• Y2K Bug Resurfaces, 14,000 Dead Men Called To Register For Draft
    42 replies, posted
To be honest, counter-insurgency operations in another country barely feels like being at war because you're not fighting a centralized state in a conventional conflict. So even if you "lose" (in this case through a lack of popular support and a casus belli that doesn't hold up anymore) you won't risk of being invaded, occupied or sanctioned by the winner.
[QUOTE=zakedodead;45353170]Wouldn't you only be 17-16 if born in 1997 though?[/QUOTE] Lol on the exact day of my birthday I got a letter from the military with my selective service card. It was pretty funny getting that along with cards from family
[QUOTE=Person234;45355045]Pretty much. Whereas other countries like South Korea where all male between a certain age have to serve a number of years, in the US, the Selective Service is responsible for collecting a list of names to be drafted during military emergencies. Basically, it is the lucky of the draw. However, I keep reading rumor that people born during certain time of month have less chance of being drafted, or people in the lower income area are more likely to be drafted, or people with non-white name get drafted more. However, you don't agree to be drafted, you are by law REQUIRED to be registered. Still, I just think that forcing people to serve in the military is wrong. As well as the fact that I think it is wrong to say to somebody, "I am ordering you to leave your home and love ones to get shot at rather you want to or not." Also, some people are just not cut out for military service and some people shouldn't receive military training at all.[/QUOTE] Yeah well, South Korea and the US are in distinctly different circumstances, namely the fact that their single bordering neighbor wants to invade and take over, and could invade at any moment with how unpredictable and insane they are. It's not a case of "ordering you to leave your home and love ones to get shot at rather you want to or not.", it's a case of "We need troops at the ready in the event Kim Jong CCXVII orders his hordes to fire those mortars pointed at Seoul." Completely different thing from the Selective Service Act which is just there in the hypothetical event a draft needs to be instituted, which isn't likely to happen unless, say, a cartel with anti-American views takes over all of Mexico, since I doubt any US President wants to risk inheriting that part of Nixon's legacy about drafting people to go fight that hopeless war in Vietnam that should have been none of the west's business.
It still bugs the shit out of me that males are required by law to register for the SS, or face imprisonment and a lack of civil privileges, while females are not.
When I had to register for this bullshit I made sure to leave the worst impression possible during the medical exam, I starved myself for a while to lose weight, wore my old leg brace etc, just so I could get a low score and be less likely to be drafted if shit hits the fan (it worked, I got a "D"). Even then, if a war ever breaks out I'm just packing my shit and running, fuck that, I ain't fighting for this country
[QUOTE=certified;45360523]Yeah well, South Korea and the US are in distinctly different circumstances, namely the fact that their single bordering neighbor wants to invade and take over, and could invade at any moment with how unpredictable and insane they are. It's not a case of "ordering you to leave your home and love ones to get shot at rather you want to or not.", it's a case of "We need troops at the ready in the event Kim Jong CCXVII orders his hordes to fire those mortars pointed at Seoul." Completely different thing from the Selective Service Act which is just there in the hypothetical event a draft needs to be instituted, which isn't likely to happen unless, say, a cartel with anti-American views takes over all of Mexico, since I doubt any US President wants to risk inheriting that part of Nixon's legacy about drafting people to go fight that hopeless war in Vietnam that should have been none of the west's business.[/QUOTE] I am perfectly aware of the South Korean situation. However, given the recent fragging incident and other similar incident before perpetrated by conscripts who don't fit into the military, I think conscription create more problem than it is worth. Look, in 2010 alone, 82 military personnel committed suicide and 940 South Korean Marines were hospitalized after hazing. Since 2010, there have only been 48 Korean military death resulting from North Korean actions. The South Korean military is not going to get push back to Pusan because a few hundred conscripts who don't cut out for military service isn't there. Also, I genuinely believed that people have it in their heart of know when their country needs them and they will automatically serve their country when the time comes. Take the South Korean for example, if the North gets really, really aggressive, you don't think South Koreans will be rushing to the recruitment office. They know what will happen and what they have to lose if the North win.So, we don't really know much about the North Korean military. Are they really that powerful, are they even capable of invading the South? They maybe good at marching and putting on parades and putting on a good show for Fat Kim, but how are they really? I firmly believe that to solve the manpower issue, nations should invest in technology as force multipliers and unmanned weapon platforms. Soldiers evolve over time. A soldier today is 10 times more powerful than his predecessor 200 years ago. For example, during the American Revolution, a British soldier can fire 4 to 5 shots a minutes. Now, a British soldier with a L85A2 can fire 610-775 RPM. During the Napoleonic War, more soldiers died on campaign from diseases than enemy actions. Now, death from diseases while oversea is pretty rare. [QUOTE=soulharvester;45360552]It still bugs the shit out of me that males are required by law to register for the SS, or face imprisonment and a lack of civil privileges, while females are not.[/QUOTE] It is just outdated school of thought where they believed that females soldiers are not as good as a male soldier. Right now, female are not allowed to serve as front-line infantry or join the special forces. If females are still that limited in an all volunteer army, why would they draft female as well? Also, I think it would be a political suicide to introduce female into selective service. Judging by what I have seen, selective service is already pretty unpopular, even thought a draft is pretty unlikely. Also, what sort of women rights group would be insane enough to lobby to let themselves get drafted and get shot at? What sort of female would say that, she "has a right to get drafted and get shot at?" I just couldn't imagine a 16-17 years old teenage girl going to a Selective Service office and demand that she be included as well. [QUOTE=Thunderbolt;45360875]When I had to register for this bullshit I made sure to leave the worst impression possible during the medical exam, I starved myself for a while to lose weight, wore my old leg brace etc, just so I could get a low score and be less likely to be drafted if shit hits the fan (it worked, I got a "D"). Even then, if a war ever breaks out I'm just packing my shit and running, fuck that, I ain't fighting for this country[/QUOTE] Oh, this trick never gets old. When I was studying the history of the Ottoman Empire when the Ottoman Empire dumped the Janissaries and introduced conscription, I read stories where men would purposely pull out their teeth so that they will fail their dental exam so they won't be conscripted. Mind you, they were still using muskets and paper cartilage, so a complete set of teeth is important. Also, I was watching a documentary on Andre the Giant, he failed his conscription medical because he was too huge and no army uniform can fit him.
I've been over 18 for a couple years now and I've never had to register for anything like this. Must be a per-state thing.
[QUOTE=soulharvester;45360552]It still bugs the shit out of me that males are required by law to register for the SS, or face imprisonment and a lack of civil privileges, while females are not.[/QUOTE] Women aren't even [b]allowed[/b] to sign up for it. Course, then again I'm pretty sure the only reason it still exists to begin with is because nobody with the power to do anything about it even remembers it's still there. Hell, I even forget about it until someone explicitly brings it up in conversation.
[QUOTE=Ardosos;45363686]I've been over 18 for a couple years now and I've never had to register for anything like this. Must be a per-state thing.[/QUOTE] Did you ever file a FAFSA or apply for other federal services? It's required that your register for selective service in order to receive federal aid. That's how most people file.
[QUOTE=BrownTown;45363828]Did you ever file a FAFSA or apply for other federal services? It's required that your register for selective service in order to receive federal aid. That's how most people file.[/QUOTE] Huh. Well, that explains that.
[QUOTE=soulharvester;45360552]It still bugs the shit out of me that males are required by law to register for the SS, or face imprisonment and a lack of civil privileges, while females are not.[/QUOTE] Women weren't allowed in combat roles until early last year. I don't think a law last updated 40 years ago was going to be changed to account for that.
Out of curiousity, has it ever been examined how much money would be saved if the United States abolished the draft? (And all of the agencies and offices involved in maintaining it, its paperwork, etc)
[QUOTE=Zeke129;45364357]Out of curiousity, has it ever been examined how much money would be saved if the United States abolished the draft? (And all of the agencies and offices involved in maintaining it, its paperwork, etc)[/QUOTE] [url=http://usgovinfo.about.com/od/defenseandsecurity/a/Is-the-Draft-Still-Needed.htm]Apparently.[/url] [quote]GAO determined that maintaining the Selective Service System as-is would cost about $24.4 million a year, compared to $17.8 million for running it in a deep standby mode in which only the basic registration database would be maintained. Doing away with the Selective Service System would, of course, result in an annual savings of $24.4 million. However, Selective Service officials estimated that costs for closing the agency and terminating employees and existing contracts would total approximately $6.5 million in the first year. Selective Service officials told the GAO that if placed in standby mode, it would take about 830 (2.3 years) days to actually hold a draft and provide the DOD with inductees. This time frame would increase to 920 days if the Selective Service System were deactivated. If maintained as-is and at its current funding level, Selective Service stated that it could begin supplying inductees within 193 days. In addition, Selective Service suggested that in the event the system were placed in standby mode or deactivated, the costs to hold a draft could exceed $465 million.[/quote]
Sorry, you need to Log In to post a reply to this thread.