Extended Rant on compulsory Military Service
All the talk lately about reinstating the draft has me thinking a LOT about compulsory military service (CMS). Growing up in a military family, I have a fair amount of experience with who our military is. Of course, growing up an officer's kid is very, very different from the experience of the enlisted families.
I'm sorry, but the truth is, in fact, that a lot of the military is made up of people with little or no options in life besides the military. They have no way to get an education otherwise and some of them couldn't hold down a regular job if someone wasn't screaming in their ear telling them what to do.
I think this is why, beside the general psychological toll of war, we see some of the bad behavior of our troops in places like Iraq and Okinawa. These aren't high school honor students. They're the children left behind. The inner city and rural kids who don't get great educations and don't have families who can send them off to college or help them open their own business.
What if there were honor students in our ranks? What if the artsy-fartsy kids and the punk rockers and the jocks and everyone else you went to high school with spent the two years after high school in the military?
People say our military is great BECAUSE it's voluntary. I think that's a big load of political BS. I think they say that because it's hard to explain to people why it would be good for everyone to have CMS.
An expanded military such as would be provide by CMS would be more of a deterrent, and more importantly (in my opinion) allow for more humanitarian and peacekeeping work, making us a better global citizen.
I also think that if people served two years in the military, they would be better, more responsible citizens. I think voting participation would go through the roof. There would be more at stake for everyone in their vote for a congressman or president. Citizens would be more apt to follow world events.
I really think this is an absolute win-win for everyone. Especially if you add my special twist. Add a buy out option. If the rich don't want their kids to serve, that's fine. You can't get a senator to get you out of it, but you can pay $25,000 a year to be released from service.
I'd really, really like to dialogue on this. Let me know what you think.
I'm sorry, but the truth is, in fact, that a lot of the military is made up of people with little or no options in life besides the military. They have no way to get an education otherwise and some of them couldn't hold down a regular job if someone wasn't screaming in their ear telling them what to do.
I think this is why, beside the general psychological toll of war, we see some of the bad behavior of our troops in places like Iraq and Okinawa. These aren't high school honor students. They're the children left behind. The inner city and rural kids who don't get great educations and don't have families who can send them off to college or help them open their own business.
What if there were honor students in our ranks? What if the artsy-fartsy kids and the punk rockers and the jocks and everyone else you went to high school with spent the two years after high school in the military?
People say our military is great BECAUSE it's voluntary. I think that's a big load of political BS. I think they say that because it's hard to explain to people why it would be good for everyone to have CMS.
An expanded military such as would be provide by CMS would be more of a deterrent, and more importantly (in my opinion) allow for more humanitarian and peacekeeping work, making us a better global citizen.
I also think that if people served two years in the military, they would be better, more responsible citizens. I think voting participation would go through the roof. There would be more at stake for everyone in their vote for a congressman or president. Citizens would be more apt to follow world events.
I really think this is an absolute win-win for everyone. Especially if you add my special twist. Add a buy out option. If the rich don't want their kids to serve, that's fine. You can't get a senator to get you out of it, but you can pay $25,000 a year to be released from service.
I'd really, really like to dialogue on this. Let me know what you think.
posted by thesunwolf at 7:55 AM
8 Comments:
Since my friends won't comment, I'll comment FOR them:
From my friend JM:
"Compulsory military service! I’ve got to say screw you on this one. I’ve never disagreed with you more on anything. First, I think you’re in no position to start throwing out required military service for all 18 year olds when you’re well passed 18. Second, the idea of shifting our entire societal clock back by two years is idiotic. You’ve obviously given this very little thought. I would encourage you to do so before you start suggesting how to mandate the lives of all young Americans. Third, how would you feel if your son or daughter was on the verge of their 18th birthday with no hope to do anything other than participate in a war, or organization that they don’t believe in. Lastly, please remember the concept of freedom of choice that your grandfathers sacrificed to provide for our generation.
I haven’t watched your video yet, but I will. However, nothing in that video can sway me on your suggestion of compulsory military service.
Shame on you
P.S.
While I did not grow up on bases, military and country were very big in my family. Both my father and his father were officers in the U.S. Army. Dad was in for 20 years and did two tours in Vietnam. His dad was a Colonel and P.O.W in Japan for over 3 ½ years. He was also the highest ranking American in the P.O.W. camp. He spoke of his WWII experience everyday until the day he died."
Actually, if we used our military correctly and stopped involving ourselves in removing regimes in other countries over oil and started defending those in need in say, Darfur, I would be proud to have my daughter or son serve. In fact, I'd serve now, if they'd let me.
Setting back development two years? Maybe you were ready for college and mature enough at 18, but I wasn't, obviously. I'm also hearing from a lot of professors on campus that the kids over the last ten years have declined in the area of development, especially where critical thinking and broadness of experience are concerned. We're raising generation after generation who can't find Europe on a friggin' map and don't know shit about their government, let alone vote. Are you telling me that two years serving their county in some capacity would hurt them more than it would help? I doubt that.
I understand that what I'm saying is radical, but it's not crazy or poorly thought out.
From my friend RH:
"I completely agree with our need to reform the UN and
move closer to sole diplomacy. However, we were taught
another valuable lesson after 8 years of solitude with
minor if any covert actions against possible threats
and that was 9/11, we learned this previously with
isolationism post WWI with the attacks on Pearl
Harbor. At this juncture, there is no feasible way to
exit Iraq or the middle East without seeing it erupt
into a pit of oil feuled flames.
Actions do need to be taken, but from a strict
diplomacy standpoint we will lose due to the Americans
ignorance of being number one. We are in deed number
one, but can't shake off acting as a police force and
mostly under a curtain of secrecy and remain that way.
We must, in order to remian a uni-polar power be one
step ahead of other nations through secret missions.
Not all having to be combat oriented and i believe a
majority should be fact finding and recon. Just my
personal views on our past and our possible future."
I'm not saying kill all covert actions, I'm saying quit engineering/controling/destoying world governments and the like. I'm all for countering direct threats to our populace. Fuck terrorists. Fuck 'em in their damn ears. Fuck Kim Jong Il and Dickhead Amedinajad, too. But no more of this overthrowing or persecuting governements who have a different set of beliefs (like Cuba and Venezuela).
-M
Service to your country . . . what a fascinating and terribly sensitive issue.
Compulsary service. A paradox in a sense . . . forced kindness?
Does CMS, or any non voluntary military model, address the idea of personal politics? I would not hesitate to, lets say, defend the U.S. if we were being attacked by Hitler. But a war whose justification is sketchy, at best, would be hard for me to defend. I would gladly serve jailtime instead.
Maybe if we weren't using our military to remove regimes or find WMD's, we wouldn't need so many troops.
From my friend JM:
"Didn’t get to give our debate much thought last night, but I think I covered the best point yesterday. People don’t like being told what to do or think. Especially Americans. In fact, the very concept is Un-American. Of course, so is our military policy, but that is another story.
I do not know the answers so here is your big chance to educate me. I challenge you to provide a list of Peace-Loving nations who have a policy of required military service. You’re on the clock."
Well, I'd say Bermuda, Brazil, Chile, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Mexico, Norway, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey...
That's Twelve.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conscription
Arash, you may notice that I preficed this by talking about our need to get the hell out of the politics of other countries on a military and covert basis.
There's no need for us to persecute Cuba for being communist.
If we really believe our way is right, it should stand on it's own without us being a fascist superpower dictating how people run their countries.
I see cumpulsory military service as going hand in hand with that, refocusing our military policy on helping in places we are really needed, like Darfur, and humanitarian work like post natural disaster aid.
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