It shouldn't take too much head scratching to figure out that I was NOT referring to the young people who volunteer for the military. I'm talking about the ones who grow up with practically everything given to them. Many of them think they are actually owed it.
Some different from the way I grew up. We lived in a couple of different drafty old houses houses on side hill farms. The wind blew snowdrifts onto the kitchen floor through the cracks in the wall. We always had chores to do and it didn't matter what time of year it was, dad always had plenty of work for us 5 kids to do. Do you think you could get any kids to put away loose hay under a metal barn roof on the hottest day of the year these days? I rather doubt it. That's just one example of what life was like in my youth. Dad always told us it would be fine if we wanted to quit school; he had plenty for us to do. All 5 of us have bachelor's degrees and two have master's.
I went to college and my parents never paid a nickel toward it. I did it all on my own. And when college was over, I got drafted into the Marine Corps. That wasn't my idea of something I wanted to do but it didn't do me any harm. Quite the contrary.
Around here, we have young people from all kinds of foreign countries who come here to work. Why? Because there aren't enough willing American workers to do the jobs. At one camp where I do part time work in the summer, they can get American kids to run their recreation program but not a one is interested in being a housekeeper, kitchen worker or other similar menial tasks. To find a kid who doesn't mind working is not an easy thing to do. All they want to do is play. That's all they ever have had to do. They don't know hard times and they don't know hard work. Many of them think it's beneath them.
No, I'm not retired. And I'm not rich. I still think that the draft is not a bad thing. A kid needs to learn that that is how this country got to be great like it is, not by playing video games, eating pizza and looking for the next party.
Your post reminds me of what life on the farm was like for my mother. There were 10 kids and everyone of them made something of themselves without any help from my grandparents. Now I live at the Jersey shore and most of the jobs teenagers would be glad to do are outsourced to teens from Ireland and other countries. I am talking about housecleaning for hotels and the boardwalk jobs. When I was a teen those jobs were for us not given to teens from other countries. I know many teens who have tried to get jobs on the boardwalk to be told no , we hire from Ireland etc. That isn't fair but its how it is. I think the draft can be a good thing for some but we have many that should not be in the service. Maybe they could find other places to put them where they could serve their country but not with guns.
They will learn it eventually, when their gravy train runs out. Let's not advocate indentured servitude and bury what remains of freedom in this country.
And I'm tired of people on this forum acting like we do nothing. You know NOTHING about what we do. Me and almost all of my friends are working and going to school. My parents stopped paying for ANYTHING for me when I turned 18 and left for college. Books, school, food, medicine, doctor...I've paid for everything. Next semester, I will likely be working full time and finishing my last semester of college. So don't tell me we don't do anything.