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Part 103: A Universal Draft II:
May 17, 2004:
In my last essay, I wrote about the urgent need for a military draft. In that I also promised to lay out a fairer plan for a universal draft. This is a plan I hope to see implemented by some enlightened political leaders. Of course, enlightened political leaders is currently a bad joke. I know that. I hope to eventually see Groundswell embrace and implement this plan.
I got into this issue in other essays, but I want to make it an important part of my philosophy series. It is really about bringing America and Americans back to the noble goals we once took for granted. It is, if you would, a first step in turning us away from hedonism and back toward an ethical system of personal service and values. I fully believe, if we are to survive, Americans must become a blend of the best of the Athenians and the Spartans. If we do not we will be pushed aside by history just as was Greece.
So, what is this first step. I call it a universal draft and that is exactly what I mean. I honestly believe every citizen of this country should be required, by law, to serve America for part of their lives. Each of us should serve our country in some way. I am adamant about this. A universal draft should be the law of the land for as long as we have a republic. When I say, everyone I am aware we cannot reasonably draft the geriatric set. We would need to begin the draft in a more reasonable way. My best guess is people who are currently over 30 would necessarily be exempted.
However, this in no way means people over 30 are unacceptable. I suspect some would volunteer. These are the ones who would be doing some kind of service anyway. Many will be retired professionals of one kind or another. We should surly take advantage of this pool of talent. Others might volunteer when they notice that a record of service can become a badge of honor to fill out the résumé. Then there are the idealistic no longer young people who would currently be part of the Peace Corps.
As to the length of service, I believe it should be between two and four years depending on the type of service involved. Inherently dangerous service should require less time than low risk service. This means a person must serve their country for at least two years, but not more than four. If we set the upper age limit of this draft at thirty that means a person would have to join the service prior to their 28th birthday. I use the word join advisedly. While the person can have no option about whether they will serve, they should have options as to when.
I suspect most reasonably sensible people would get it out of the way a quickly as possible. This would allow them to go on with their careers in a reasonable way. We can believe employers would have some concern about this, especially where employee training is involved. If a firm makes a long term commitment to an employee they have a right to expect a consistency of service from them. This means people who contemplate careers would want to complete their service as soon as possible.
For those who wait until the last minute, their options will be necessarily reduced. Military service of some form will be their only choice. This brings us to the issue of conscientious objections. It cannot be an issue in a universal draft. There will be many options that will not involve military action or even support of military action. The so called conscientious objector will have no grounds for his claim. Everyone must serve. There will no longer be any free rides.
Of course, some folks will try to evade this draft. We have always had that problem. My current feeling is draft evaders when apprehended should serve eight years in prison. That would be twice the normal maximum service requirement. While in prison, they could still do their service. It could consist of things like cleaning and repairing equipment used by the other services. In fact, these prisoners could be used in any support function that could be performed in prison. For others, if a person leaves the country to avoid the draft, they should forfeit their citizenship.
There will be others who will pretend that civil service or a political career constitutes service. Let us make one thing clear from the get go. One thing that will not be part of this plan is so called civil service. From my experience, service in that context is a misnomer. Civil service is just a job, not a service. A career of feeding at the public trough does not constitute service. The same holds for a career in politics. All of the political hacks talk about public service, but the pay is always too high to call what they do service.
This does not mean I advocate drafting people and not paying them at all. For the kind of services I have in mind there should be pay. It should be similar in kind to military pay, not great but adequate. We must keep in mind this service is not intended to be a career. It is, in a very real way, a duty and a service. In addition, I fully believe that people while serving should receive educational credits. These would be offered in the form of semester hours which the person could later redeem at their school of choice. There is a double gain here. Part of the immediate cost is deferred as educational credits, and we eventually get a better educated citizenry.
The immediate pay, as I said, should be minimal. The kind of services I envision would be much like military service is now. It would be highly discipline and regimented. The service units could be organized into squads, platoons, companies, and regiments with appropriate leadership. Board and keep would be provided and the teams would be together as teams, much like military units are now. They would live and work together as teams for the duration of their service.
This minimal pay is a way of putting money into the economy where it will do the most good at the grass roots. We will be spending money for real services instead of giving it away, and the recipients, young people, are guaranteed to spend most of what they receive. It will circulate through our economy and eventually come back as taxes.
I must reiterate that everyone must serve, male and female. No on can be exempt. I have already pointed out that prisoners can serve. I would extend this to all prisoners in American institutions. A criminal background should not constitute a cause for exemption. I also believe that handicapped people should have to serve. We must find ways to make that possible. Everyone can do something and they should. We should make all possible effort to make useful citizens out of handicapped people. This would be a double gain. It would be salutary for them and for America.
I think this universal draft would also offer some extra benefits. For one thing the kind of discipline and team activities I envision can have a very positive effect on a person's personality. In a very real way, team service does become a form of group therapy. People who must work closely together come to depend on each other and to form strong bonds. This carries over. It begets a new and different way of seeing other people, abetter way. In this team environment we instill a habit of behaving well in people when they are young and are most receptive to it. This will have a lifelong effect.
Another benefit of the enforced discipline of a quasi-military life is the effect of a healthier lifestyle. It is a natural result of improved eating habits and exercise. There is more time in active participation and less time with the head in the boob tube or surfing the net. I remember from my own days in the service the effect this can have. It made me a great deal more fit.
The effect can be very dramatic as it was with a fellow named Sweeney. When I first met him he was about 350 pounds of soft fat. Eight weeks later, he and another person were able to get into his army issue fatigue pants together. They did it just for a lark in the barracks. The best part was, the army made him wear those same pants for eight weeks before they gave him new ones that fit. He was constantly reminded of what he had been. I think about all of this current fretting about fat kids and their future health risk. I think, this would give kids like that a new start and a chance to get it right.
Those are just side benefits we might expect. The biggest benefit would be to America and all Americans. I would hope and expect to see the kind of rededication to America that patriots of old had to their country. I would like to see our young people return to a love of country and duty. I would like them to give the lie to the present pack of political thugs who are currently running America into ruin.
As to kinds of service, there are a multitude of avenues we
could provide. Service in the military is just one of the possible
ways. I will carry on with this discussion of forms of service
in my next essay.
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