Posted on 11/05/2006 8:48:26 PM PST by Jet Jaguar
A column of mine on this same topic, the military draft, was published in the St. Petersburg Times on Sept. 29, 1999. The headline was "Military service should be mandatory."
Again, we should bring back the draft.
I was inspired to return to this subject because of the furor John Kerry created the other day when, while addressing students in Los Angeles, he lamely joked about George W. Bush's incuriosity and intellectual deficits, saying, "Education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. If you don't, you get stuck in Iraq."
Instead of using Kerry's gaffe as a springboard to an honest national discussion about Bush's wrecking of our military, too many of us are letting the GOP's putrefaction machine distract us from the reality on the ground in Iraq and the demoralization of our all-volunteer fighting force.
The U.S. armed services, even the Army, the biggest supplier of troops to Iraq and Afghanistan, met their 2006 wartime recruiting goals. But the price has been high, and it may do permanent, irreparable harm to the enlisted ranks.
Following are some of the major concessions the services were forced to make. (My source is the Military Officers Association of America).
Recruit quality has been affected. Until now, the Defense Department wanted 90 percent of boots to have a high school diploma, and 60 percent to score above the median on armed forces aptitude tests. This year, only 82 percent of Army recruits had diplomas, and 61 percent met the aptitude test standards - down from 92 percent and 72 percent, respectively, since 2004.
Enlistment standards have been changed. The Army, for example, increased its maximum enlistment age first from 35 to 40 last January, then to 42 in June. Most recently, the Army loosened restrictions on tattoos, criminal infractions and a host of other old red flags.
Bonus budgets have skyrocketed. Enlistment bonus costs jumped from $166-million in 2005 to $238-million in 2006. Re-enlistment bonus costs for fiscal year 2006 went past $650-million, versus an average of $120-million for fiscal years 2000-2004. If re-enlistments drop, as they are expected to, recruiting goals will rise exponentially.
"The recruiting problem is not just an Army problem," Gen. Richard Cody, the Army's vice chief of staff, told NBC News. "This is America's problem. And what we have to really do is talk about service to the nation - and a sense of duty to this nation."
Recruiting in the regular ranks is being hurt by many problems, such as longer and more frequent tours in Iraq, erratic schedules and the rising lethality of the fighting. Reservists also face these problems, with the added pressures of discontent at their daytime jobs, financial ruin and longer-than-expected deployments.
Pentagon officials are desperately seeking solutions to this manpower crisis. While they are tinkering with shorter enlistment terms and talking of using current troops more efficiently, the big, bad gorilla remains in the middle of the floor: We need many more troops.
According to most analyses, recruitment is being hurt mostly by the appeal of college. That is right. More and more high school graduates are attending college without giving the military a second thought. Officials are trying to find attractive ways to lure college graduates into volunteering during this time of war. Based on everything I read, no gimmick or battery of gimmicks will work.
The solution is obvious: We must reinstate the draft. As Gen. Cody said, we are talking about "service to the nation" and "a sense of duty to the nation." I believe that every able-bodied, mentally fit U.S. citizen has a duty to serve. I leave the logistics to the experts.
I agree with Nicholas Confessore, editor of Washington Monthly, in his March 2003 article for the magazine: "Every year, a million young adults begin attending four-year colleges. As a condition of admission, those students could be required to serve their country for up to two years, in civilian national service programs like AmeriCorps, or homeland security efforts such as guarding nuclear plants, or ... in the military. Some percentage would choose the latter, especially if they were to receive more GI Bill-type college aid as a reward for higher-risk duty."
Let us face a nasty truth about ourselves as U.S. citizens: When it comes to serving our great nation, we are AWOL. This crisis, not a flubbed Kerry joke, should be our national discussion. We should be ashamed.
[Last modified November 5, 2006, 11:21:48]
What Would the Democrats Do? (Rangel calls again for the draft)
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1732981/posts
I only wish the Dems would've played the "let's bring back the draft" card earlier.
Isn't it a trait of free societies to have compulsory community service?
Really, let's draft all the liberals for something overseas, then forget to bring them back or let them back in.
.
JOHN KERRY =
Pictures of a vietnamese Re-Education Camp
http://www.Freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1308949/posts
.
Dems like Rangel support bringing back the draft but flee
when it might actually get voted on.
Punk singer Jello Biafra of the Dead Kennedys had a spoken
word piece, "Die for Oil, Sucker" in the 90s that started right off with spreading fear among the moonbats
that the draft might come back (or perhaps they didn't
know it wasn't in effect): "You! You look like just the
right age...to be DRAFTED! Does that even bother you?"
Thank goodness. He ought to leave the thinking to experts too. If the military has lowered their standards, and therefore would be including more marginal recruits, why would a draft of all able bodied citizens not select the same marginal recruits, except that they would be forcing them to join, rather than using voluntary recruiting?
Also, how does a multicultural society which teaches students of recruiting age to hate America and avoids teaching subjects like patriotism and civic duty in its public school system expect draftees to have a high morale when they are forced to defend the country they are taught to hate?
Undue disrespect: Senator Kerry Knows Nothing of our U.S. Military and He is Not To Be Believed
By John E. Carey
November 4, 2006
The morning after Sen. John Kerry slurred America's fighting men and women and all who serve, my wife and I attended a ceremony in Northern Virginia.
Juxtaposed to Mr. Kerry explaining lamely that he was only attacking the commander in chief in wartime (apparently Mr. Kerry thinks it funny to make fun of the president's intelligence), we witnessed this: A U.S. Army colonel seated and waiting for the event. A second U.S. Army colonel came upon the scene and the two shook hands and then gleefully embraced.
This image of teamwork, camaraderie and loyalty so moved me that at the end of the ceremony we stopped to talk.
Col. Ronald E. Smith, M.D., told me the other colonel was his son's godfather. These two have traveled some miles together in peace and war. And each has dedicated his life to the service of others. Twice. Both are medical doctors and also career U.S. Army officers.
These must be the people that Mr. Kerry thinks are stupid.
I stopped another young officer, a captain in the U.S. Marine Corps. I noticed he wore the ribbons of the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart on his chest. The first is for valor. The second means he was wounded.
I asked him what happened.
"Some terrorist got lucky, sir," he explained. "Hit close to me with an RPG (Rocket Propelled Grenade). I'll set off airport metal detectors the rest of my life."
Indeed, the captain had many scars on one side of his face. "Oh, this whole side of my body looks like I got penetrated by a thousand pieces of metal," he said. "But I'll go back to Iraq. As soon as they'll let me."
He didn't seem stupid to me. He seemed honorable, dedicated, professional and proud. And eager to do more for his country.
I asked about his family.
"They understand my commitment. It is difficult. But it is what we were called to do," the Marine captain said to us.
He didn't want his name in the newspaper. He said, "There are plenty of people that are doing more than me. Why should I deserve special mention?"
I stopped a Navy captain who had with him his two small sons and his wife. His wife is obviously Chinese, and I noticed because I spent a few years living among the Chinese. And my bride is Vietnamese. I have a developed eye for Asian faces.
They thought Mr. Kerry's remarks didn't matter much. "Nobody should listen to politicians when they lose their cool in the heat of a political squabble. They stop thinking, generally," said the captain.
A one-star U.S. Army general passed us wearing the wings of a helicopter pilot. "We have a tremendous number of young uniformed men and women fighting, dying and otherwise making sacrifices or giving their all. I have the utmost respect for them. In fact, I love them all and their families, too."
His remarks did not sound practiced. These words were heartfelt.
T
There is a special breed of men and women in our country who dedicate their lives, their careers and their families to duty, honor and country. You can see their sterling character in the gleam in their eye when you ask them about their service.
On the way home from the ceremony my wife and I stopped at America's newest monument: the U.S. Air Force Memorial. Four Air Force Blackhawk helicopters passed over head, reminding us of the airmen all over the world who protect us and keep the peace.
A lieutenant colonel wearing the wings of a command pilot stopped us.
"I'd rather be in Iraq than here flying a desk at the Pentagon. But we all have our jobs to do. We all have our duty. I don't complain. But I do sneak up here from time to time to reflect upon all the airmen lost in our nation's wars," he said.
To reflect upon and thank them for their service and for giving the ultimate sacrifice, I thought.
othing stupid about this man. He seemed to have his life and his commitments in perfect order.
And I wish I could say the same about many of our politicians.
John E. Carey is a retired U.S. military officer and former president of International Defense Consultants, Inc.
I was inspired to return to this subject because of the furor John Kerry created the other day when, while addressing students in Los Angeles, he lamely joked about George W. Bush's incuriosity and intellectual deficits, saying, "Education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. If you don't, you get stuck in Iraq."
Instead of using Kerry's gaffe as a springboard to an honest national discussion about Bush's wrecking of our military, too many of us are letting the GOP's putrefaction machine distract us from the reality on the ground in Iraq and the demoralization of our all-volunteer fighting force.
I listened to the Dead Kennedy's and the Butthole Surfers. It did not bother me one bit to be of draft age, AND registered. All of the other stoner pussies hid behind their mom. Different mindset, I guess.
BILL MAXWELL
"too many of us are letting the GOP's putrefaction machine distract us from the reality"
pu·tre·fac·tion (pyū'trə-făk'shən) pronunciation
Decomposition of organic matter, especially protein, by microorganisms, resulting in production of foul-smelling matter.
Hey, "putrefaction" probably sounds similar to the word he really should have used.
The American colonists did not like this very much.
"After 10 years at the Times, I need to move on and do something I have planned to do since I attended Wiley College as a freshman in 1963 - teach at a black college or university. I want to teach black students - especially males - who, as I was, have been failed along the way in this racially inequitable nation, kids who may not have gotten a real break at their high schools or at the mostly white colleges from which they transferred."
He might have a point there. There are a lot of "diversity" programs at universities and colleges that are really nothing but a way for white guilty liberals to make themselves feel better. They bring in black students who are not prepared by the crappy public schools and have them take a few semesters of remedial classes that do not count towards a degree and maybe after 5 or 6 years they can get a BA in something. But more likely, they are not prepared and they do poorly and leave after a couple years. So, there they are with a bad college record and that is not a good thing when trying to get a job. It's better to be just a HS grad. As long as there are liberals around, they'll continue to screw black people as much as possible to make themselves feel better, though. I wonder if this Maxwell guy ever tells his students that.
But the "Press Gang's" were not enslaving people you see, they were just helping them do their patriotic duty. (Even if they happened to be citizens of another country.)
Hypocrisy, thy name is Briton.
Second is restore the Post WW2 GI Bill to vets. A person doing a traditional 4 year hitch can get out and afford to go to school rather than contribute a good chunk of their check while on active duty as under the current program.
Third is congress needs to come to grips with reality on End Troop Strength numbers for active duty and increase them substantially which has not been done in 10 years. The volunteer military can work but congress in both parties is running it into the ground along with the National Guard Program and the Branch Reserves by under manning and over extended deployments often too close together or too frequent. Has anyone heard Bush, Rummy, or any member of congress from either party actually ask for a substantial and by that I mean 15-20% increase in active duty members? I don't remember it happening even after 9/11 which was a golden enlistment build up opportunity that was missed. No they are too busy running the ones they got ragged. Who is going to sign up on a first enlistment when you will likely see Iraq or some other place for two one year deployments? It's bad policies creating the problems and a draft isn't needed.
I'm predicting that if the Demos take over the House and or Senate there will be a draft. They want a disgruntled military.
OHHHHHH CHARLY......calling charly rangel......OH CHARLY.....
Rangel hasn't just called for the draft - HE'S ALREADY WRITTEN THE LEGISLATION.
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