Community | July 17, 2010 | 179 comments

Democrat Introduces Bill To Reinstate Draft

source: http://www.thetowntalk.com/article/20100716/NEWS01/100716017

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A New York Congressman is calling for the reinstatement of the draft. Democrat Charles Rangel wants to highlight the fact that relatively few families are bearing a disproportionate burden in fighting our country's wars.


At the World War II Memorial, former Army reservist Ned Pruitt reflected on his past and endorsed the plan.

"I was involved with the draft," said Pruitt. "Had to get a deferment to finish college. I think everybody ought to have a fair chance at serving our country."

Pruitt believes Americans on the low end of the socio-economic spectrum are widely represented in the military, but in this economy, that's not a negative.

"If you reinstated the draft, then it's possible you'd be taking some of those guys' opportunities away from them," said Pruitt.

"It's a duty. Because this country's done a lot for us," said Endrias Abebe, of Silver Spring, Maryland.

The idea of compulsory military service may have unnerved some on Capitol Hill, but we found widespread support on the National Mall.

"I think that it's a sad thing to say that he's right," said Virginia Spini, who works with returning war veterans. She sees firsthand the toll of multiple tours of duty.

"I think the burden of the current troops is just too much. I am a veteran," said Spini. "We are asking too much of the same people who are volunteering."

http://www.thetowntalk.com/article/20100716/NEWS01/100716017

http://www.ksdk.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=207553
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179 comments // Democrat Introduces Bill To Reinstate Draft

  • MotherForTruth
  • Tyr
    • 0
      Tyr  

    • Now THIS would bring the war to an end quickly, just as the lottery did for the Viet Nam war, as soon as the deferments ended for the wealthy and influential children all the political strings got pulled and game over..same thing will happen with these wars, as soon as the wealthy right wings kids start getting their orders to report for active duty in the Mideast, no student deferments, no hiding in some obscure reserve clerk job, the war will be called to a halt...mark my word.

    • 1 year ago
  • congoboy
  • Tyr
    • 0
      Tyr  
    • congoboy:

      not talking about the politicians, I'm talking about the parents of the kids in the community I live in, in my immediate neighborhood alone there are attorneys, doctors , cfo's etc..none and I mean none of their sons are in the military serving proudly or otherwise. When my youngest who is 15 states that he hopes to enter West Point upon graduation they have literally asked him if he is crazy..why not USC, or Stanford etc..that is where their sons are headed.

    • 1 year ago
  • congoboy
    • 0
      congoboy  
    • Tyr:

      so all the doctors, lawyers and other professionals in your neighborhood are a bunch of fascist commie pinko's? you should be proud of your son, and he nor you have anything to be embarrassed by. tell all who think he or you are crazy to go fuck themselves. well you might want your 15 year old to use tamer language. but its up to you. i have a 16 year old son and if he was up against the same type of hyperbole i would encourage him to defend himself with whatever words he chose to use.

    • 1 year ago
  • remanns
    • 0
      remanns  

    • While it would have EFFECTS I would appreciate,....( and I am old enough to not be impacted by it personally ),...I oppose it on principal. On the other hand,...I fully endorse manditory public service, for some span of time, for all VOTING eligible citizens; service or NO VOICE at the ballot box. I DO NOT think carrying a weapon should be required for that, I think medical duties and "front line" support if required would suffice. ( and if we happen to get sane and run short of battlefields,...state schools and such need all the help they can get. )

    • 1 year ago
  • artemis6
  • afloyd60
  • 2hellnwait
    • 0
      2hellnwait  
    • afloyd60:

      Freedom is held when freemen will pay the price to have and keep it. . . that is not servitude, but an obligation to insure freedoms presence is not given away by complacency.

    • 1 year ago
  • congoboy
  • afloyd60
    • 0
      afloyd60  
    • 2hellnwait:

      freedom is slavery?

      self-ownership is freedom. someone telling you what to do with your life is not freedom. clear as day. who owns your life? you? or does the govt. have a higher claim on your life? this is a pretty straight-forward concept. anything to the contrary is not freedom, but some illusion of freedom.

    • 1 year ago
  • 2hellnwait
    • 0
      2hellnwait  
    • afloyd60:

      So you feel that you owe nothing to those before you who've fought to maintain our freedom and feel no compulsion to maintain it, even at the expense of a portion of commitment on your part as a citizen? Freedom isn't free, and if you're not willing to fight for it, then imho, you do not deserve it.

    • 1 year ago
  • afloyd60
    • 0
      afloyd60  
    • 2hellnwait:

      i owe my freedom to those who have fought for it and i owe nothing to those who would take it away. i feel no compulsion to be forced into serving a corrupt govt. who are among the very enemies of freedom that I abhor. if need be, i will fight tooth and nail for my freedom. the great thing about freedom is that the individual has the freedom to choose. if i were to be drafted to go to war in korea, vietnam, iraq, or afghanistan, i would not hesitate one bit to stand up and say no. because not one drop of blood has been shed over there in the name of freedom, but rather in the name of empire. implementing slavery to save freedom doesn't really work does it? it's kinda like bombing for peace or fucking for abstinence. if you would use freedom as an excuse to promote the right of the govt. to control the lives of individuals, then imho you don't really know what freedom is.

    • 1 year ago
  • 2hellnwait
    • 0
      2hellnwait  
    • afloyd60:

      We differ in opinion on this matter, and I feel no restraints to be of service to my country for a period of my life, in fact I gave my freedom as a young man in order to preserve it for mine and following generations. . . that was my choice, I can and will respect yours as well, even though I disagree with your premise.

    • 1 year ago
  • congoboy
  • afloyd60
  • freecrack
  • Fordymo
    • -2
      Fordymo  

    • we must have draft, need draft so we can bring maps to the children of the world, so they may know where USA is because USA is BEST COUNTRY!

    • 1 year ago
  • freecrack
  • Admirable
    • +2
      Admirable  

    • If the draft became legal lack of support for the ongoing military action in Iraq and Afghanistan would probably force an end to these 2 military adventures. It was the draft and the losses associated with the fighting that finally forced a political end to the war in Viet Nam years ago.

      The government has been successful in shielding voters from the real damage and loss of life in Iraq and Afghanistan.

      This country cannot support the loss of life and injuries to our young men and women nor can we sustain the financial costs associated with these wars much longer. It must end.

    • 1 year ago
  • PirateSauce
    • +3
      PirateSauce  

    • The level of awareness is too high for a draft. A very small percentage would actually go along with it. This will never happen. We are not slaves and sheep that will go die for your profits. Why don't we draft the politicians and their families first?

    • 1 year ago
  • Incredulous
    • 0
      Incredulous  

    • I think they can take their draft, and their wars, and fuck off!

      I am so sick of listening to people justify these mindless wars...the death toll is astounding, as is the suicide toll, and they want a draft....FUCK OFF!

    • 1 year ago
  • congoboy
  • freecrack
    • -1
      freecrack  
    • Incredulous:

      but we need to fill middle eastern water wells with american blood, how else does one plunder?
      i mean if we went all mafia and demanded protection money that would be just wrong, but as long as we keep offering sacrificial lambs in the way of our youth, we can keep suposing some sort of intilectual high ground.

      the only difference between them and us is, theyre governments respect freedom enough to donate money to the families of theyre soldiers (jihadists) after the fact, and as beurocrats we organize that via legal paperwork before hand.cuz we are civilizied supposedly

    • 1 year ago
  • abg123
  • ScottyT
  • Incredulous
  • Incredulous
  • cabinettags
    • +1
      cabinettags  

    • In 1965 I enlisted in the Marines. We had a draft then - by lottery - so maybe you got drafted and maybe you didn't. I considered it my duty to serve my country although that wasn't my only reason for it. This resulted in a trip to Viet Nam a couple of years later. While it was a scary thing to do, I didn't regret my actions and I don't regret them today. This is STILL my country, and I still feel the same way; in spite of the fact that I disagree with a lot of what goes on - and am still among the millions of American pot smokers that this same govt. has been trying so hard to lock up. If I had any interest in resentment I've got lots of reason.

      I'm also a person that enjoys history. I like to know the "why" of things. If a person knows the "why", then you can grasp the reasoning. Any number of comments on this article lack a why. It reminds me of a parrot. You can repeat what you're taught, but there's no reasoned and rational thought behind it, save self interest. Serving your country doesn't have much to do with self interest.

      Americans are tired of war. Know what? I can dig it. Know what else? With the exception of Iraq, I can understand the why in every instance. When it comes to war, Republicans and Democrats doesn't matter squat. Every man that's ever sat in the oval office is charged with preserving our union, and my opinion is that each and every one has given it everything they have. Our political parties are nothing more than a family squabble over who's going to drive.

      At this point, I see no need for a draft. But I also see a really depressing trend of young people that have no grasp of history or our place in it. The fact that we're such a successful country, rich if you will, has created the attitude that this will remain. Friends, it just ain't so. We had to fight to govern ourselves and we've had to fight time and again just to remain. You think this has changed? Only the characters have changed; the game remains.

    • 1 year ago
  • congoboy
  • cabinettags
    • +1
      cabinettags  
    • congoboy:

      Thanks for the recognition Congo; but I won't accept it on my own behalf. My years are long past. However, there are lots of American men & women that wear boots to work every day, and those folks constitute the sharp end of our spear. For them, thank you.

    • 1 year ago
  • freecrack
  • LiberalismLacksLogic
  • TomTucker
  • congoboy
  • LiberalismLacksLogic
  • Darevalo
    • +3
      Darevalo  

    • yeah few families because less people wanna be involved in an endless war... soo i guess the only logical conclusion is to force everyone to be a part... yeah... this is real "smart"

    • 1 year ago
  • 2hellnwait
    • 0
      2hellnwait  
    • Darevalo:

      Nationally, it is easy to remove our personal concerns of our govt and its involvement in foreign affairs and its effects upon our day to day lives, as if there is no direct impact. . . However, if you've got 'skin' in the "cause - effect - outcome," then it becomes a whole different matter, doesn't i?

    • 1 year ago
  • Darevalo
    • +1
      Darevalo  
    • 2hellnwait:

      yeah... as much as it would make me leave the country. *shrugs*. i have no interest in assisting in mass murder of any kind except if my tax dollars are unwillingly going to it. you have fun with your pain and delusions of righteous action.

    • 1 year ago
  • congoboy
  • NiceN
    • 0
      NiceN  

    • A draft for what? Oil? When we are invaded by a foreign nation, or World War is at hand, then it would be justified. These greedy bastards just want to draft out of greed and money, not for the love or defense of country.

    • 1 year ago
  • Radical_Centrist
    • +4
      Radical_Centrist  

    • I am 100% against a draft. I do however believe ANY member of Congress who supports the Wars by voting to continue to fund them should be REQUIRED to either enlist their of age children or leave Congress. I mean why do they get to send poor peoples kids to die while theirs do nothing but take up space for the MOST part.

    • 1 year ago
  • freecrack
    • -1
      freecrack  
    • Radical_Centrist:

      the draft is a built in system of checks and balances for the arena it is most needed.armed conflict.
      have a war with no draft, no reason to care.apathy allows its continuation, as the mass's continue to support it through ignoring it, like mom who says nothing while daddy is beating the kids.now create a system where the beating is equaly distributed to all, and a real conciousness in reference to it is born.

    • 1 year ago
  • musicjohnny
  • afloyd60
    • +5
      afloyd60  

    • this idiot rangel does this almost every session. the draft will never be reinstated unless congress wants a revolution on its hands. it all comes down to who owns your life. does the government own you or do you own yourself? in times of war you'll never have a shortage of men and women willing to fight if it's a just war. and no war is just unless it's in self-defense. these illegal, unconstitutional, foreign wars of empire are helping to destroy this country.

      this comment was a classic: "I was involved with the draft," said Pruitt. "Had to get a deferment to finish college. I think everybody ought to have a fair chance at serving our country."

      what a fucking chicken hawk. he didn't want to go to war but he'll gladly send another person's child off to war. he should run for office, he'd fit right in with the rest of the cowardly republican and democrat chicken hawks.

      "I think the burden of the current troops is just too much. I am a veteran," said Spini. "We are asking too much of the same people who are volunteering."

      THEY are asking too much from our current troops. THEY are also asking too much from the american people for bearing the economic burden of these illegal wars. maybe the smart, logical thing to do would be to bring them the hell home! FUCK THE DRAFT AND FUCK THESE WARS!!!

    • 1 year ago
  • Saladin
    • 0
      Saladin  
    • afloyd60:

      Good attitude, wrong conclusion.

      The entire point of a Republic is to have government ownership by the people, if the people aren't responsible for their own wars, you can sure as hell bet that creating a class of professional mercenaries doesn't cause less of them.

      As fucked up as drafts are, they stop wars because the assholes who start it will get voted right the fuck out if the war is unjust because of public outrage.

      With the volunteer system, fat and happy Americans actually enjoy war since they never have to experience it.

    • 1 year ago
  • Incredulous
    • +4
      Incredulous  
    • Saladin:

      I adamantly disagree. There are nothing but warmongering assholes on the ballot, elections have become little more than 'choose your poison' parodies of representation.

    • 1 year ago
  • afloyd60
    • 0
      afloyd60  
    • Saladin:

      "As fucked up as drafts are, they stop wars because the assholes who start it will get voted right the fuck out if the war is unjust because of public outrage."

      drafts stop wars??? what about ww1, ww2, korea, and vietnam? voting the assholes out hasn't seemed to do anything to end our current wars. it doesn't matter what assholes start the wars because the assholes that come next are all too willing to continue the fighting. that much should be evident to everyone with our current situation. the so-called peace candidate was elected and yet here we are still neck deep in 2 wars with 1 more on deck. how long did it take nixon to end the the vietnam war? how many drafted men died in the meantime? voting the assholes out doesn't seem to be any consolation to the families of the drafted dead.

      "The entire point of a Republic is to have government ownership by the people..."

      exactly, government ownership by the people, not government ownership of the people. the draft makes the assumption that the govt. owns your life and can tell you what you're going to do with it whether you like it or not. forced servitude does not make the people responsible for their own wars, it makes them unwilling participants in these illegal, unconstitutional, undeclared, foreign wars of empire.

    • 1 year ago
  • Saladin
    • 0
      Saladin  
    • afloyd60:

      Point taken.

      But I still don't think Republics should be able to fight wars with volunteer armies. It just seems wrong to me that the poor are exploited to fight wars that are supposed to be everyone's wars.

      But I do recognize your point, the people don't possess enough control of the government to justify the claim that drafts help control them.

    • 1 year ago
  • congoboy
  • afloyd60
    • 0
      afloyd60  
    • Saladin:

      "But I still don't think Republics should be able to fight wars with volunteer armies. It just seems wrong to me that the poor are exploited to fight wars that are supposed to be everyone's wars."

      but the draft exploits the poor just as much as a volunteer force does. the 'fortunate ones' will always remain safe while the poor go off to war and die. and what need do we have for these foreign wars anyway?

      Some folks are born
      made to wave the flag,
      Ooh, they're red, whit and blue.
      And when the band plays "Hail to the chief",
      they point the cannon right at you.

      It ain't me,
      it ain't me.
      I ain't no senator's son.
      It ain't me,
      it ain't me.
      I ain't no fortunate one.

      Some folks are born
      silver spoon in hand,
      Lord don't they help themselves.
      But when the tax man comes to the door,
      Lord, the house looks like a rummage sale.

      It ain't me,
      it ain't me.
      I ain't no millionaire's son.
      It ain't me,
      it ain't me.
      I ain't no fortunate one.

      Some folks inherit
      star spangled eyes,
      Ooh, they send you down to war.
      And when you ask them,
      "How much should we give?"
      They only answer "More! More! More!"

      It ain't me,
      it ain't me.
      I ain't no military son.
      It ain't me,
      it ain't me.
      I ain't no fortunate one.

      It ain't me,
      it ain't me.
      I ain't no Fortunate Son.

      "But I do recognize your point, the people don't possess enough control of the government to justify the claim that drafts help control them."

      i appreciate that you recognize that point, but i think the most important point i made is the idea of self-ownership. the only person that owns you, is you. otherwise, it's not really freedom is it?

    • 1 year ago
  • Armageddon_Now
  • ikkibu_emuqa
    • +1
      ikkibu_emuqa  

    • i have a friend who joined the marines and he was anti government 100% and when he came back it was as if he was brain washed he is now 100% uncle sam. props to the soldiers but this war has to end now, peace must be created on a global scale or else we might be facing a catastrophe that may even screw the world up more. and i dont want to die because america needs oil. lets go green as simple as that.

      although i've heard theirs a secret agenda for the troops being over there but then again there is always a conspiracy behind whatever the government does

    • 1 year ago
  • Radical_Centrist
    • +1
      Radical_Centrist  
    • ikkibu_emuqa:

      I attended The Marine Military Academy in Harlingen TX. A good Marine is going to be loyal to his Country and Commander and Chief even if said Commander and Chief is a complete dick. I have a LOT of respect for the men and women who serve in the armed forces. A couple of weeks ago I helped out with the warrior Weekend here in South Texas, it was too much fun!

    • 1 year ago
  • Juliet_Williamson
    • 0
      Juliet_Williamson  
    • ikkibu_emuqa:

      WE HAVE A MARINE IN THE FAMILY, & WE'VE HEARD THAT THE BUSH FAMILY PROMISE ABOUT THE WAR LASTING "DECADES" OR MORE, IS GOING TO HAPPEN, YES, BECAUSE OF THEIR GREED FOR OIL, AND THEY WILL SECURE THIS WITH THE PERMANENT BASES THEY ARE NOW BUILDING OVER THERE!!! THEY AREN'T PULLING OUT BY FAR! THEY ARE BUILDING CONCRETE BUILDINGS ON ALL THE "TEMPORARY US BASES" OVER THERE. NO, WE ARE FAR FROM SEEING THIS CRAP EVER END....THE GOVERNMENT WILL ALWAYS TELL YOU THE EXACT OPPOSITE OF WHAT IT'S REALLY DOING.......THAT'S A FACT. AND THE SOLDIERS KNOW IT. THAT'S WHY SOME COME BACK, SO BROKENHEARTED, SO SUICIDAL, BECAUSE THEY KILLED INNOCENT CIVILIANS IN A WAR FOR OIL, THAT VERY FEW PEOPLE WILL BENEFIT FROM.

    • 1 year ago
  • congoboy
  • congoboy
  • Radical_Centrist
    • -1
      Radical_Centrist  
    • congoboy:

      I did not actually serve in the Marine Corps, it was a Military Preparatory School. I have to say it was a great education and about as close to becoming a Marine as you can come without actually joining the Corps.

    • 1 year ago
  • congoboy
  • freecrack
    • +1
      freecrack  
    • congoboy:

      its so funny, you never notice the cycle the right has created for you.you vote the interest of big oil wich keeps us a slave to fossil fuels (cars) and then blame others for it.
      we all drive cars as our society dictats that our individual survival requires it, but we would rather go green.who is stopping that again, cuz i seem to remember one president putting solar pannels on the white house, and the next taking them down.

    • 1 year ago
  • Confucius
    • 0
      Confucius  

    • this shouldnt be under comedy, seeing serious stuff in comedy category on current has been pissing me off and one of the many reasons that i dont contribute

    • 1 year ago
  • ibrake4rappers13
  • pertinacious
  • Incredulous
  • pertinacious
  • Incredulous
  • ibrake4rappers13
  • congoboy
  • freecrack
  • ampersand
    • +3
      ampersand  

    • As for the a draft equalizing the burden of military service in our vast and failing empire, Chicken-Hawk/War-Hawk Dick Cheney easily got an endless series of deferments because as he said: "I had better things to do."

      As a ploy to get more out of work young men into the military one can see where it might have some appeal to urban Congressmen.

      The US military learned it's lesson though in Vietnam. It's the military that will oppose this. They don't want to be fragged again in their bunks by young men realizing they themselves are as much a victim as the poor peasants they were sent to kill.

      The bribes now being offered to the poor to enlist are staggering now. (See the movie "Winter Bones" for a heart-breaking glimpse into that.) Maybe it's a ploy to save money for the military. It is a huge amount of money.

      How's this for an idea, Congressmen: just stop the fucking wars and dismantle the war machine.

    • 1 year ago
  • congoboy
  • sam_jamison
    • +2
      sam_jamison  

    • Share the burden? Im sorry, but that is offensively stupid. We have been fighting in Afhganistan for 9 years with trillions added to our debt as a direct result. WW1+WW2+Korea saw the US military fight for 8 years. The country prospered then, before the rise of the military industrial complex. Our defense budget is greater than the rest of the entire world combined. Since we are spending the money anyway, lets just outsource the military like everything else.

    • 1 year ago
  • congoboy
    • -4
      congoboy  
    • sam_jamison:

      if our fighting men and women could fight like we did back then instead of with one hand tied behind their backs like the libs and pc bullshit force them to the conflicts could very well be over by now. thus much less money spent and our heros at home with their families instead of in jail on sham charges or still overseas.

    • 1 year ago
  • kennymotown
  • congoboy
  • Saladin
  • pertinacious
  • congoboy
  • Incredulous
  • artemis6
    • 0
      artemis6  
    • Incredulous:

      Incredulous , let's computerize it . Robot congress . Let the people vote on issues , a computer counts the votes and votes for what the people want . All the money saved better go to education though . Can't have uninformed population making policy .

    • 1 year ago
  • congoboy
  • freecrack
    • 0
      freecrack  
    • sam_jamison:

      we did, only to have one set of contracters in fire fights with other contracters with civilian iraqis caught in the crossfire, not having a clue as to why these crazy white people came all the way over tho theyre neck of the woods (or desert as it may be)to shoot one another.

    • 1 year ago
  • freecrack
    • 0
      freecrack  
    • congoboy:

      invading a country without an exit strategy is a pretty shitty way to fight a war, everything else is the genesis of that.
      it would be one thing if we had an exist strategy that failed, but we went in without one period, just fingers crossed.

    • 1 year ago
  • CalgarC
  • congoboy
  • CalgarC
    • 0
      CalgarC  
    • congoboy:

      i don't have a couch, just a bed and a studio... but you an bring a sleeping bag. the idea is to move farther right... i am hoping o move to ibiza spain shortly :D

    • 1 year ago
  • RaceBannon
  • congoboy
    • -3
      congoboy  
    • CalgarC:

      switzerland might be nice. but if i had my dream, and my wife were agreeable i would settle on some caribbean island. lived there in my bachelor days. some of the friendliest people and some of the best food in the world, they have a real nice go with the flow mentality and there isnt the kind of racism and hatred we see in this country.

    • 1 year ago
  • CalgarC
  • CalgarC
  • RaceBannon
  • CalgarC
  • 2hellnwait
  • CalgarC
  • congoboy
  • CalgarC
  • Jesse400
    • +1
      Jesse400  

    • "...relatively few families are bearing a disproportionate burden in fighting our country's wars." Maybe we shouldn't be in these wars.

    • 1 year ago
  • congoboy
  • Jake_Leonard
    • +1
      Jake_Leonard  

    • Wait a minute, here. If I am not mistaken, I'm a part of, "our country." "Our country" is no in/visible figure or puppet, but the sum of every American, politician and non. Americans not joining the military is one of the few ways we can object to the conflicts we do not believe in. Were this WWII, I wouldn't need a draft to join the military.

      If I'm a conscientious objector, however, you don't want me in the military. I'm not risking my life, nor the lives of my family members in pursuit of something I don't believe in. I'm not being unpatriotic, quite the opposite, actually. I appreciate and respect what soldiers must deal with; but I'm also fighting for them to come back home so they don't have to be overburdened and serve multiple tours in the first place.

    • 1 year ago
  • congoboy
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