Should the Draft Be Revived? You decide.

The following bulletin recently came to my attention. The way that this issue is presented as a possible covert action of the Bush Administration demands that the public be aware of it and voice their opinions to their representatives in Congress. In the hands of a responsible government, a military draft is a reasonable thing as long as there are no exceptions, no pulling of strings, no favoritism. But for an irresponsible government such as this one to propose drafting cannon fodder is a hideous prospect.

I cannot help but think that this draft proposal by the Bush Administration is motivated by their perceived need for more bodies to sacrifice in future mad escapades throughout the world, rather than because of a genuine concern for equality of representation of the population in the military. In other words, "after we've screwed up so badly in Iraq, ain't nobody gonna volunteer anymore and we need more "assets" to "collaterally damage."

Let the buyer beware.

****************

2004-03-15

from Commondreams.org through Veterans for Peace (veteransfp@sbcglobal.net)

Pending Draft Legislation

  There is pending legislation in the House and Senate(twin bills S89 and
HR163) to reinstate the draft as early as June 15, 2005.  This will apply to
both men and women ages 18 to 26 and college deferments will not be allowed.
$28 million dollars has been added to the 2004 Selective Service System and
the Pentagon has quietly begun a public campaign to fill all 10,350 draft
board positions and the 11,070 appeals boards slots nationwide.

  The Bush administration is quietly trying to get these bills passed NOW
without publicity so that it can be announced after the November election.
They probably consider it political suicide if it became public now.

  At this point, John Kerry also supports this action.  Those concerned
should contact their Congressional representatives.

  For more information, go to Common Dreams (http://www.commondreams.org/) and type in Military Draft in their search mode.

B. J. Fine