COUNTERING MILITARY RECRUITMENT
Articles: Draft: General
Military draft still looms: Recruiting for volunteer force should be more flexible
Steve Hammons, American Chronicle
November 16, 2006
There are voices in Congress, the U.S. military and elsewhere advocatingfor increasing the size of the Army and Marine Corps.
Even with the Army now using new, more flexible standards for potential
recruits, will there soon be calls for reactivating the military draft? Or,
can recruiting efforts for the all-volunteer force avoid the need for a draft?
Testifying before Congress yesterday, top U.S. commander for Iraq and chief
of U.S. Central Command, Army Gen. John Abizaid said, "We can put in 20,000
more Americans tomorrow and achieve a temporary effect. But when you look
at the overall American force pool that's available out there, the ability
to sustain that commitment is simply not something that we have right now
with the size of the Army and the Marine Corps."
In that statement, Abizaid reflected what some in Congress and elsewhere
have advocated – increasing the size of the U.S. military, particularly the
Army and Marines, to provide personnel for current and future U.S. military
operations, missions and activities around the world.
Simultaneously with discussion of increasing the size of the Army and
Marines, recruiting of new personnel and retention of current personnel
(including in the reserves and National Guard) has created challenges,
particularly for the Army.
This is believed to be related to repeated stressful deployments to Iraq
and Afghanistan and the deaths of and severe injuries to thousands of,
primarily, Army and Marine Corps personnel.
However, the Marines, being a much smaller force than the Army, and with
the prestige and attraction of an elite organization, is still able to meet
its recruiting goals.
Reactivating the military draft has been discussed by Democrats and
Republicans. The pros and cons of the draft, the size of the U.S. military,
along with the scope of current and future U.S. military operations
worldwide are certain to be subjects of study and debate by Congress, think
tanks, military leadership and the American people in the days and months
ahead.
RECRUTING SERGEANT OF LAST RESORT
The need and/or desire for reactivating the military draft seems to be
based partially on the requirements to adequately staff the Army in its
current size or for expanded Army and Marine forces. (Of course, a bigger
Army and Marine Corps for an unending global expansion of U.S. military
operations and presence is a subject for scrutiny and review.)
Another motivation for a draft, expressed by Congressman Charles Rangel
(D-NY) among others, is that the Army and the military generally, as well
as society, would benefit by a more comprehensive and balanced make-up of
personnel that more accurately reflect American society.
This is part of the concern that the military, particularly the Army, risks
being an organization that does not reflect the social, economic,
educational and ethnic demographics of the general society.
Although the Army, Marines, Navy and Air Force all have many well-educated
members from all kinds of backgrounds, it is true that the services do
provide upward mobility and opportunities for young men and women from
disadvantaged educational, social and economic backgrounds.
For those without the opportunity to pursue higher education or other
well-paying job opportunities, the Army and the other services are an
option that many consider and take advantage of.
Typically, the Air Force and Navy meet recruiting goals easily, and they
are able to be selective about their recruiting. Both forces are highly
technical, provide a relatively desirable environment and, generally
speaking, are not on the ground doing the front-line fighting.
Exceptions include Navy and Air Force special operations groups, Navy
medics who serve with Marine units and some other Air Force and Navy
personnel. Pilots and air crews, both for fixed-wing and rotary-wing
aircraft, always face various levels of danger.
The Army and Marines also incorporate many advanced technologies and many
diverse opportunities in their operations. The Army particularly includes a
wide range of jobs.
However, a large part of the Army and Marine Corps missions include being
on the ground, face-to-face with adversaries in a kill or be killed
situation. The conditions can often be rough and bloody.
For these reasons, the Army and Marines are often considered a large part
of "the tip of the spear" and though many people choose to be front-line
warriors, many others do not find it appealing.
As a result, especially in a war such as the Iraq War, many potential
volunteers think twice about the prospect of being killed or severely
wounded, killing others, and seeing innocent civilians (including many
children) killed and terribly injured.
In conditions such as these, the idea of a military draft becomes the
recruiting sergeant of last resort, as was the case during the Vietnam War.
FLEXIBLE RECRUITING, CREATIVE THINKING
Meanwhile, the real recruiting sergeants have been given some leeway to
bring people into the military who are older, up to just under age 42.
New opportunities have been created for non-citizens to serve in the
military and earn citizenship.
People can also be recruited who may score lower on aptitude tests, may
have had some scrapes with the police or some exposure to common
recreational drugs and substances.
This has been pointed to as a sign of lowered standards for the Army. In
some sense, this is true. In other ways, these are simply more flexible
standards.
In addition, the new guidelines may provide valuable opportunities for
these potential recruits, assuming they are not killed or mutilated in
Iraq, nor come home with severe psychiatric and emotional problems, which
are real risks.
These flexible standards and other creative thinking might also help avoid
the reactivation of a military draft.
Consider these most recent changes in recruiting guidelines. A person might
score low on an aptitude test for many reasons. Maybe they were not the
best student in school. Maybe they don't take tests well. Maybe their
reading skills are deficient or their aptitudes and gifts lie in other
kinds of areas.
Many average or below average students in high school have gone on to do
very well in higher education or other endeavors.
For potential recruits who have been arrested or even incarcerated for a
time, this does not necessarily make them worthless as a member of the
military.
Many fine people had run-ins with the police when they were teenagers or
adults. The seriousness and nature of the behavior and offenses are what
should be evaluated.
Even for older teens and adults recently or currently incarcerated, the
military should be an option.
Many were convicted of crimes such as minor thefts, drug possession and
use, sales of small amounts of drugs and other offenses that do not
necessarily indicate the person is a danger to society or cannot become an
effective member of the military.
This concept is not new. During the Vietnam War, many judges gave offenders
the option of prison or the Army or Marines.
Though this did create many morale problems in these services during that
war, so did the draft. So did the nature of the Vietnam War.
The U.S. is now the one country in the world with the largest percentage of
its population locked up. Another huge percentage is on probation or parole.
Many of these are men and women grew up in underprivileged neighborhoods,
went to poor schools and came from problematic family backgrounds.
This does not mean they cannot be contributing members of the military. In
fact, history has shown that these backgrounds often provide intense
motivation for success and achievement.
For these kinds of individuals, carefully evaluated and screened, the
military offers a tightly structured and supervised environment. The
supervision is more thorough than any parole officer could provide.
There are opportunities to get a high school diploma or GED, receive
valuable training, learn positive values and gain other useful skills and
experiences.
Creative ideas like offering people within the criminal justice system the
opportunity to serve in the military can provide good options for those
individuals and serve society in several beneficial ways.
We reduce the size of the jail and prison populations. We screen for
appropriate candidates for the military. We build better citizens through
this process, thereby enhancing the fabric of American society.
Until the day comes when the U.S. will not need to have forces around the
world and be involved in actions like the Iraq War, outside-the- box
thinking about military recruitment can help our society and avoid the very
problematic prospect of a military draft.
Because no matter what benefits to society and the military a draft might
bring, there is no avoiding the bottom line: The government, the state,
comes to you and takes you against your will, or takes your son or
daughter, or nephew or niece, or the kid next door, possibly to death or
terrible injuries and psychiatric trauma.
We are wary when government tries to take our freedom of speech, our
privacy and our other rights guaranteed under the Constitution. In a
military draft, the state takes our body, our personal freedom and maybe
our lives.
Even considering many of the positive aspects of military service (while
not ignoring the negatives), all options to the reactivation of the
military draft and consequences of a draft should be carefully evaluated.
Because a draft can be one more of many current serious threats to the
American people, our liberty and our democracy.
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