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What is the draft?
Conscription, or "the draft," is compulsory military service. Compulsory means just that: If you're drafted and fail to secure an exemption, you must be prepared to fight and die -- or face a lengthy prison term.
The US hasn't drafted citizens since the end of the Vietnam War, but current law requires virtually all male citizens aged 18 through 25, as well as male aliens living in the US, to register with the Selective Service – the federal agency that manages conscription.
How do we know a new draft is in the works?
Nationwide, long-dormant draft boards – local committees that decide who must fight and who is exempted -- have been quietly reactivated and restaffed (Lindorff, "Oiling Up the Draft Machine," Salon.com, Nov. 3, 2003). The Selective Service says it is is prepared to call up soldiers within 193 days after a draft is launched.
A consensus behind conscription is building on Capitol Hill. Senators Chuck Hagel (R-Neb) and Joseph Biden (D-Del), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, are among many prominent politicians suddenly calling for a "national debate" on the draft (Washington Post, Apr. 22, 2004).