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1/24/2003 04:27:00 PM | Brad Plumer I want YOU...  In the Washington Monthly, Charles Moskos and Paul Glastris ask, "Now do you believe we need a draft?" They lay out a strong case for setting up mandatory military service. I'd be curious to know how this works for other countries (Sweden, Israel, Finland, etc.)Here's another article by a retired colonel, questioning the effectiveness of America's current standing army. Obviously we can still safely predict a drubbing of the Iraqi army, but there's no question that the austere standards of the US military have eroded over the years. Time was, during the Vietnam War, you had to endure continuous combat for one year before earning a Combat Infantry Badge. In the past few wars (Grenada, Bosnia, Panama), any soldier could get one for being under fire. The professed "quality" of our combat veterans is overrated, and in general the Armed Forces seem to rely nowadays on sophisticated weapons rather than strict personnel training, as Col. Hackworth mentions. So would a draft fix these problems? More importantly, would you enter the draft? Would you fight in a war to which you objected, or dodge the draft and flee to Canada? Personally, I oppose this war against Iraq (not in principle, but as things stand currently), but if the US needed more servicemen and instituted a draft, I would certainly go when my number was called (I can explain my reasons if anyone cares to continue this conversation). Does this make me a sucker? An idiot? A blind supporter of a corrupt regime? Don't citizens have certain responsibilities towards their country, regardless of their political leanings? perma link |
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