Universal National Service Act of 2003 - Declares that it is the obligation of every U.S. citizen, and every other person residing in the United States, between the ages of 18 and 26 to perform a two-year period of national service, unless exempted, either as a member of an active or reserve component of the armed forces or in a civilian capacity that promotes national defense. Requires induction into national service by the President. Sets forth provisions governing: (1) induction deferments, postponements, and exemptions, including exemption of a conscientious objector from military service that includes combatant training; and (2) discharge following national service. - http://www.congress.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d108:HR00163:@@@L&summ2=m&

this bill is being pushed by 13 sponsors... all democrats... I feel dirty. Maybe I'll vote green party after all...

It says right there that you can avoid military service if you are a conscientious objector (meaning that you oppose violence and aggression as part of your character). You'd have to show that you haven't had a tendency towards violent behavior in the past, though. As a conscientious objector, you would still have to do some kind of service, but it would not involve combat.

It is unwise to force people into the military who don't want to be there. They may clinch up or panic during a crucial moment of battle and put them and their comrades in danger.

It's interesting to see, though. Most people had thought that Vietnam would be the last time we'd see a draft as the number of volunteer soldiers had risen far past what we used to need. The situation in Iraq is not nearly over, though, and soldiers there are tired and want to go home. They'll need replacements. Plus, I have a strong feeling that Syria, Iran, and Saudi Arabia are not far down the line as terrorism also has a strong hold in those countries.

I'll be 27 by the time this passes, but I wouldn't pass the physical requirements anyways. I have the body size and stamina of a skinny 12-year-old. I also have ADD up the wazoo, and I'd likely zone out right as I need to watch out for people shooting at me.

It's also interesting to consider the wording of this. It wouldn't be a draft just for one particular conflict. It seems to imply that, until this law would be reversed or cancelled, everyone in that age range would have to perform this service. It's also interesting to note that, unlike the existing draft laws, this one does not exempt women.

I think basic would kick my ass. Forget an actual combat situation. Therefore, I am opposed. ;D

Well, for what its worth - you should still register for the draft (for Americans). The penalties of registering for the draft, being selected, and then not showing are considerably lower than not registering in the first place. Its kinda backwards... but... meh.

posted by Tom:

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If they try to force me into military service, I choose jail. Seriously. I won't fucking stand for it. My government can't make me be in the military. That's absurd.

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That's a presumptuous attitude. What if you were in a country that wasn't King of the World? What if a country's survival depended upon drafting.

You also miss the sense of community and responsibility that manditory service would instill. There'd definitly be less voter apathy if everyone had to put in some time.

Do I personally want this? No. But if I was King of Gruevania, yeah I'd probably give it good thought.

And you pay out the ass for it. :D

Hey all. My friend and I were discussing this the other day via email. Here's what I wrote to her, I think you'll all find it amusing in your own way:
___________________________________________________

Umm... BULL SHIT. I swear if this bill is passed into
law, I'm packing up and moving out of the country
before it goes into effect. I don't care if I'm in a
position to handle the move, I'll find a way to do it.
If I have to sleep on the streets of Japan for a few
weeks before finding a job, I'll do it to avoid this
horse turd of a law. It was bad enough signing up for
the draft, which really got under my skin in and of
itself. But this... this is going too far. I didn't
choose to be born into this country, and I haven't had
the means to leave, so it's not like my "choice" to
live here justifies mandatory service in its defense.
I've never been given a choice!

Furthermore, this has the potentially to seriously
mess with kids's lives. It's bad enough that you have
to do four years of college and a two-year mission
(applicable only to LDS of course but nonetheless...)
Now let's take another two years onto that... guess
what, if I string all of these retarded social
obligations together, back-to-back, and somehow avoid
blowing my brains out from the sheer stress of having
no control over my own life EVER, I'll come out of it,
at the youngest, TWENTY-SIX years old! I don't even
get to start my career, my *life*, until I'm almost
thirty? That's pure and utter crap. What is this, some
kind of underhanded attempt to subjugate the free
citizens of America into devoting their entire lives
in service to their lord and master, the president of
the United States? Hey guess what, our superpower
Democratic Republic just gave way to neo-Feudalism,
where we're all serfs indentured to our priveleged
leader for our entire pathetic existence.

Screw that.
___________________________________________________

My primary reason for not supporting our military is that I quite simply do not trust our government. That's not to say that they're all bad, and I'm not a wacko conspiracy theorist by any means, but I'm not going to go out and kill some guy because G.W. said so, without knowing *for myself* who this guy is, why he deserves to die, and who it's going to affect and how. Just being Arabian is not justification enough for me.

Admittedly, this bill seems to indicate the possibility of serving your 2-year sentence... erm, service, sorry... in a non-combat capacity. Unless my non-combat capacity is cleaning the $6,000 toilets at the Pentagon, it doesn't make a difference. Great, I'm not on the front line, but I'm the ATC guiding the F117A's to their bomb site from a command center in Washington. I'm still killing people without knowing *why*.

It just seems like a massive waste of time to me. Now if Russia suddenly becomes a superpower again and sends a massive invasion into America, and *my* family, *my* house, *my* neighborhood, are in danger because of it, then I'll stand up and fight, and not until. As I mentioned to my friend, I hesitate to call this *my* country because I didn't really choose it. If I had a choice right now, I'd probably be living in Japan... but since I don't currently have a choice (on account of not being able to afford the move), I haven't thought it through that much yet.

Whatever. /rant off.

That is all.