[Jack Black]

A previous thread on this topic was pulled by the admins, not sure why. This one starts with a good article so hopefully we can discuss this topic now.

As I stated on the other thread rather than a draft I would prefer to revert to the older American tradition of Volunteer units privately organzied and put at the service of the Commander in Chief in time of war.

I only became really aware of this as a result of looking at a statue in downtown Portland, Oregon which honors the Oregon Second Volunteer Infantry which fought in the Spanish American war, one of our little remembered conflicts.

Like the present endevour it was fought to free a subject people from opression, was widely opposed at the time by some segments of the nation. The Volunteers aquitted them selves well by all accounts. It is often considered the last use of cavalry in a battle by the US Army.

[Cannoneer No. 4]

Reminiscences of the Second Oregon Volunteer Infantry

[Cannoneer No. 4]

State Volunteer units were not privately organized, they were very public about it. They advertised in newspapers and on hand bills and had rallies and brought as much attention to themselves as possible to drum up recruits. In many states the primary instigator of all this recruiting had been promised a colonelcy by the governor if he could raise a regiment. In some states the volunteers elected their officers, sometimes down to the eighth corporal.

Once the regiment had enough warm bodies, a mustering officer came to their camp, examined the muster rolls, and conducted a mass swearing in ceremony, after which they were accepted into Federal or Confederate service and armed, uniformed and equipped.

[reluctantwarrior]

There is a statue in Prescott, Arizona of Bucky Oniell he was in the 1st US volunteer cavalry during the Spanish American War. I think it is a smashing idea and lets do it today.....I am going to Afghanistan in a few weeks and will send a note on how many people we need.

[johnb838]

It is better to create military units from a geographically random group of recruits. The problem with a localized volunteer unit is if it gets wiped out it can wipe out all the young men of a given locale.