No woman elected or running in US *d*emocratic system dodged the draft.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

Small d and big D.

[4139]

1. Are you picking on JB???

That’s not nice!

[DownriverDem]

2. Better not

Most Americans have not served in the Military. What is the point of this? My focus is to beat trump.

[uawchild]

6. What does "draft dodging" have to do with Biden?

I don't get your point. Was that some sort of innuendo?

[dawg day]

3. Many men thought it a moral imperative not to fight in an immoral war.

There really is a difference between Bill Clinton, fighting against the war and against the draft, and Trump, who bought his way out and didn't care about others.

No one born after 1953 had a draft to avoid. I don't think there's any value in secondguessing the decisions of 18 year olds 50 years ago. It was a very complex time, and unless everyone here has some way of proving how they would have behaved in 1968, it isn't really a good idea to criticize Biden or Sanders.

Yes, it's complicated, and i know nuance is dead. So just to appeal to pure politics, remember John Kerry. Medal winner who led veterans against the war AFTER his service... can't get any more morally right maybe... and he was vilified as a liar and coward by the GOP. Don't give them ammunition to go after the men Trump's age. There is no way to win a dirty war with the GOP. Don't start just to score some points against another Democrat.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

7. Yes. Though technically there was no draft, men did have to register for Selective Service.

President Ford's own son had failed to register.

[uawchild]

4. "dodged the draft"

Woah! That brings back memories...

I remember when "draft dodgers" was a right-wing Republican talking point.

General "Bone-spurs" Trump changed that for us, eh? lol

People got deferments for all sorts of things, marriage, school... but the one that bothered me personally was the bogus medical deferments like Trump got. That was such a rich/connected person's scam back then.

[LakeArenal]

5. At least one voluntarily enlisted.

So I guess I don’t understand your point. We’re not drafted. I never had to dodge or worry for myself. But my mom did everything she could to keep my brother from going (she did). My husband was lucky in the draft lottery with a high number.

Any woman was free to enlist however. Is that some sort of reflection on those that didn’t?

[Bernardo de La Paz]

8. Not really making much of a point except of course contrast with Cadet Bone Spurs. . . . nt

[dawg day]

9. Seriously, do not bring the draft into this. It was a pernicious system --

that put a million young men every year into a war, and also made it not just possible but acceptable for the US to invade and try to destroy a small country.

The 50s and the 60s, young men were forced against their wills to join into an unjust war. There was literally no good response to this-- you got drafted and became part of the war effort, you resisted and became a felon. That was part of the evil logic-- force young men, especially the poor and men of color-- to risk their lives in furtherance of American hegemony-- thereby (unsuccessfully, fortunately) stopping, so they hoped, the movement towards greater civil rights and personal freedom those young men might drive.

Women didn't have to dodge the draft because they weren't allowed to be drafted (still aren't required to register). Of course, that was used to hold women in the military back.

Lamentable time. Good music, bad politics. Let's just leave it in the past-- celebrate the great moments and learn from the mistakes.

[AncientGeezer]

10. Women weren't/aren't part of a draft pool.....I don't get the OP?