Summary:
A military draft is a system where people are required to serve the military involuntarily. The first military draft in the United States took place during the Civil War. During the Civil War a man who was drafted had the choice to hire a replacement to fight for him. The draft was not seen again in the United States until 1948 when President Truman got congress to sign the Selective Service Act. The act called for all men to register for the draft.
A military draft is a system where people are required to serve the military involuntarily. The first military draft in the United States took place during the Civil War. During the Civil War a man who was drafted had the choice to hire a replacement to fight for him. The draft was not seen again in the United States until 1948 when President Truman got congress to sign the Selective Service Act. The act called for all men to register for the draft.
In July of 1980 there was major reform of the Selective Service Act. Now all men were required to register with the Selective Service Act with in thirty days of their birthday. The only men who do not register are anyone who is already enlisted with a branch of the military. Women do not register with the Selective Service Act. Congress says that the purpose of the Selective Service Act is to be able to acquire troops quickly in the event of a national emergency. Pre-registering is said to be able to speed up the process by six months. It is estimated that the first round of draftees would be in boot camp with in two weeks of being called up. The draft is based on a lottery system.
The Selective Service is not a good program. It goes against our country's forefathers belief in freedom. The concept of building a strong military is a good one. But having a draft is not the way to do it. The military should be on a strictly volunteer basis only. The ability of the congress to draft people into the military is a conflict of interest of the people. The country is supposed to be for the people by the people. Yet the military could be taking part in a war that the general public doesn't not agree with.
Another problem that the draft would create is that it could greatly reduce the quality of pay and living conditions. If soldiers were drafted instead of hired the military would not have to pay soldiers fairly. They would not have to worry about people the safety of the troops as much. Troops become much more expendable when they can just order up more. If there are insufficient numbers in the miliary they should increase the wages or improve safety of troops to make joining the military more appealing.
Another reason the draft if unnecessary is that future wars will not require as many troops are wars in the past. With new technological advancements it is the common belief that a future war would be fought in the air or with weapons of mass destruction. Instead of massive amounts of ground troops invading a country.
Currently there are serous legal repercussions for not registering for the draft.
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