Should the U.S Have Mandatory Military Draft? For whom?

By

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

Background of Study

This study explores the issue of mandatory military service and for whom? Military training benefits people who served as well as society. We saw on Flight 93, the plane that crashed in Pennsylvania on 9/11, has been referred to as "the first victory in the war on terrorism." It was due to a handful of trained current and ex-military folks, who knew something had to be done, knew how to do it, and did it right. However, a military draft is not a solution as we have already learned during the high of Vietnam War which our government mandated our young people to serve in the military. As a result, our military suffered through poor job performance by these draftees and many refused to serve or following orders from their superiors. The best military we could have is one which is full of people who want to be there by volunteering to serve willingly.

The military is a unit that works best when it is cohesive. When people in arms are united in defending their country then they work as one. A person who goes into the military for the right reasons (desire to serve the country and to be a better person) then that person will lift up the military. When a person is forced into service and hates what one is doing then the military will be less effective. Consider the amount of 400, 000 American deaths during World War II, then conscription may be good possible solution. On the contrary, current conflict there has been less than 6,000 deaths so far, I see no reason to conscript.

Problem Statement

Mandatory military service may be too extreme and unrealistic to implement given the current climate of supports from Americans and the U.S. Congress. If young Americans are forced to join the military through mandatory service, then these military personnel may not be following orders from their superiors to execute the assign missions since they were forced to do things against their wills.

Rationale for the Research

After the end of Vietnam War, the U.S. congress had attempted more than once to introduce legislation to mandate military age Americans to serve in the military. Rep. Charles Rangel, D-New York, said such legislation could make members of Congress more reluctant to authorize military action. “I'm talking about mandatory service." (CNN, 29 December 2009). Conscripts may benefit from the military service for the opportunity to learn practical life skills and the military benefits because its forces increase dramatically. However, mandatory military service may be un-American and impractical to implement in the 21st century. It is therefore a legitimate idea that deserves a fair discussion and open debate. A review of current democracies using conscription, an analysis of the U.S. military and an evaluation of our country's civilian state lead me to believe that conscription is not the answer to our country's and woes.

Statement of the Research Objectives

The purpose and objectives of this study is to ...