How to Protect Your Child from the Coming Draft

[G_j]

How to Protect Your Child from the Coming Draft - Dr. Teresa Whitehurst

http://www.antiwar.com/orig/whitehurst.php?articleid=4789

February 10, 2005

"Fighting should be reserved for genuine self-defense in the face of
imminent attack, when no other help is available. Preemptive strikes
and aggression disguised as self-defense won't pass muster under the
Golden Rule."

Draft? What draft?

Yes, there's a draft going on right now. At the time of this writing
it preys only on current members of the military: it's called the
"stop-loss" order, which unilaterally breaks the original agreement -
and the trust - between soldiers and the government.

The stop-loss draft is just the first step. As soon as Mr. Bush gets
America's young people fighting two or more wars at once (you may have
noticed that Iran is next), there simply won't be enough volunteer
soldiers to go around. The draft is coming.

Parents need to think ahead to protect their children from the
armchair warriors in Washington, because avoiding the draft is a lot
easier than avoiding combat after entering the military, whether by
choice or by force. Consider Sgt. Kevin Benderman, who's already
served in Bush's War of Terror and was so shaken by what he witnessed
that he's risking seven years in prison to refuse orders to return to
Iraq.

Soldiers who seek CO can't or won't adopt the common coping skill of
callous indifference to human suffering. But they're punished for
having a conscience: military lawyers often use this spurious argument
to cast doubt on the soldier's sincerity: If you didn't already oppose
war when you joined, then you can't possibly oppose it now.

..more..

[Cats Against Frist]

1. My Brother is 27, overweight and has a plate holding his hipbone

together: does anyone know the chances he would have of getting drafted? He's only slightly overweight, too -- nothing boot camp couldn't melt off of him. He is UNMARRIED, and has no children. He's really the only person I have to immediately plan for. My own son is 3, and my boyfriends is 34, BUT, he served four years in the military and completed his post-military obligations, and was discharged.

He swears they can't/won't draft him. I say: don't be too sure about that.

[hack89]

3. They won't draft him

The present age limit by law for registration is 26.

http://www.sss.gov/PDFs/TimeToRegister.pdf

[TreasonousBastard]

15. That's just registration...

after you've registered, they can get you into your thirties.

And they're working on going further than that for some specialists they need.

[TreasonousBastard]

14. First, he better have registered...

or he might find some bad news when job hunting.

Classification comes later, if there actually is a draft, but the hip should make him 4F. Make sure he has copies of is medical records if the time comes for a preinduction physical, because they don't just take his word for it.

Mildly overweight probably won't get anyone out, but obese is a reason.

[BrklynLiberal]

2. Thanks fro posting.

[wadestock]

4. A friend of my wife....

had a son returned from Iraq about a year ago...hip messed up...he got out on a medical discharge....got a job...was doing pretty good...and then just the other day a couple state troopers and some guy come to the door and tell him he's got to go back!

After a long ordeal they did return him back home because his hip was so messed up and one leg was shorter than the other.

I said to myself...oh my god...they're getting desparate...

[yourout]

5. Check out this link about avoiding the draft.

<http://www.rumormillnews.com/cgi-bin/forum.cgi?read=63207>

Short of an invasion it will be a cold day in hell before my three teenage sons serve for the idiots we have running this country.

[TreasonousBastard]

13. That ain't gonna work.

It might have worked once for one guy, but it's urban legend now.

[cliss]

6. Here's my understanding of what's to come -

I believe the draft will start in 2005, no later than 2006. The draft will include the following:

1) young men between the ages of 18 - 26
2) young women between the ages of 18 - 26
3) poor or questionable health will not be an automatic "reprieve"; they'll look at each one on a case-by-case basis. If you have a bad knee or bad eyesight so you can't aim a gun, they'll find other jobs for you.
4) going to college will no longer be a deferment. The Vietnam deferment days are over.
5) moving to Canada may not get you out either, because a law was signed 2 years ago that Canada must return draft dodgers from the US.
6) if you want to be a Conscientious Objector, they will place a time limit on when you file. If anyone is going to file the paperwork, they should probably think about that right away.

The people running the show are heartless thugs. Don't expect them to be "nice" to give you a break. They have plans for the US, and you are a part of their plans.

Parents should make plans now to protect their sons and daughters from these madmen. They will absolutely not hesitate to send millions of our country's future to their deaths in Iraq and other places.

However, keep in mind that the draft does not automatically mean you'll go in. I recently calculated that each draftee has a 1 in 113 chance to get called up. They'll probably use the same lottery system that they used in VietNam.

[thinkingwoman]

10. I've said it before and I'll say it again

they have no mechanism in place for drafting women and the fundies won't tolerated it.

On the first point: they've been forcing males to sign up with selective service for decades. They have the lists and they can act on them quickly. But women have never had to register and implementing a registration now will only net them 18 year olds. Yes, of course they could pass a law and yada yada but realistically and practically they cannot draft women immediately.

On the second point: this is still a sexist nation. Fundies won't tolerate their little blond white girls getting drafted. They barely tolerate them serving voluntarily.

The fact that they can't and won't draft women is what is slowing down reinstating the draft. They know that drafting only one gender opens up the door for serious discrimination lawsuits, and yet they don't have the mechanism or public will to draft women.

[cliss]

11. Interesting.....good point.

I've tried to read as much as I can about the upcoming draft, and many articles include the option of including young women.

I have 3 "cannon-fodder" teenage boys, so I'm really concerned about this.

Interesting point about men vs. women. I didn't realize there would be lawsuits about this.

The most important reason why we should not do this to our young people is because the US population is not at a replacement level. We've been running under for several years. This means that the huge number of "baby boomers" who will be getting ready for retirement in a few years, will not have enough young people to support them.

They will need the young people to fund their retirement, and even without a draft, the number of working people supporting the non-working ones, is at a crushingly high figure. Add to this the many millions who will be needed to physically take care of the old ones.

A country's real wealth is its people. The young people are its future.

But do the warmongers realize this?

[Karenina]

7. Kick!

:kick:

[G_j]

8. **contact your child's school

Contact your school or school board in writing and
have your child's info withheld from recruiters.

[Greybnk48]

9. Canada is still an option

There was a lot of chatter in Dec. I believe about a draft and the Secure Borders Agreement (I think that's the name) came up. Bush was going to use that to stop draft dodgers. However, when this was raised to the Canadian Prime Minister, his answer was that Canada would NOT discriminate against immigrants in that manner. There was a DU thread with this press release--anyone remember it?

[G_j]

12. A Primer on the Draft

from the American Friends Service Committee,

http://www.afsc.org/pwork/0110/011023.htm

A Primer on the Draft, September 2001

Harold Jordan directs the AFSC Youth and Militarism Program

At present there is no actual draft in the United States. There has not been one since the early 1970s. Congress would have to pass a bill calling for a draft if conscription were to be resumed. This could happen if there was a perceived emergency or if the government wanted to "send a message" or threat to another government or foreign group.


Sept. 23, Boston © Ellen Shub

There is no way to predict whether a draft will return. It very much depends on the political climate in the US and in the government. The current draft registration requirement was restarted by the government in 1980 as a response to the invasion of Afghanistan by the Soviet Union. It is ironic that the US government is now (in 2001) talking about going to war with Afghanistan.

If you are facing draft registration...

Your choices are not easy, but you do have them! The law says that every male must register for the draft within 30 days of his 18th birthday. For now, the government keeps a listing of contact information for registrants in case there is an actual call-up.

The maximum penalties for non-registration are stiff (prison and/or fine), although current government policy is not to prosecute people accused of failing to register for the draft. In fact, no one has been prosecuted since the mid-1980s; and only 20 young men were prosecuted between 1980 and 1985.

..more..

[paineinthearse]

16. for the 1006th time......

Volunteer to serve on your local draft board - http://www4.sss.gov/localboardmembers/bminquiry.asp

also....

http://www.sss.gov/seq.htm

SEQUENCE OF EVENTS

Here is a brief overview of what would occur if the United States returned to a draft:

1. CONGRESS AND THE PRESIDENT AUTHORIZE A DRAFT
A crisis occurs which requires more troops than the volunteer military can supply. Congress passes and the President signs legislation which starts a draft.

2. THE LOTTERY
A lottery based on birthdays determines the order in which registered men are called up by Selective Service. The first to be called, in a sequence determined by the lottery, will be men whose 20th birthday falls during that year, followed, if needed, by those aged 21, 22, 23, 24 and 25. 18-year-olds and those turning 19 would probably not be drafted.

3. ALL PARTS OF SELECTIVE SERVICE ARE ACTIVATED
The Agency activates and orders its State Directors and Reserve Forces Officers to report for duty. See also Agency Structure.

4. PHYSICAL, MENTAL, AND MORAL EVALUATION OF REGISTRANTS
Registrants with low lottery numbers are ordered to report for a physical, mental, and moral evaluation at a Military Entrance Processing Station to determine whether they are fit for military service. Once he is notified of the results of the evaluation, a registrant will be given 10 days to file a claim for exemption, postponement, or deferment. See also Classifications.

5. LOCAL AND APPEAL BOARDS ACTIVATED AND INDUCTION NOTICES SENT
Local and Appeal Boards will process registrant claims. Those who pass the military evaluation will receive induction orders. An inductee will have 10 days to report to a local Military Entrance Processing Station for induction.

6. FIRST DRAFTEES ARE INDUCTED
According to current plans, Selective Service must deliver the first inductees to the military within 193 days from the onset of a crisis.

[Bluebear]

17. see your mail