Military draft being re-instated?

[Apotheosis]

Take this with a grain of salt. This is from congress.org, which is a watch-dog organization, not a website of our congress. but i checked congress.gov, and there is a draft re-instatement bill that has been presented. That doesn't mean it's going to happen, but who knows....

http://www.congress.org/congressorg/...ua_congressorg

Pending Draft Legislation Targeted for Spring 2005
The Draft will Start in June 2005

There is pending legislation in the House and Senate (twin bills: S 89 and HR 163) which will time the program's initiation so the draft can begin at early as Spring 2005 -- just after the 2004 presidential election. The administration is quietly trying to get these bills passed now, while the public's attention is on the elections, so our action on this is needed immediately.

$28 million has been added to the 2004 Selective Service System (SSS) budget to prepare for a military draft that could start as early as June 15, 2005. Selective Service must report to Bush on March 31, 2005 that the system, which has lain dormant for decades, is ready for activation. Please see website: www.sss.gov/perfplan_fy2004.html to view the sss annual performance plan - fiscal year 2004.

The pentagon has quietly begun a public campaign to fill all 10,350 draft board positions and 11,070 appeals board slots nationwide.. Though this is an unpopular election year topic, military experts and influential members of congress are suggesting that if Rumsfeld's prediction of a "long, hard slog" in Iraq and Afghanistan [and a permanent state of war on "terrorism"] proves accurate, the U.S. may have no choice but to draft.

Congress brought twin bills, S. 89 and HR 163 forward this year, http://www.hslda.org/legislation/na...s89/default.asp entitled the Universal National Service Act of 2003, "to provide for the common defense by requiring that all young persons [age 18--26] in the United States, including women, perform a period of military service or a period of civilian service in furtherance of the national defense and homeland security, and for other purposes." These active bills currently sit in the committee on armed services.

Dodging the draft will be more difficult than those from the Vietnam era.

College and Canada will not be options. In December 2001, Canada and the U.S. signed a "smart border declaration," which could be used to keep would-be draft dodgers in. Signed by Canada's minister of foreign affairs, John Manley, and U.S. Homeland Security director, Tom Ridge, the declaration involves a 30-point plan which implements, among other things, a "pre-clearance agreement" of people entering and departing each country. Reforms aimed at making the draft more equitable along gender and class lines also eliminates higher education as a shelter. Underclassmen would only be able to postpone service until the end of their current semester. Seniors would have until the end of the academic year.

Even those voters who currently support US actions abroad may still object to this move, knowing their own children or grandchildren will not have a say about whether to fight. Not that it should make a difference, but this plan, among other things, eliminates higher education as a
shelter and includes women in the draft.

The public has a right to air their opinions about such an important decision.

Please send this on to all the friends, parents, aunts and uncles, grandparents, and cousins that you know. Let your children know too -- it's their future, and they can be a powerful voice for change!

Please also contact your representatives to ask them why they aren't telling their constituents about these bills -- and contact newspapers and other media outlets to ask them why they're not covering this important story.

[pod]

There's a simpler way out. They will not draft criminals. Go out and do something convictable, but nothing inordinately so...a crime like public drunkeness would work. They put you away for a few days, and you have a record. Apparently they cannot draft criminals...unless that will change.

The military is more effective as an all-volunteer force. The people in the service generally want to be there...put a load of draftees amongst them, and the quality of the military goes down.

[pod]

I gotta tell you though...I'm not gonna go if this goes through.
The nice thing about living here is that you have the choice to be a selfish bastard...national service goes against that...

Every time I turn around, it's getting worse around here. Suffice to say, it might be hunting season on the Feds soon, no bag limit.

[Clarisa]

The gov't will get you no matter how you try to dodge them. They know who you are and know where you are.

[LeVeL]

Well I for one know that I will be one of the first civilians to be drafted. I am a single man only 23 years old of age with no kids, perfect 20/20 vision basically I am a target. If I was Pod or anybody else over 26 then I wouldn't be so worried unless I start dieing and all the young fellas like myself become targets and they need to regroup.

[pod]

I'll be 26 next year...according to the article it would take a minimum of that long to get it all started again...I'm not worried for me, I'm worried for everyone, and the general status of rights in this country.

[Clarisa]

the only way anyone not be drafted is to have a child. too bad for men.

[pod]

Either that or just act like you are bat shit crazy.

There's ways around it. Going to Canada isn't an option, but no one said anything about Mexico.

[bcnjunkie]

next vietnam !.... I hope I'm wrong :-\

[pod]

It is strange that they are considering this. Between the regular forces, and the mercanaries in Iraq, you'd think there would be enough manpower...