Senate Votes on Making Women Register for the Draft

Good.

Love it.

This is for all those draft dodging dudes who will "suddenly discover womanhood" in the event a draft is ever needed again. There's no escape now, boys. Uncle Sam will have you regardless of how you "identify."

^Don't be stupid.

Good. If everything is about equality, they have to take the shitty stuff too.

In modern war a rifleman almost never fights in hand to hand combat, they just shoot. Fire and movement. So lack of upper body strength is not an impediment. They can go to war.

If women are equal to men, why shouldn’t they have to defend their country? But all over social media I read women going insane about this. We don’t want that much equality, they’re saying.

Which really does suggest modern feminism isn’t *really* about equality—it’s just rebranded ‘battle of the sexes’ horseshit.

OT but anyone who owns assault rifles should be sent to the battlefront. Anyone who votes for war must go too. Yes you too missy lindsey.

Isn’t it true in Israel women required to complete military duty? They don’t seem to complain.

I bet none of their rich asshole kids will, though.

This is symbolic interaction, no way USA go to a war big enough for a draft to rain down om these bitches.

Yes, women in Israel serve in the military, but not in combat.

[quote] I bet none of their rich asshole kids will, though.

Then make them!

How many of you posters have served?

Equal opportunity imperialism! Yay! /s

r13 I have.

This vote is all well and good, but it's merely window dressing. They can make you sign up, sure, but that'll be the extent of it. The American public will NEVER, underline NEVER, agree to a wartime draft ever again. Most people are fine with the military now being volunteer, they see it as a paid job, albeit a potentially dangerous one. So calm down, kiddies, no one's going to be dragging off Poppy or Madesyn to basic training. Or Ken or Vito or Tyrone for that matter.

I had to show my registration with the Selective Service to go public college. It was stupid.

Yes, I believe that if you didn’t sign up, you wouldn’t get federal subsidized loans.

My question is, why?

"I Had to Register for the Draft and Being Forcibly Conscripted Into the Patriarchal Military Industrial Complex is Literal Violence."

"I IDENTIFY AS NON-BINARY THEREFORE I DON'T THINK I CAN BE DRAFTED EITHER AS A MAN OR AS A WOMAN AND I AM WRITING MY SENATOR TO EXPRESS MY CONCERN ABOUT THIS LITERAL VIOLENCE TO MY TRUTH."

Speaking as someone who was almost drafted in the last lottery pull, I waited until I was actually ready to go into the military and retired from the Army. Frankly, I believe mandatory military service of two years should be mandatory after graduation for everyone. Just like many other civilized nations. For many people who did not grow up with any kind of positive life skills or failed to develop social filters of any kind, military service is a wake-up call to those sorts of attitudes.

Yes, I am gay and I lied to join the Army in 1981. That's what we did in those days, else they would not take me. My only brother was killed in Viet Nam, which gave me sole-surviving son status. Theoretically, they could not put me on the front line. Glad that wasn't tested.

I had a wonderful career in the Army as a military diplomat in embassy duty and retired from it. I was always very discreet and, in my eyes, never flaming. However, 'don't ask, don't tell' has always worked unofficially, as long as you are brilliant at your job.

Nothing the matter with preparing for a draft, but in my opinion, unless the US suffers an attack anywhere on the 50 US states, no one should be drafted. If a war is so unpopular that you can't get people to volunteer then the US has no business fighting that war. Vietnam for example, I was draft age then, didn't get drafted fortunately but that war was not to protect the US in any way, it was all lies and misinformation.

Good. Equal rights, equal fights. I’m a woman, and think women should serve our country as well.

But, seeing as many men and women of enlistment age are too damn fat, I don’t see many qualifying for combat service.

[quote] Nothing the matter with preparing for a draft, but in my opinion, unless the US suffers an attack anywhere on the 50 US states, no one should be drafted.

R22 My point is that if everyone joins the military for two years of mandatory service after college, there is an influx of "excellent" job and job training that is not available to many people. Not only can this training set someone up for life, but for those two years of service many positive changes can be made in this country. Lots of infrastructure can be repaired, new technology... etc. Pretty much exactly what happened 100 years ago. Perhaps, if we do we can postpone the ultimate depression that is coming in a few years.

I think all of the children of journalists and media pundits should be forced to sign up for the draft. Perhaps then, we will have fewer op eds at places like washington post, the Atlantic and new republic insisting that it is OUR HUMINATARIAN MORAL DUTY to get involved in another global conflict every 2 weeks. With the exception of Bosnia our involvement in the last 30 years or so always seems to worsen the plight of these countries citizens. Even when we do not send large amounts of troops, the so called media and government experts nearly always choose the wrong people to back. Like clockwork.

This is unnecessary and doesn't address/solve any problems. What would be better is if they got rid of it for males. If a war breaks out and we absolutely need more Americans to join the fight, any child (15-60 y/o) of a politician should be the first mandated to go, then the children of the top 0.01%. And don't give me that 'They didn't choose to be born to those politicians/billionaires' crap; none of the males that had to register for the draft chose to be born American or male.

R21 that sounds like a dream job. I’m happy that you got to experience it.

There was a proposal that all people under 30 should be required to complete 1-2 years of national service. I like that idea because they'll get the job training and travel opportunities, but they won't necessarily have to work with the military. They can teach, do forestry, build affordable housing, etc. That sort of thing is more needed than additional soldiers.

Haha gen z women

Do we really need the draft? It hasn’t been used in 50 years, and seems like a huge unnecessary bureaucracy and waste of taxpayer money to basically “register” every person who turns 18. Don’t they already have birth certificates?

I wish I had served in the military for at least a year after high school. It would’ve taught me discipline which to this day I still need.

[quote] How many of you posters have served?

Wrong question.

“How many of you are obligated to serve” — right question.

[quote] Do we really need the draft?

Fat and happy, sitting at the apex of the Pax Americana. No concept of what the future could hold in store.

R11, Why is Israel so sexist and regressive to not allow females to serve in combat?

[quote] The American public will NEVER, underline NEVER, agree to a wartime draft ever again.

Not sure how anyone can be say this unequivocally.

As posted above, other countries have mandatory service.

I think it's good to require women to register. IMO, it will lead to more pay equality, in general.

The military requires all kinds of skills and service, e.g., medical staff.

Good. I demand a gender turnabout remake of An Officer and a Gentleman.

But they still won't do anything about the high instances of rape and sex abuse towards women? What about menstration needs?

Aren't half the kids medically unfit these days anyway?

I hate the argument about "equality" because it's not about that either way. This was pushed by angry young men that haven't served and never bring up the problems of women serving, even when they want to. I don't think it was ever about valuing women's lives more either -- you have two problems -- 1: sending an entire generation of young people to war, could present trouble at home (working shortages, a loss of life too high in one generation, when there's already too low of births now) 2: women having a uterus. Women can replace population losses, unlike men. Only sexist people think the draft was unfair because women were more treasured.

Well, as in the book 1984, there will become a time when the distinction between civil/community service and military service will be blurred into one organization called 'government service'.

I think it's only fair. I wouldn't send them to the front line (unless they want to serve there). Those who don't want to serve on the front lines could take on desk jobs or they can work in the military's retail, food service, cleaning, or medical operations.

But for married couples, I would require that only ONE partner be drafted. If a couple is married, and one partner has been drafted, then the other would be exempt. That spouse could take care of the home and any children.

^^^ We're only talking about two years between high school and college as being mandatory. Hopefully, not too many kids are married with kids. However, there are always exceptions.

Actually, there are women in combat positions in the IDF, but the number is very low:

In 2014, the IDF said that fewer than 4 percent of women are in combat positions such as infantry, tank crews, artillery guns service, fighter pilots, etc. Rather, they are concentrated in "combat-support".[10]