Draft May Be Needed in Year Military Analysts Warn, Another draft story Options

[Beamer]

Draft May Be Needed in a Year, Military Analysts Warn
    By Bob Dart
    Cox News Service

    Wednesday 30 March 2005

    Washington - If American forces aren't pulling out of Iraq in a year, a draft will be needed to meet manpower requirements, military analysts warned Wednesday.

    With recruitment lagging and no end in sight for U.S. forces in Iraq, the "breaking point" for the nation's all-volunteer military will be mid-2006, agreed Lawrence Korb, a draft opponent and assistant defense secretary in the Reagan administration, and Phillip Carter, a conscription advocate and former Army captain.

    "America's all-volunteer military simply cannot deploy and sustain enough troops to succeed in places like Iraq while still deterring threats elsewhere in the world," Carter concluded in the March issue of "Washington Monthly." advertisement. Korb is a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank, and a senior adviser to the Center for Defense Information. Carter is attorney who writes on military affairs for Slate.com and other media. They debated at a symposium on the draft Wednesday.

    While conceding that the Army, Marines, National Guard and Army Reserve -- the branches serving most in Iraq -- face recruitment difficulties, military officials have denied any plans to revive the draft, which was replaced by an all-volunteer force in 1973.

    "The 'D-word' is the farthest thing from my thoughts," Army Secretary Francis Harvey said at a Pentagon press briefing last week. He said the all-volunteer force has proven its value and applauded the performance of soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.

    "When you get over there, there's no difference between the active, the Reserves and the National Guard. The quality is high across the board. ... It's seamless," he said.

    During his re-election campaign, President Bush declared flatly that he would not reinstate the draft. And there is little support for conscription on Capitol Hill.

    "Today, no leading politician in either party will come anywhere near the idea -- the draft having replaced Social Security as the third rail of American politics," wrote Carter.

    However, the analysts said that the all-volunteer army is on the verge of "breaking" under current circumstances. The 3rd Infantry Division based in Fort Stewart, Ga., and the 4th Infantry Division based in Fort Hood, Texas, are among the units that are being sent back for a second tour in Iraq.

    The National Guard and Reserves historically depend on men and women leaving active duty to fill their ranks, Carter pointed out. But they're not going to join if it means they will be sent right back to Iraq in an activated unit, he said.

    Military men, women and machines are all suffering from repeated deployments.

    "What keeps me awake at night is what will this all-volunteer force look like in 2007," Richard Cody, the Army Vice Chief of Staff, told the Senate Armed Services Committee on March 16.

    Korb, assistant secretary defense for manpower from 1981 through 1985, said the current rotation is unfair to the "patriotic" men and women who volunteered for military service and are stuck on a cycle in and out of Iraq. Since only a tiny segment of the populace is sacrificing, there is no political pressure to change the system, he said.

    "If you had a draft right now, I think you'd be out of Iraq," Korb said.

    The American society "hasn't gotten the message that we're at war," agreed Carter.

    "Those at peril are completely divorced from those in power," said Mark Shields, a syndicated columnist and TV commentator who moderated the symposium. "It's 'Patriotism Lite' -- you put a sticker on your SUV."

    "America has a choice," wrote Carter. "It can be the world's superpower or it can maintain the current all-voluntary military. But it probably can't do both."

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/033105C.shtml

[ghostgovt]

BushCo has had to back off their war drum rantings this past month due to the fact that they found out how American ppl are getting wise to their 'lie' wars and causing the recruitment figure to slide backwards. The only other 'reason' to cause the draft to be re-enstated would be for one of the many countries that are angry at BushCo to crank up a serious war front.. then the draft will take place much sooner than now anticipated.

[big sky brad]

BushCo has had to back off their war drum rantings this past month due to the fact that they found out how American ppl are getting wise to their 'lie' wars and causing the recruitment figure to slide backwards. The only other 'reason' to cause the draft to be re-enstated would be for one of the many countries that are angry at BushCo to crank up a serious war front.. then the draft will take place much sooner than now anticipated.

Yup, I agree totally. It will take place much sooner than Bush planned on it happening.

[SFC_White]

"It's 'Patriotism Lite' -- you put a sticker on your SUV."

I like the quote.

There has been alot of draft storys and threads on this board. My unyielding position is that the current administration will do everything it can to avoid a draft. It would mean political suicide, and I don't see anyone lining up to fall on that sword.

There are some serious issues with revolving tours for reservists, unit cohesion, attrition and recruiting and specifically for the Army, that have arrised do to this conflict and the current approach.

Only recruiting would be solved with the draft.... and the draft would lead to many other problems.. (discipline, training, morale)

These problems would be there no matter who won the election (as I recall both horses had very similar positions on Iraq).... Even if France and Germany jumped in with both feet... the standing army and budgets for their military in the very best case could offer up two of regiments (6500 soldiers).... we would still be lifting the heavy load.

So the real issue is not a democratic or republican problem it's a national problem:

How do we get the american public engaged in patriotic endevors?

[SFC_White]

"It's 'Patriotism Lite' -- you put a sticker on your SUV."

I like the quote.

There has been alot of draft storys and threads on this board. My unyielding position is that the current administration will do everything it can to avoid a draft. It would mean political suicide, and I don't see anyone lining up to fall on that sword.

There are some serious issues with revolving tours for reservists, unit cohesion, attrition and recruiting and specifically for the Army, that have arrised do to this conflict and the current approach.

Only recruiting would be solved with the draft.... and the draft would lead to many other problems.. (discipline, training, morale)

These problems would be there no matter who won the election (as I recall both horses had very similar positions on Iraq).... Even if France and Germany jumped in with both feet... the standing army and budgets for their military in the very best case could offer up two of regiments (6500 soldiers).... we would still be lifting the heavy load.

So the real issue is not a democratic or republican problem it's a national problem:

How do we get the american public engaged in patriotic endevors?

[Marine]

"It's 'Patriotism Lite' -- you put a sticker on your SUV."

I like the quote. 

There has been alot of draft storys and threads on this board.  My unyielding position is that the current administration will do everything it can to avoid a draft.  It would mean political suicide, and I don't see anyone lining up to fall on that sword.

There are some serious issues with revolving tours for reservists,  unit cohesion, attrition and recruiting and specifically for the Army, that have arrised do to this conflict and the current approach.

Only recruiting would be solved with the draft.... and the draft would lead to many other problems.. (discipline, training, morale)

These problems would be there no matter who won the election (as I recall both horses had very similar positions on Iraq).... Even if France and Germany jumped in with both feet... the standing army and budgets for their military in the very best case could offer up two of regiments (6500 soldiers).... we would still be lifting the heavy load.

So the real issue is not a democratic or republican problem it's a national problem:

How do we get the american public engaged in patriotic endevors?

The first 10 or 12 times someone started a thread on this board about a draft is on the verge of returning I addressed them as if it were a legitimate concern with pretty much the same analysis you just did. The next 10 to 12 times a thread got started I was a little more gruff about having to answer the same thing why there wouldn't be a draft repeatedly.

Then I found on the talking points in the DailyKOS that talking about a return to the draft was a real good way to keep people agitated towards Bush. I haven't wasted my time on these folks since.

[ghostgovt]

Yup, I agree totally. It will take place much sooner than Bush planned on it happening.

It was this morning that I heard on the radio that our military intel had reported that everything was now in place to pull the trigger on Iran... and here I thought it would be a Syrian debacle before an Iran debacle. Always remember which radical republicans and neocons set this all up (wars) when the draft begins and all else goes deeper into dumper hell.

[vfguenley]

http://www.mishalov.com/
http://www.army.mil/cmh-pg/Moh1.htm
http://www.cmohs.org/medal.htm
It is my opinion that the military would never be hurt by initiating the draft. The influx of the many diverse people would benefit the military by bringing in some new thinking. To those who think quality people can not be had by the draft are just plain wrong. Check these sites out, learn how many of these Medal Of Honor recipients were drafted in to their service. It is incredible how many heroes were not volunteers in the military.

[ghostgovt]

http://www.mishalov.com/
http://www.army.mil/cmh-pg/Moh1.htm
http://www.cmohs.org/medal.htm
It is my opinion that the military would never be hurt by initiating the draft. The influx of the many diverse people would benefit the military by bringing in some new thinking. To those who think quality people can not be had by the draft are just plain wrong. Check these sites out, learn how many of these Medal Of Honor recipients were drafted in to their service. It is incredible how many heroes were not volunteers in the military.

Amen brother.... draftees has always made for good fighters, but they also were good for standing up to the programmed green machine as well.

What happens is while the green machine makes killing machines out of draftees they then usually in turn become less controllable under the green machine's thumb ... and the lifer's hates independent thinkers.

In my opinon, a new draft driven by this growing neocon 'lie' war plan that sparks more future war fronts will divide this country like the parting of the sea!! The key word to all of this is the word 'lie'. Soldiers who are drafted would follow orders much more willingly when it's a legal 'worthy' war. As in 'nam, those who were drafted fought that war for US brothers in combat and not for the DC tricky dicks.

Many draftees who makes it home don't 'flash' their medals around... they park all that bs in a box and burry it away. The only pride that exists is what we, who were there, knows and what it took to survive it. It has been up to us to do what we can to warn others of the lies that are used by neocons to brainwash others into their 'designed' profit making adventures that only serves the neocons needs.

[vfguenley]

I’m sure they won’t need a draft, as long as;
Korea stays peaceful, Iran minds it’s p’s and q’s. Can’t have any outlying radical Russian countries creating problems that might require something from us. It’ll be OK so long as China doesn’t start screwing with Taiwan or Pakistan with India. I don’t know, maybe if one does look around the world, they’ll find it’s very peaceful out there and we might not need to be such a strong power in today’s world after all.
I’ll tell you what else, we are not as prepared for natural disasters as we used to be. It’s been a traditional job of the Guard and Reserves to help out in any large scale natural disasters and today they are spread very thin and many are deployed elsewhere.

[SFC_White]

Amen brother.... draftees has always made for good fighters, but they also were good for standing up to the programmed green machine as well.

What happens is while the green machine makes killing machines out of draftees they then usually in turn become less controllable under the green machine's thumb ... and the lifer's hates independent thinkers. 

In my opinon, a new draft driven by this growing neocon 'lie' war plan that sparks more future war fronts will divide this country like the parting of the sea!! The key word to all of this is the word 'lie'. Soldiers who are drafted would follow orders much more willingly when it's a legal 'worthy' war. As in 'nam, those who were drafted fought that war for US brothers in combat and not for the DC tricky dicks.

Many draftees who makes it home don't 'flash' their medals around... they park all that bs in a box and burry it away. The only pride that exists is what we, who were there, knows and what it took to survive it. It has been up to us to do what we can to warn others of the lies that are used by neocons to brainwash others into their 'designed' profit making adventures that only serves the neocons needs.

So you are hopeful for a draft? That division that you hope for to divide the country like the parting of the sea....is going to make things better??? How?? The Democrats will sweep through Congress? And that will make things better because the Democrats have cornered the market on Peace and stomped out greed infected politicans?

You'd better start planning a contigency ( just in case).