December
8, 2006: Proposals to bring back the draft are generally ignorant of how it
actually worked back then. For example, during the Vietnam Era (1960 through
1975, which was two years after draft calls ended) some 26.8 million men were
legally liable for compulsory military service. But very few were actually
drafted. During that period, some 8.7 million voluntarily joined the military,
and 2.2 million (less then ten percent of those of draft age) were drafted.
Some 15.4 million were either disqualified or deferred. Approximately
500,000 men were technically draft dodgers, but of these only about 210,000
were charged, and only 8,700 actually convicted.
This
makes it clear what the biggest problem with the draft is: who should go? The
military needs even fewer troops today (the military is less than a third of
its 1960s size), but has more people eligible. You still have plenty of
volunteers, in fact the military has been able to maintain its strength with
volunteers despite there being a war on. Do you choose who should go according
to a lottery? Or some other system? In fact, there is no way to select who
shall be drafted that does not end up enraging a large section of the
population. And that's why, whenever some politician (usually Representative
Charles Rangel of New York) brings up the idea, it is promptly shot down by
legislators and voters alike. The Pentagon doesn't want conscription either, as
volunteers make much better soldiers. Bringing back the draft simply doesn't
add up, except as a a cheap way to grab some media attention on a slow news day.
