AlterNet: Oh Baby, It's Drafty Out There

[unhappycamper]

Oh Baby, It's Drafty Out There
By Frida Berrigan, AlterNet.
Posted July 5, 2005

"Feeling a draft?" asks the Village Voice.

"Talk of a draft is chilling," intones The New York Times.

Even fashion magazines weigh in: "Could Cosmo girl get drafted?"

In city streets, town squares and rural strip malls, military recruiters are beleaguered. The Army is unable to meet recruiting targets even after lowering quotas and standards. At the same time, recruiters are overwhelmed by scandal and scrutiny, and uncomfortable in the face of growing anti-war sentiment.

MORE
http://www.alternet.org/story/23308/

(Editorial comment: The responses to this article are pretty interesting.)

[ClintonTyree]

1. Hey, we have bush's promise that there won't be a draft....

and that's good enough for me! :sarcasm:

[leftchick]

2. This is an excellent comment here...

the article was very good. Thanks for posting it.


First of all, let's look at the reality of the situation: Based on past behavior and his history of lying to the American public, when George W. Bush says that as long as he's president, "there will be no draft", you know damn well that there will be one. You could write a book on the lies that have come out of this administration. In fact several good ones have been written (I highly reccommend, The Lies of George W. Bush by David Corn). The draft is on its way. I'll even tell you when it's coming. It'll happen after the next mid term election. Between election day 2006 and New Years Day 2007 they'll make the announcement, you can count on it. Of course they won't call it a draft. The dirty old men who make up the Bush administration have a peculiar fondness for Orwellian Newspeak. They'll probably give it a sweet little name like "Freedom Service" (Remember the "Clear Skies" act?) Prior to his hideous, illegal invasion in 2003, President Bush, in a televised address, said to the youth of Iraq, "Don't give your lives for a dying regime". That's perfect advise to the youth of America. I would add one more: Organize and resist.

[malaise]

3. If he introduces the draft

he won't have enough soldiers to keep the people off the streets of the US. I dare him.

[left is right]

4. i hope you are right

But I think it will blow back on the Democrats. "If Dem's had supported the war, a draft wouldn't be needed. If Dem's thought the war was wrong, how can they now support a draft." Smart Dem congress-critters would refuse to vote yeah or nay on this issue. Deny them a quorum and let the draft go through by executive decree

[Eloriel]

5. Stop. The Repugs can lie about us in whichever direction they want

And they DO. Repeatedly.

It doesn't MATTER what we do: there will NEVER be anything but acquiescence that will please them and keep them from criticizing us (and even full-out acquiescence isn't good enough for them, often).

Our job, and the job of our elected representatives in Washington and the state governments, is TO DO THE RIGHT DAMN THING, period.