[Jonathon Spectre]

Mandatory service of any kind whatsoever = concentration camp. America should not be in the business of forced servitude. Anyone who wants to argue with that is a statist, pure and simple, and probably shouldn't be frequenting a site called FREE Republic.

[Nitro]

I will argue and I am a Veteran!!

Can you really tell me that a teenager in todays America couldn't benefit from a little discipline and direction?

[RJCogburn]

America should not be in the business of forced servitude

Agree, JS. Anyway you cut it, mandatory service is contrary to the principle of a free society.

[LantzALot]

Anyone who wants to argue with that is a statist, pure and simple, and probably shouldn't be frequenting a site called FREE Republic.

Maybe anyone who wants to arbitrarily brand someone who disagrees with them as unfit to speak out shouldn't be frequenting a site called FREE Republic.

[BigBobber]

Apparently the Civil War and the Emancipation Proclaimation only ended slavery by private citizens. Apparently, government slavery is still a good thing, according to the Republican congressman.

[El Gato]

I guess all those dead white men of the early days of the Republic must have not been the creators of a "free" republic then. They believed in mandatory military training and service... Just not in a standing army. Their vision of the militia, much like the current and then existing Swiss system, would have everyone train in their local community, but to standards set by the federal government. Not so very long ago, two years of ROTC was mandatory at all land grand colleges.

In fact the original purpose of ROTC was to create a pool of officer cannidates for the state militias to appoint officers out of, and only secondarily to produce officers for the federal military. With the vast majority of the citizenry, for I would include women in this too, having at least rudimentry military training, including weapons training, we'd have less to worry about when it came tyrnany in government or invasion either.

[Orion]

America should not be in the business of forced servitude. Anyone who wants to argue with that is a statist, pure and simple, and probably shouldn't be frequenting a site called FREE Republic.

How true. Let us count the statist pigs on FR, and weep for our "free" "republic."

[semaj]

"America should not be in the business of forced servitude."

I guess we should outlaw the personal income tax then, huh?