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DancingDom 74M
22476 posts
6/22/2014 11:32 am

It is also the petro chem and energy companies. I really think we should go back to a conscripted service obligation, mush like the Swiss do. You have tow years of public service, in the military or some sort of service to humanity.

"One Big Sky Covers Us All Equally"


lastguymn 56M

6/22/2014 4:58 pm

I understand what you are getting at, but I have a number of concerns about how it could ever be practically implemented. First and most importantly, if you are only going to conscript the children connected to the leadership in the military industrial complex, where do you draw the lines?

At what level in an organization do you start with this requirement? Is it just the children of CEOs? What about middle management?

How do you fairly implement such a plan? How do you prevent the wealthy from using their considerable fortunes to assure that their children are kept out of harm's way (just saying "no deferments" is naive...money talks, and those who have it always get their way...see George W. Bush's air national guard service record as an example)?

In this plan, do the children of the privileged—no matter where their skills and talents lie—automatically get put into the infantry as first-line cannon fodder? Should they always be immune from military promotion so they remain at the greatest risk in battle? Kind of seems like a waste if that young person has education and training that could be put to better use away from the battle zones (a gifted surgeon, for instance).

And here's the part that I really have concerns about...is it Constitutional that those who are conscripted are essentially paying the price for the sins of their fathers (or mothers)?

These questions lead me to the one solution I see in other comments...but unfortunately, it's a completely impractical one...forced conscription of everyone. It sounds good on paper, but how would we ever pay for it? For decades, the military has been rightly focused on using technology to, as much as possible, replace troops on the ground.

If we drafted every 18-year-old, we wouldn't have the resources to feed, house, clothe, and train them, let alone have enough for them to do, especially in peacetime. The 2010 census counted 30.6 million people between age 18 and 24. In the same year, we had 2.4 million active duty and reservists combined in all branches of the U.S. military. How could we possibly afford 28 million additional troopsm.and what would we even need them for? We already do an abysmal job supporting the troops we already have (just take a look at the situation in the VA)...imagine what that problem would be like increased 15-fold.

The only viable way to prevent our government and the monied interests of the military industrial complex from continually putting our troops in harm's way in the name of corporate greed is for the American people to put down the fucking remote, start giving a shit about what is going on in this world, become politically engaged, and VOTE! We still have the power in the electorate to change this situation...but we need a lot of people to wake up and start paying attention.


~LastGuy

"It's great to be here. It's great to be anywhere." -- Keith Richards

"There are many spokes on the wheel of life. First, we're here to explore new possibilities." -- Ray Charles



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