It is coming. How can we possibly continue our involvement in Iraq (and
elsewhere) without conscripting more troops? Current troops are less likely to
re-up now than ever.
The scary thing is, it doesn't really matter who is voted in, Bush or Kerry.
Kerry's experience in the Vietnam war aside, he is still a proponent of America
Uber alles, and that means a continued military presence in countries the world
over. More troops, more weapons, more military spending.
So, hey, the administration is just getting set to provide us with more jobs by
removing some white-collar competition. An innovative step, but then again, we
lead the world in innovation. ([Chief Economic Advisor] Greg Mankiew says the
future is bright, and when a rich guy tells me I shouldn't worry, why, I just
shut my mouth.)
(Has anyone noticed that clothes are more conservative this year? And demure?
A typical step during wartime, or a signal of a conservative swing in societal
attitudes? Well, some attitudes, anyway. It still seems to be acceptable to
show 14 commercials per half hour about artificial erections.)
-x
Quoting "Aaron S. Hawley" <Aaron.Hawley-SeHYGLvqMtg@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>:
> [the latest oh-no hear comes the draft scare]
>
> Eric Rosenberg, Hearst Newspapers
> http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/03/13/MNG905K1BC1.DTL
> Saturday, March 13, 2004
> San Francisco Chronicle
>
> Washington -- The government is taking the first steps toward a targeted
> military draft of Americans with special skills in computers and foreign
> languages.
>
> The Selective Service System has begun the process of creating the
> procedures and policies to conduct such a targeted draft in case military
> officials ask Congress to authorize it and the lawmakers agree to such a
> request.
>
> Richard Flahavan, a spokesman for the Selective Service System, said
> planning for a possible draft of linguists and computer experts had begun
> last fall after Pentagon personnel officials said the military needed more
> people with skills in those areas.
>
> "Talking to the manpower folks at the Department of Defense and others,
> what came up was that nobody foresees a need for a large conventional
> draft such as we had in Vietnam," Flahavan said. "But they thought that if
> we have any kind of a draft, it will probably be a special skills draft."
>
> Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has said he would not ask Congress to
> authorize a draft, and officials at the Selective Service System, the
> independent federal agency that would organize any conscription, stress
> that the possibility of a so-called "special skills draft" is likely far
> off.
>
> A targeted registration and draft is "is strictly in the planning stage,"
> said Flahavan, adding that "the whole thing is driven by what appears to
> be the more pressing and relevant need today" -- the deficit in language
> and computer experts.
>
> "We want to gear up and make sure we are capable of providing (those types
> of draftees) since that's the more likely need," the spokesman said,
> adding that it could take about two years to "to have all the kinks worked
> out. "
>
> The agency already has in place a special system to register and draft
> health care personnel ages 20 to 44 in more than 60 specialties if
> necessary in a crisis. According to Flahavan, the agency will expand this
> system to be able to rapidly register and draft computer specialists and
> linguists, should the need ever arise. But he stressed that the agency had
> received no request from the Pentagon to do so.
>
> The issue of a renewed draft has gained attention because of concerns that
> U.S. military forces are over-extended. Since the Sept. 11, 2001,
> terrorist strikes, U.S. forces have fought two wars, established a major
> military presence in Afghanistan and Iraq and are now taking on
> peacekeeping duties in Haiti. But Congress, which would have to authorize
> a draft, has so far shown no interest in renewing the draft.
>
> Legislation to reinstitute the draft, introduced by Rep. Charles Rangel,
> D-N.Y., has minimal support with only 13 House lawmakers signing on as co-
> sponsors. A corresponding bill in the Senate introduced by Sen. Fritz
> Hollings, D-S.C., has no co-sponsors.
>
> The military draft ended in 1973 as the American commitment in Vietnam
> waned, beginning the era of the all-volunteer force. Mandatory
> registration for the draft was suspended in 1975 but resumed in 1980 by
> President Jimmy Carter after the Soviets invaded Afghanistan. About 13.5
> million men, ages 18 to 25, are registered with the Selective Service.
>
> But the military has had particular difficulty attracting and retaining
> language experts, especially people knowledgeable about Arabic and various
> Afghan dialects.
>
> To address this need, the Army has a new pilot program underway to recruit
> Arabic speakers into the service's Ready Reserves. The service has signed
> up about 150 people into the training program.
>
> A Pentagon official familiar with personnel issues stressed that the armed
> forces were against any form of conscription but acknowledged the
> groundwork already underway at the Selective Service System.
>
> "We understand that Selective Service has been reviewing existing
> organizational mission statements to confirm their relevance for the
> future," the official said. "Some form of 'special skills' registration,
> not draft, has been a part of its review."
>
> Page A - 3
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