Why not a draft - 11.20.2006.1

Ok, just a few quick thoughts as getting everything set for the holiday purchases and work are keeping very busy.

I have to speak about Congressman Charles Rangel. He has renewed his efforts to pass a reform in the military re-instituting the draft. Of course virtually every Democrat has come out and stated they won’t support him in this decision. Representative Rangel has made his case based on the fact that there would be no war, in his opinion, if the sons and daughters of our nations’ politicians and the citizens they represent were potentially in harms way.

While this line of though has some merit, it is not my reason to agree. Yes, there is a fear among politicians to increase the number of white American sons and daughters that may be killed in fighting in defense of the nations’ policies. That seems factual considering the press to highlight the military as an option for the poor and minorities.

I find that serving in the military is an honor, and possibly an obligation. In times of peace I have no problem with a volunteer military. Those that do chose this option help to maintain the rights and lifestyle that is the daily life of every citizen. It has been the blood and sweat of all those that have and continue to serve that drives millions to seek out our nation as the best place in the world to live. This choice to offer their lives to support and enable citizens to make poor choices, or beneficial ones, is not something that can be bought and definitely not cheaply. On this point I disagree with Rep. Rangel, to a degree. Some do chose to join just for the future potential benefit in gaining an education, and many are minorities. But I feel more do so because they realize that for all the faults of the nation, this is the greatest nation in the world.

But I need to add that this is not a time of peace. Also the youth of this nation, whether African American, Latino/Hispanic, or any other minority, are in desperate need of self-discipline. In the world today we have the rampant use of drugs by kids of all ages, as young as 13 in some places. Kids today look up to and idolize violent entertainment figures, and the slang is filled with derogatory language that is misused to convey common pleasantries. For Black American kids there is a huge amount of dropouts (in males – 70%) and single parents. In the inner city many teens and young adults seek out lives in criminal pursuits – due to the money and public image portrayed in music videos and media. This says nothing of the failure in education across the nation. This screams a need to improve the self-discipline in the youth of the nation.

Given that, and the fact that I love this nation, I feel no reason why a draft would be a bad thing. To my knowledge every NATO nation has some form of draft. Like Greece, where everyone serves 2 years after high school. Not a big commitment, but enough to change a life. Is that to much to ask of a citizen. President John F. Kennedy once said “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.” Perhaps we need to teach a bit more than ask for rote memorization and the question of a draft wouldn’t be fearful.

I’ll speak more on this shortly.

This is what I think, what do you think?