you peaceniks are a real hoot. all i hear is a bunch of excuses and sniveling. what is funny is you enlightened ones hide behind guys like me when it hits the fan because your ideas dont cut it when it comes right down to it; and you aint got the guts to do what needs to be done. but dont worry, there are plenty of americans out there that still have their guts and will pick up your slack. but what really irks me is that you sad sack service dodging peacenik know it alls are still able to vote. that is the one thing the founding fathers did wrong. if you havent served, you shouldnt be able to vote. how much crap would that solve?
i would bet about all of it. flamers flame away.....
OK, let me see if I understand your logic. No military service=No Vote. Now, that is an absurd statement. Let me explain why.
First off, my brother has severe asthma, and as a result can't serve in the armed forces. Does this mean he is less qualified to vote than someone who served? Does he love his country less? What you are effectively doing is discriminating based on physical disabilities.
Secondly, one of my grandfathers served in the army during WWII. The other was an "essential" worker and as a result was not in the military. Now, I realize that being in the Pacific was a ton more dangerous than welding on ships, but someone had to do both jobs. Would you deny my grandfather the right to vote because he was a skilled welder and machinist rather than a soldier? He did his part, just not in the same way that my other grandfather did. He may (
) also have had medical conditions that contributed to his staying in the States.
Third, lets say we do get this war that some of you seem to want. Well, I'm sure that we can agree that more fighting would require more resources, as well as increased industrial production. This requires man power here at home too. I am working towards a degree in a field that is facing a serious shortage of qualified people because baby boomers are retiring and few schools even offer the degree that I am in anymore. I am also in ROTC, although I have not yet contracted (there is no obligation during the first 2 years of ROTC). If it turns out that we enter an all out war with rationing and such, my guess is that I would be more valuable at home than in the sand box.
And fourth, let's say that the government becomes unbearably oppressive, although I hope we never see that day. In order to vote against the oppressive policies and law makers (yes, I am assuming that we would still have the right to vote) you would have to serve the oppressive gov't. Also, giving the gov't that much control of your life would have the potential to skew your views. An oppressive gov't would think nothing of brainwashing soldiers or at least attempting to do so.
Finally, I'm not so sure that I want to sign a contract with ROTC. Quite frankly, recent events have made me believe that politicians are using the military as a political tool. No, I'm not saying that the military is nothing but a political tool, don't get me wrong, we need a strong defense. Also, I don't think that the military is being used primarily as a political tool. But, when politicians put our troops in harms way for political reasons, something is seriously wrong.
Flame away. I may just be a dumb kid (who is probably dodging service according to some of you), but just remember you older guys don't have a corner on knowledge or common sense. This will probably be my one and only post on this matter. I will clarify if necessary, but I tried to make this as clear as possible to avoid additional posts.
