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Two
Democratic Congressman introduced legislation last week to revive the
military draft, taking a race-baiting shot at the President and his war
plans. Their idea is not new, however, as similar proposals were introduced
by Republicans in the months following September 11th. Although the
administration is not calling for a draft at this time, last week’s controversy
shows while conscription has been buried for 30 years, the idea is not
necessarily dead.
Neither
the Pentagon nor our military leaders want a draft. In fact, a Department of
Defense report stated that draft registration could be eliminated "with
no effect on military mobilization and no measurable effect on military
recruitment." Today’s military is more high tech and specialized
than ever before, and an educated volunteer force is required to operate our
modern Army, Navy, and Air Force. Most military experts believe a draft would
actually impair military readiness, despite the increase in raw manpower,
because of training and morale problems.
So why
is the idea of a draft even considered? One answer is that our military
forces are spread far too thin, engaged in conflicts around the globe that
are none of our business. With hundreds of thousands of troops already
stationed in literally hundreds of foreign nations, we simply don’t
have enough soldiers to invade and occupy every country we label a threat to
the new American empire. Military leaders conservatively estimate that
250,000 troops will be needed to invade Iraq, while tens of thousands already
occupy Afghanistan. Add another conflict to the mix- in North Korea, the
Balkans, or any number of hot spots- and our military capabilities would
quickly be exhausted. Some in Washington would rather draft more young bodies
than rethink our role as world policeman and bring some of our troops home.
Military
needs aside, however, some politicians simply love the thought of mandatory
service to the state. To them, the American government is America. Patriotism
means working for the benefit of the state. On a crude level, the draft
appeals to patriotic fervor. This is why the idea of compulsory national
service, whether in the form of military conscription or make-work programs
like AmeriCorps, still sells on Capitol Hill. Conscription is wrongly
associated with patriotism, when it really represents collectivism and
involuntary servitude.
I
believe wholeheartedly that an all-volunteer military is not only sufficient
for national defense, but preferable. It is time to abolish the Selective
Service System and resign military conscription to the dustbin of American
history. Five hundred million dollars have been wasted on the Selective
Service System since 1979, money that could have been returned to taxpayers
or spent to improve the lives of our nation’s veterans.
Ronald
Reagan said it best: "The most fundamental objection to draft
registration is moral." He understood that conscription assumes our
nation’s young people belong to the state. Yet America was founded on
the opposite principle, that the state exists to serve the individual. The
notion of involuntary servitude, in whatever form, is simply incompatible with
a free society.
Ron Paul
www.house.gov/paul
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Congressman
Ron Paul of Texas enjoys a national reputation as the premier advocate for
liberty in politics today. Dr. Paul is the leading spokesman in Washington
for limited constitutional government, low taxes, free markets, and a return
to sound monetary policies based on commodity-backed currency. For more
information click on the Project Freedom website.
Published
with the authorization of Dr. Paul.
Copyright
Dr. Ron Paul
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