Tag: Conscription

Future of the All-Volunteer Force

For several decades the US has had an all volunteer military….we got there as a result of the antiwar movement….but now we are fighting wars on multiple fronts and some have even suggested bringing back the draft as a way to have best military possible.

I have written about the possibility for a new round of conscription……a little something I wrote way back in 2007…..

Source: Why No Draft? – In Saner Thought

Then a little later for my friends at Ace News Room…….

The US seems to be Hell bent on continuing war upon war……and if so then it will need to drastically change its way of think about the military…that is if they want a primo military…

Source: Time To Re-Think Conscription? | Ace News Room

I thought about my eariler posts after reading a paper on the all volunteer military…..

A new working paper by the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) Military, Veterans, and Society Program highlights the strategic challenges facing the nation’s All-Volunteer Force. The paper outlines an agenda for military and civilian leaders to tackle in their effort to improve military effectiveness and better support our nation’s service members and their families. This working paper is designed to inspire and solicit feedback that will be incorporated into future CNAS efforts.

The new CNAS working paper is the product of a year-long effort focused on “AVF 4.0” – the next evolution of the nation’s all-volunteer military – which included extensive research and a monthly working group on the current status and future of the AVF. CNAS researchers Phillip Carter, Katherine Kidder, Amy Schafer, and Andrew Swick authored the report, with contributions from many other CNAS staff including three successive classes of military fellows.

Source: Future of the All-Volunteer Force | RealClearDefense

I still hold the opinion that we need to re-instate the draft….as long as we are fighting multiple wars on multiple fronts we need to make everyone in this society part of the equation.

There is NO shared experience.  Americans not involved with the military care nothing about the plight of the soldier/veteran….if we must fight then the entire country should be part of the that effort.

Time For Americans To F*cking Stand Up!!

I have been mulling over the lack of concern that Americans have shown for the deaths of Americans in combat.  I posted a piece about the death of an American soldier in Afghanistan from an IED and several others wounded…after checking my stats with WP I found that fewer than 5 people actually read that post….I found that pathetic and disturbing.

My disappointment simmered for about a week and being an opinionated SOB I could not let it go…..8 years ago I posted an article entitled “Watermelon Makes You Horny” and so far it has 6870+ hits and yet a post about the death of American soldier got 3…..how pathetic is that?

Because of the lack of interest I decided to write this op-ed…..

2016 will see Hillary Clinton being elected president of the US….not because she is the better candidate…..but rather she is the ONLY candidate.  Trump could have had a shot at the prize but he could not keep his mouth or his Twitter account silent…..because of his mouth the American voted for the only other person that was on the ballot (at least in their little minds).

Clinton being the uber warhawk that she is then America will continue all of our adventurism in the world….our troops will be asked to do more and more to “defend” the homeland (of course that is the biggest propaganda tool they have) and NO one will try to stop her….why?  There is NO true anti-war movement any more….and there lies the problem.

There is NO shared experience any more……Americans have No idea what our troops are going through thanx in part to the media and the fact that only 1% of the population is effected by deployments and war…..this needs to stop!

Now you may ask how do we stop this trend of concern by the American people?

As an anti-war protester in years past it pains me to have the only solution to this problem…..and I write it with a grimace……CONSCRIPTION!

I have written several articles over the years calling for the same thing…..most of which were contained in this op-ed that I recently wrote….

As a veteran of Vietnam and a staunch anti-war protester when I returned home….I have worked in the anti-war movement for many years that is until age and handicap got in my way…..and I…

Source: Would a Return to Conscription Substantially Reduce the Probability of War? – In Saner Thought

(Contained in that post are the others that I have written on this issue…I provide them to make it easier to check my stand on this)

It is time for this country’s faux patriotic fervor to be replaced with genuine concern for our country and especially our troops….

Conscription would accomplish two necessary things…..it would give all Americans a shared experience on war and it would help fuel an anti-war movement that would in turn make all this interventionism be held up to accountability.

Believe when I say it pains me that I must result to this…..but the country has become too complacent in our attitude toward war….no matter what the media and government tries to label it….if it involves American troops in harm’s way then it is WAR!

I realize that this stand will not be popular with my Left wing brethren….but if there is a desire to end war then something has to happen….bitching about it does nothing to protect American lives or bring constant war to an end….

At least I have a plan….what’s yours?

Women And The Draft

The big news, at least for some, is that women have been approved for roles in direct combat units…….and the peasants went batcrap crazy at the news….they say that families will be destroyed and other such fears…..

So if we have a draft will women be forced to register?

Well Batman….if they turn 18 then yes they should register for the draft….but then we have some like this tool from the Congress, Duncan Hunter,……..

A key congressional committee voted last week to require young women to register for potentially compulsory military service, but the gender-equalizing reform threatens to make felons out of women who refused to participate.

Though prosecutions currently appear unlikely, men jailed for not registering with the Selective Service System and some former authorities who participated in the cases are concerned about criminalizing a large swath of the population.

Enforcement wasn’t always lax, and the law that may be applied to women allows for five-year prison sentences for “knowing and willful” non-registration with an equally long statute of limitations.

Source: Gender-Neutral Draft Registration Would Create Millions of Female Felons | US News

This is so much CRAP!  And yes I capitalized it because it is that much crap.

This may be a moot point…..there are some in the Congress that wants to do away with the draft altogether….but I think that is to protect the rich from actually having to serve this country than it is to protect women.

As far as I am concerned……if women are capable of doing the job then they should have the same chances as a man…..as far as the ruination of the family goes….NO one cares that the fathers have to go and the family has survived….the family will survive if women are sent to war.

“We Need More Troops”

I have written about the necessity of the reinstatement of the draft (conscription for those that have NO idea what the Draft is all about)…..I call for it because I feel that there is NO shared experience in war ……this country turns its back on our troops the first chance they get because they do not have to think about it….no one cares.

If you would like to check out what I had to say……

The US seems to be Hell bent on continuing war upon war……and if so then it will need to drastically change its way of think about the military….that is if they want a primo milita…

Source: Time To Re-Think Conscription? | Ace News Room

I have been writing about this since 2007…..

Things are not going well for the military, what with Iraq and Afghanistan and any other conflict that Bush wishes to engage in . US Troops are being extended an extra 4 months, the National Guard …

Source: Why No Draft? – In Saner Thought

This country is at war…….granted it is not a declared war but if troops die then it is a war……..and we enter into a new conflict almost monthly and we have only a finite amount of troops to use for these deployment…..

But no one in Washington seems to hear the call…..and they say that we need more troops…..

The chairman of the House Armed Services Committee has introduced a defense bill that would increase the U.S. Army by 45,000 soldiers.

Rep. Mac Thornberry’s version of the fiscal 2017 National Defense Authorization Bill would provide money to add 20,000 soldiers to the active Army’s end-strength, bringing it to 480,000.

The bill would also add 15,000 to the National Guard and 10,000 to the Reserves, resulting in a Guard strength of 350,000 and a Reserve strength of 205,000. The panel was expected to approve the measure on Wednesday.

Under the President Barack Obama’s current proposed defense budget, the Army projects its end-strength to be at a total of 980,000 soldiers by fiscal 2018, including 450,000 for the active force, 335,000 for the Army National Guard and 195,000 for the Army Reserve.

But how will this increase be handled without a draft?

Oh they have a plan…….

Thornberry’s revised budget earmarks just over $2 billion in additional funding for the troop increase, according to language in the bill. That’s about $2.5 billion short of what the Army would need, according to Army senior leaders that have testified it will cost about $1 billion for every 10,000 soldiers.

“Where possible, Chairman Thornberry’s proposal cuts excessive or wasteful expenditures and rededicates those resources to urgent needs,” according to the bill’s summary. “Even with a vigorous re-prioritization of programs, the Committee was unable to make up essential shortages in the President’s budget and simultaneously provide a full year of contingency funding.

“The proposal is designed to restore strength to the force through readiness investments and agility through much needed reforms, while providing a more solid foundation for the next President to address actual national security needs,” it states

I love the thought process in DC….they are best called MORONS!

Here is a simple solution…..the draft is just inactive….re-activate and all this creative bullsh*t will not be necessary.

Simple solutions are always the best solutions.