Mandatory Military Service free essay sample

Mandatory Military Service Dr. John Doe, The plagues of our modern youth such as: increase rate of High School drop outs, drug usage among teens, gang activity, lack of self esteem, failing ethics and compromised morals would be greatly improved with mandatory military service. It is my belief that mandatory military service would increase: health standards, patriotism, educational levels, morals, ethics and force citizens to take a higher interest in world affairs and politics. Military service would create a society that is stronger, both physically and mentally, and it would make our government officials less trigger-happy.Foreign countries would be less likely to attack America, making it impossible to invade our country physically and economically, and therefore return our society to a strong and proud nation it once was. Currently military drafts are instated in countries throughout the world, both in times of war and peace. A military draft is defined as a forced military conscription requiring its citizens to serve a mandatory military term as specified by the country or governing body. We will write a custom essay sample on Mandatory Military Service or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page There are many countries that have a draft and there is a concern that the United States (US) might be one to join them.I am a link of many prior and future generations that voluntary served. My service of five years with the USMC was very positive experience and has helped me to become the successful professional person I am today. Like many, I am concern that the US’s all-volunteer force may not be able to meet the expectations and needs for the country, especially when its troops are stretched around the world in places such as Afghanistan and Iraq for long periods of time. This concern and rumors about the draft have been fueled by an executive order (13223) that enforces the military’s use of a so called â€Å"stop loss† program and by the H.R. 163 proposal (Universal National Service Act of 2003) which calls for a national mandatory draft. The introducing of these have also created many concerns in how the Department of Defense (DOD) currently manages its troop supply and well as its possible need for stop loss order and a draft. Only after the Vietnam War did an all-volunteer army replace the draft. The registering for the draft continues since President Carter re-instituted it in 1980(Stetz). Since then, several bills were proposed in Congress to reinstate the draft.A recent proposal is the Universal National Service Act of 2003, also known as H. R. 163. The intent of this bill was to provide common defense for America by requiring that all persons aged between 18 and 26 provide a mandatory military service term of two years unless they are exempt under certain provisions. H. R. 163 can be implemented by the president with regulation as necessary (US Congress). The bill is pending in Congress and may be passed if the current administration finds that there is insufficient troop strength in Iraq and other potential conflicts around the globe.The Bush administration had denied rumors that they intend to reinstate the draft and insisted that the current level of the volunteer force is sufficient. The Department of Defense officially denied the rumor and stated that â€Å"the all-volunteer military is meeting recruitment goals and can handle the growing demands for troops. †(Stetz) It continued to argue that the armed forces are looking for more high-quality willing participants rather than large numbers that would be delivered by a draft. The denied rumors were also fueled by the proposed military draft legislation as well as the Executive Order No. 3223. The order called up reservists under a restricted amount of funding in response to terrorist attacks. In an amendment to that order, created nearly four months later, the number of members to be activated was increased. It stated, â€Å"It is necessary to increase (subject to limits imposed by law) the number of members of the armed forces on active duty for the Department of Defense for which funds are provided in the Appropriation act† (The White House). The act continues to raise doubts as to whether the volunteer army has a sufficient numbers to carry out its tasks.The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has responded to the calling up of reserve members suggesting that the DOD could more efficiently and effectively execute its mobilization strategy. The GAO reports, â€Å"The Army was not able to efficiently execute its mobilization and demobilization plans, because the plans contained outdated assumptions concerning availability of facilities and support personnel† (U. S. General Accounting Office). In addition to calling up reservist the US military, has adopted a stop loss program intended to keep its current active members in a longer term of service.The order became a conflict; however, as reservists found that their extended terms could and did deeply affect their lives. These negative impacts can be mitigated by a dependable flow of replacements utilizing mandatory military service. It is recommended that if mandatory military service is passed men and women leaving high school will be required to join the military for at least two years. I believe that the result will enable the youth to place a higher value on individual rights. There will be a greater emphasis placed on the prior sacrifice that others have made to maintain these rights.It is a growing problem of the American youth to take their rights for granted and thus patriotism is at an all time low. The new graduates will be given an assessment to test their knowledge and intelligence levels; therefore they will study and work harder in school. They will become better prepared in an effort to score higher and obtain better options for their MOS. Parents and students will take school more seriously as their futures would depend on it. Parents would become more serious about how and what their children were taught.They would also be more involved and concerned about school funding and other issues such as: supplies, curriculum and teacher salaries. With in a few short months the youth will gain discipline, physical fitness, pride, and self-esteem and teach them that they can achieve anything they set their minds to! The required two years of service will enable the youth to travel the world, learn about other cultures and world events. They will gain a wealth of knowledge that is currently unattainable for most. This first hand experience will enable them to see how the rest of the world lives and therefore not take so much granted.They will carry this knowledge about world events and cultures with them to teach their children, making the world less America centric to Americans. In addition to knowledge, the youth will become physically fit. The obesity levels in America would drop reducing many medical problems associated with obesity With no exclusion to mandatory service, even children of the president and congress will be required for military service. This would be a major deterrent when engaging in future wars with the knowledge that their children or grandchildren would be deployed.The government would defiantly become more willing to look at other options before leaping headfirst into a major conflict. In closing, the end results of mandatory military service are numerous. A chain reaction would take place and American society would transform itself. We would become more aware and less ignorant of the world around us; people would become more involved in world events. The modern youth and their parents would more patriotic. The Government would be less likely to jump into a war and not take our rights for granted.The youth will not be lost educationally; the schools would receive better funding. The overall physical health of society would benefit. The obesity levels would drop dramatically, reducing health problems associated with unhealthy lifestyle. Mandatory military service is a great discipline for our youth; it teaches them practical and social skills and encourages them to take responsibility for themselves and others. A society with compulsory military service benefits the modern youth and in my opinion is therefore a better society. Bibliography: