Would you Support my Idea for a Draft?

[true_notes]

My idea is totally different than the conception most of us have for a draft. Here it is:

Military service is still strictly voluntary, but with greater benefits for combative Soldiers,Sailors and Marines. Better incentives=better retention.

Now for the "drafting" part.

It is my firm belief that my peers should serve at the minimum, one to two years to the government. Be it in the Peace Corps, Red Cross, Military, or any other state sanctioned activity. I do not believe you should be FORCED into one that you do not want to do I.E. a man wanting to serve in the Peace Corps be placed in the Marine Corps. That would be redundant, and would stir hate and discontent.

I think that government service is benificial to the person. It teaches, at a very early age, to be a wise person and to be smart with your money and education. You appreciate things a whole lot more when you are on your own earning shit for wages.

This will help encourage activists, because when people get out and get educated they will change their ideals. When they see dead soldiers, an African dying of AIDS, a Filipino picking rice for 1000 pesos a year, they will see the light. I'm all for something like this, how about you guys?

[pinkpops]

1. sorry, disagree with any forced service for any cause.

[Warpy]

9. Same here. Lincoln freed us all.

Some young punks really are made into decent men by military experience, but let's face it, not in war. War destroys anyone who fights it. We need to be damned sure we're not wasting our children on a stupid, illegal, and unwinnable fiasco like Iraq.

The all volunteer force is doing exactly what it's supposed to, fail to meet the demand for more young men and women to waste on Bush's ambition. Were our country attacked by another country, I'm sure the all volunteer army would be turning people away instead of leaning on recruiters to break the law to drag them in.

[TahitiNut]

20. If EVERYONE doesn't serve, then NOBODY should.

In Rawls' seminal work he proposes the idea of a "Veil Of Ignorance." The idea is similar to letting one child cut the candy bar and the other pick which piece they want. We can only create fair systems of governance and economics if we don't know in advance where in that system we'll find ourselves starting out.

All pretense of "fairness" in inventing laws for others is nonsense. Unless we bear an equal responsibility within the political systems we create, they're innately unfair. A "volunteer" military is a scam - a fraud - a despicable charade. It's an economic 'draft' for those without the socioeconmic advantages that would provide them health care, education, and employment. It's "Sophie's Choice." The exceptions prove the rule.

Thus, the best option is Universal National Service - calling for a varying period of time in service depending on the nature of that service. In a distant second place is a Comprehensive Draft - where everyone bears an equal chance of being drafted, no matter whether they're male, female, gay, or straight. Everyone.

Democracy means participation ... not "Let George Do It."

[true_notes]

21. Good point,

But the enlistee/draftee should decide what service they go into.

[Pachamama]

2. Better idea: Anyone who says that they support Bush's War on Iraq can be

the 1st round draft picks....

Hey, they think this war is so righteous,so let them go fight it....wanna make a bet that those people shutup real fast?

[bluestateguy]

3. No I do not

Government mandated service is a statist, totalitarian notion. Whether it's the draft or mandating community service, you are putting people against their will into jobs that they would not do voulntarily. Military officers dread the prospect of conscripts dragged against their will into uniform. I also know that many administrators of social service programs would rather not have a bunch of spoiled rich kids thrust upon them by force of law. These are people would would rather be back at the frat house preparing for the mixer than serving less fortunate people. Don't be so optimistic that these folks would "see the light". I'm not.

[0rganism]

4. I'd be very careful about any mandatory service in the current "climate"

While your proposal has merit, it also represents a huge danger for abuse by the federal gov't. Human history is sprinkled with lessons that speak to the hazards of trusting government too much, any government. Worse yet, the further removed it is from direct accountability, the greater the risks of abuse.

And I have never before seen our federal government so completely unaccountable as it has become today.

I challenge you to imagine what sorts of "state sanctioned activity" the bush administration would conceive for our young adults.

[DanCa]

5. Mandotary military trainning for guns?

I dont support the idea for a draft I am sorry. However I think people that want a weapon should be taught to use properly. Maybe a mandatory service for gun owners? Forgive me its late and my dopamine is dropping.

[Career Prole]

6. Last poll had 41% approving the war...

[Horse with no Name]

7. The problem is

We'd have the smallest military and the biggest damn Peace Corps you ever saw.
This administration would end up arming the Peace Corps with AK-47's.
Would kind of defeat the purpose, IMHO.

[retnavyliberal]

13. The common solution to that issue....

is to adjust the years of required service. If you choose the military, 2 years, International Red Cross/Peace Corps/other International service organization, 4 years, American Red Cross/Job Corp/Other in-nation service organization, 6 years.

[XemaSab]

8. I like the idea

Germany and Israel, among other countries, have madatory military service.

I think the idea of 2 years in the military, peace corps, or americorps is a terrific idea. It would teach public service and caring for others. It would also teach citizenship and internationalism. I think right out of high school would be good, but maybe allowing a college deferment to allow people with a little more education to serve wouldn't be a bad idea.

So you can count me in!

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

10. I think that a citizen's army as opposed to a professional mercenary army

is a good idea. It may not be as useful as a tool for military adventurism, however. If young people and their parents are all directly touched by any military actions in which their elected leaders decide to involve them, it will have a moderating effect on extremist ideologues who want to take over the world. I'm sure that the people in other countries that we invade and kill would appreciate a US military that is more reflective of the common will and conscience of the average citizen.

[true_notes]

11. Internationalism is the exact point here

Metaphorically:

There are two farmers. One farmer lives comfortably with his wife of 18 years, and the other has served in the Peace Corps and finally settled down on the farm.

The simple farmer brings up a government's policies on sending food to a nation. Having never seen a starving child in his own eyes or held a dying person from malnutrition, he makes his decision that the country should indeed hold all grain to it's own country, and not share. This farmer doesn't know any better, having never been hungry or in dire straights.

The other farmer says YES, feed other countries! We have more than enough food in our 'bank' and we can more than afford to give some grain tonage to the poor nation. Having held a starving child in the Peace Corps. he understands the impact that hunger and poverty has on children and the demography. More educated, and worldly than the simple farmer, his decision makes more sense due to experience.

Face it folks, this is America today. You have people who have had government service, or something equal in the private sector who have seen horrors and know solutions, vice people who stay in their own comfort zone their whole lives. Some type of service is need to educate and motivate our youth!

[Ron Green]

12. Most definitely.

However, I would even be more inclined to require military service for all, especially the upper socio-economic groups. Likewise I would favor policy that would give young people from the lower economic groups more broadening service experiences, rather than the violence to which they've likely been exposed at home.

Our governmental policies should always point toward learning and human development, and the necessity of a military force is best met by citizens rather than mercenaries, as someone has pointed out above.

[true_notes]

14. It would give poorer citizens

a chance to rise from the dirt and contribute back to the ailing gvt. But, of course the more beaurocratic the govt becomes, the bigger a beast that eats money it will become.

[Ron Green]

23. On that point, it would be much cheaper to pay a drafted group than to

have to offer competitive wages to entice them to enlist. After perhaps a two-year mandatory hitch, those who find the service suitable could then enlist for good pay.

[Clarkie1]

15. Clark's proposal for a "Civilian Reserves" is a better approach, imo.

The Civilian Service

But, as important as these steps are, it's not enough. It leaves us short of what we need to bring a new generation into public service and to meet the uncertainty and challenges of the 21st Century. That is why today I am proposing a bold new vision for national service.

My approach will create new opportunities to serve. It will tap the skills, energy, and ingenuity of ordinary Americans in times of need, while greatly expanding the opportunities to serve year round. We'll call this a "Civilian Reserve" to mobilize all Americans in times of pressing need. We'll ask for volunteers. We'll match their talents with the needs of the day.

There will be times in the future when this country faces extraordinary challenges - from natural disasters we can predict, to national disasters we can't.

In times like those, we see a tremendous desire on the part of Americans to volunteer, but we have no way of organizing their efforts, tapping their talents, and utilizing them where they are most needed.

A "Civilian Reserve" will do all of this -- and more.

I have a huge amount of respect for America's first responders, like firefighters and police, and in my economic plan I would increase funding to support and train them.

But in times of emergency, first responders should not have to be the only responders.

The American people have a huge variety of tools and talents that can also be brought to bear - from foreign language speakers, to welders, to microbiologists. Often, those skills are as needed as the immediate lifesaving ones.

Therefore, to form this Civilian Reserve, I will challenge every American to be prepared to serve their country in times of need.

Here's how it would work: Every American age 18 or over will have the opportunity to register for the civilian reserve. If you register, you'll be asked to list your abilities and the types of service that interest you.

By registering, you commit that those skills can be called on at any time - domestically or internationally -- for the next five years. Every five years thereafter, you will be given the opportunity to re-register.

Should something happen during your five-year commitment that demands your skills, you can be offered the opportunity to serve for a period of up to six months.

Your service could be here in the United States, in the aftermath of an earthquake, a forest fire or a severe storm. Or you could also serve in distant lands, where the struggle for social justice and equality demands our immediate aid. As a village struggles to overcome isolation and hardship, a tribe works to preserve its ancestral territory, or a nation tries to piece together a government of laws.

You could be biologist, a truck driver, or an accountant. Under this program, you'll be offered the opportunity to get involved when your skill set is needed, working with professional staff, lending your talents to the task at hand, making a difference.

For example, members of the Civilian Reserves could be deployed to help to fight forest fires.

Members of the Civilian Reserves could also aid overseas in response to our ambassador's calls for assistance in helping nations deal with environmental disasters, political and legal development, and economic growth.

The Civilian Reserves would provide a basis for marshaling and coordinating their efforts.

The Civilian Reserves would work in partnership with the professional first responders as well as other non-profit and non-governmental organizations.

Under my plan, the President will have the power to call up to 5,000 civilian reservists by Executive Order, and with an act of Congress, would be authorized to mobilize even more.

Members would be offered the opportunity to serve as the need for their skills arose. And the call to serve would, in almost all cases, be voluntary. For the most part, Civilian Reserve members could choose whether or not to accept the call to action.

Under circumstances of grave national emergency, the president would have the authority to issue a mandatory call-up. But this would be exceedingly rare.

Still, if called, this service will not necessarily be easy.

Those who serve may be asked to give up to six months of their lives. In return, they will receive health care, a stipend, and the same rights accorded all our national guardsmen and women - the right to return to their jobs when their service is done.

This bold plan would not create a big, new government bureaucracy. Rather, it would use technology to register the skills of those who volunteer to serve, working largely through existing organizations, and stand ready to demonstrate what we all know: In the American people there exists the spirit and the talents necessary to meet any challenge.

And by organizing the Reserve in advance, my proposal will improve efficiency and potentially save money by reducing the inevitable duplication, waste, and delay that plague ad hoc responses to crises.

I will ask for this service with the full knowledge that at some point people may be called to give up the comfort and routine of their daily lives.

But it is time for more Americans to find satisfaction in sharing service.

This Civilian Reserve will complement and build upon the standing army of service that already exists in this country. The volunteers who are working to combat the persistent problems in our society. The volunteers who work with children needing mentors and tutors ... seniors needing dedicated care ... schools needing renovation ... and parks and trails needing repair.

And most importantly, the Civilian Reserves gives Americans the opportunity to volunteer now. To begin to step forward and accept the responsibilities, the duties, and the joy of the New American Patriotism.

http://clark04.com/speeches/005/

[true_notes]

17. a revival of the Civil Defense Dept. of the Cold War Era. n/t

[Clarkie1]

18. I like it because...

It is voluntary and provides people from all segments of society a way of serving the country.

It would be nice if that sort of thing became the norm in this country. Something that most people would participate in out of a sense of patriotism and duty to others. Perhaps that is too idealistic, but I hope not.

[true_notes]

19. It's not too idealistic...

It needs to happen. Working together as a country, much like a sports team, a watch team, or simply a work crew, can prove beneficial to the whole. You get out and see other people who you may disagree with, but you realize there is good in us all. A little community service never hurts, and there is always those who are willing to step up on the national, and even global scale. I support any type of service to the nation, and whoever serves has my utmost respect. Um, Haliburton doesn't count, they are crooking us (service guys) good.

[chlamor]

16. Nope-Only Draft I'll Support Is This One

[Bigmack]

22. I sure didn't raise...

my kids for the State.

If we can't do it with a volunteer army, maybe we ought to pull our horns in a bit.

[Cleita]

24. My idea is that every young person spend a year or two in

the military, however, going to war should be voluntary. Before you think that no one would volunteer, they would for a just war if we were attacked by an enemy. In World War II, men were jumping at the chance to serve. However, if going to war was voluntary, Bush's invasion of Iraq wouldn't have had enough volunteers to do so, therefore no war.