military service.

He's not alone.

Despite shaky evidence -- and denials by top officials -- Mittelstaedt and many other young people in Minnesota and across the nation are convinced that a draft is secretly in the works. Through mass e-mails and Internet sites, the word is going out that as early as next June, men and women as old as 34 will be subject to random, mandatory military service.

The rumors have been sparked by debate in Congress and what some say is suspicious behavior by the Selective Service System. The fears have been exacerbated by news reports about troops stretched thin around the globe and the Pentagon's recent "stop-gap" order to extend tours of duty in Iraq.....

President Bush and his presumptive Democratic challenger, Sen. John Kerry, have said they support increasing the size of the armed forces. This has kept others, including independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader, worried about a draft.

Nader warned in a "Message to America's Students" posted on his Web site that "the Pentagon is quietly recruiting new members to fill local draft boards, as the machinery for drafting a new generation of young Americans is being quietly put into place." Nader spokesman Kevin Zeese said the Nader campaign will be doing even more to raise concern about a draft.

The warnings are "totally necessary," Zeese said. "Students should get organized, because these things can happen very quickly."

J.E. McNeil, executive director of the Washington-based Center on Conscience and War, is also working to put the possibility of a draft on the public radar screen. McNeil said she is booked through October with speaking engagements across the country.

"[The draft] is extremely likely," McNeil said. She added that she is committed to spreading the message so that people "aren't caught short after the election."

Lawrence Jacobs, a University of Minnesota political science professor and director of the 2004 Elections Project at the Humphrey Institute, said an "odd coalition" of liberal Democrats and "defense hawks" is keeping the issue relevant.

"When you see an idea that's around, and takes a beating and keeps ticking, you take notice," Jacobs said. "It's staying on the agenda ... I don't see yet the votes in Congress to pass this, but it's on the agenda."

Mittelstaedt, for one, is unmoved by the denials. To him, the draft is an inevitability if the country continues the global war on terrorism. "If we're going to continue to invade countries ... eventually we're going to run out of people to send," Mittelstaedt said.
 
I seriously doubt it. The military is currently Forcing a LOT of people out because there are too many people IN. There are currently enough people either in or who want to come in...I can't see a draft happening.
 
I've found that snopes.com comes in almost as handy as google.com The internet....what a place. :p
 

I doubt it but in life there are no guarantees. A draft could happened under ANY PRESIDENCY in the event of a emergency of epic proportions.
 
I think before a draft they will be going after the Inactive Reserves first
 
just because ther'e no legislation currently pending -- as botht the article I cited and snopes indicate -- does not mean the idea isn't being considered in planning committees.

consider this -- how many times can you extend a tour of duty for active militarypersonnel? where will replacement rrops come form?

I believe legislation may eventually be introduced to reinstate the draft -- though I don't know whether it would be warmly recieved.
 
Originally posted by Arabella Figg 2003

consider this -- how many times can you extend a tour of duty for active militarypersonnel? where will replacement rrops come form?


Tours can be extended as many times as the government wants to do so. Replacement troops? That's what recruitment is for.
 
I think that there is a good chance that the draft will be reinstated after the election, no matter who wins.
 
Originally posted by missypie
I think that there is a good chance that the draft will be reinstated after the election, no matter who wins.

And this is based on what?
 
1st. I just LOVE my ignore list.
2nd. If they try to reinstate the draft, I will march on Washington.
I won't need to organize it but I'll participate.
3rd. People that are deployed now are being kept overseas
because there is no one to replace them. That hardly seems
like a system that has too many people "IN".
 
Originally posted by shortbun
1st. I just LOVE my ignore list.
2nd. If they try to reinstate the draft, I will march on Washington.
I won't need to organize it but I'll participate.
3rd. People that are deployed now are being kept overseas
because there is no one to replace them. That hardly seems
like a system that has too many people "IN".

1st. I've heard ignorance is bliss...
2nd. Washington is shaking in its boots
3rd. Wrong. People are being kept overseas because if they were to all leave at one time, there would units that would be made up of more than 25% inexperienced troops. It has to be done gradually.
 
Oh god I hope not. I'd be the one over there whining that I broke a nail, lol! If anything I'd do more harm to our country than good!
 
Doubt it, there are plenty of entlisted men and women out there. Pre election hype!
 
As a mother of an 18 year old and a 16 year old, I've tried to keep up on this issue. The best I can tell based on the public information I've read, a general draft is unlikely. If there was a draft, it would be for special skills such as linguistic skills or computer abilities.

I think the armed forces probably operate more effectively with troops who are motivated to be there, rather than those who don't.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/171522_draft01.html
 
I think the armed forces probably operate more effectively with troops who are motivated to be there, rather than those who don't.

ITA. And that's not to say that draftees don't perform well - they performed admirably in WWII, Korea and Viet Nam. But I believe it is always better to have people in the military that volunteered to be there.
 
Originally posted by AirForceRocks
And that's not to say that draftees don't perform well - they performed admirably in WWII, Korea and Viet Nam.

I hope I didn't come across in a way that marginalized those draftees efforts and contributions. I didn't mean to if I did.
 
Originally posted by KarenC
I hope I didn't come across in a way that marginalized those draftees efforts and contributions. I didn't mean to if I did.

No, no, not at all!! I just always make sure I point that out, because I have heard people really deride the idea of a "draftee military", and it's just habit with me to point out that our previous draftee forces have performed very well.
 
Originally posted by AirForceRocks
1st. I've heard ignorance is bliss...
2nd. Washington is shaking in its boots
3rd. Wrong. People are being kept overseas because if they were to all leave at one time, there would units that would be made up of more than 25% inexperienced troops. It has to be done gradually.

I've heard in the news so often that there are increased discharges under "don't ask, don't tell". That also gives credence in my mind that there are sufficient volunteer troops. Although, I guess an argument could be made that they are simply enforcing the rules regardless of need.
 
Originally posted by Rutt and Tuke
I've heard in the news so often that there are increased discharges under "don't ask, don't tell". That also gives credence in my mind that there are sufficient volunteer troops. Although, I guess an argument could be made that they are simply enforcing the rules regardless of need.

Yes, there are lots of people being put out under "don't ask, don't tell", and many of them are linguists, which are in critical shortage right now. While I agree with you that they would enforce this policy regardless of need, I wish they would do away with it. I don't think it serves any useful purpose, and in fact, I believe that it adds to security risks rather than reduces them.
 














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