I don't know that any sort of
serving is my idea of a good life, but especially serving without consent.
The community draft boards that became notorious for sending reluctant young men off to Vietnam have languished since the early 1970s, their membership ebbing and their purpose all but lost when the draft was ended. But a few weeks ago, on an obscure federal Web site devoted to the war on terrorism, the Bush administration quietly began a public campaign to bring the draft boards back to life.
...You've got to be kidding me. Listen here, guys, and listen closely: You will NOT be sending me off to kill or be killed in some foreign land just because you feel like you need to up your numbers. Understand?
I don't know that any sort of
serving is my idea of a good life, but especially serving without consent.
The community draft boards that became notorious for sending reluctant young men off to Vietnam have languished since the early 1970s, their membership ebbing and their purpose all but lost when the draft was ended. But a few weeks ago, on an obscure federal Web site devoted to the war on terrorism, the Bush administration quietly began a public campaign to bring the draft boards back to life.
"Serve Your Community and the Nation," the announcement urges. "If a military draft becomes necessary, approximately 2,000 Local and Appeal Boards throughout America would decide which young men ... receive deferments, postponements or exemptions from military service."
You've got to be kidding me. Listen here, guys, and listen closely: You will NOT be sending me off to kill or be killed in some foreign land just because you feel like you need to up your numbers. Understand? I won't just dodge the draft, I'll write you a letter explaining to you exactly why I refuse to join the ranks, and I'll explain my reasoning right to the face of anyone who tries to come get me. I won't run off to Canada, or join the National Guard as our President did, or even try to use college as an excuse -
even though 2 of those 3 are already not excuses anymore.In a new draft, college students whose lottery number was selected would only be permitted to finish their current semester; seniors could finish their final year. After that, they'd have to answer the call. Meanwhile, National Guardsmen, as we've seen in the current war, are now likely to face overseas combat duty, too.
These folks better realize who they're up against before they start trying to send the current generation off to war against their will. The majority of young men today probably aren't even THINKING of heading off to the military, much less would they do it without their own reasons.
