A Broken Military; The Return Of The Draft
Americans, especially to the upper-crust, hand-fed, Daddy's Boys with silver spoons in their mouths, should all be ashamed of themselves. How is it, that a rich and plentiful country allows its military to beg for recruits, especially during "a time of war"? At the beginning of each fiscal year, the different branches of services: Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines, establish recruiting goals to maintain adequate numbers of personnel to fill their ranks. The numbers change annually depending on the needs of each branch, and the number of recruits the previous year; assessed against the number of discharged personnel through typical attrition. Along with the on slot of America fighting on two fronts in Afghanistan and Iraq, and sagging recruitment, the possibility of the military draft being reinstated could become a reality.
I've served in the military for the past eighteen years, and I have been to both military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan. I have also served in one of the most demanding, if not the hardest job in the military, as a Drill Instructor (DI).
Before 9/11, the draft was a five letter word that no thinking politician would voice in public. Now, fear of a broken Army is causing politicians of all stripes, as well as the bureaucrats in the Pentagon to rethink the issue. The draft would fill the ranks with a bounty of cheap and plentiful "un-qualified" men and women, who in past times would not have been qualified to join the ranks. Wake up America, reinstating the draft would do more harm to the military rather than benefit.
During my time in the service, I can honestly say, there is no comparison. Professionals make much better soldiers for many reasons. Choosing to serve begins the process of making a soldier a member of a calling. It is a band of brothers that demands far more from a young man or woman than just putting in the time. Warfare has become so complex and demanding, that just two years of short service...
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