I never thought I would say this but I think we should reinstate the draft. It has been years since we have wanted or needed a draft, but in view of the United States being attacked on September 11, 2001, I feel our country must be ready and prepared to defend itself. If being prepared means reinstating the draft, a mandatory summons for military service, then I think we should consider this a reasonable proposal. I think the tragic events of September 11 will evoke most people to agree with me. Since September 11 we have seen a surge of patriotism in this country that seemed hidden for many years. I am so glad patriotism was not lost, and I think most Americans would be willing to defend their country in light of this attack. We are a nation and a people who believe in freedom and democracy. It tells other nations who we are and what we stand for. It is these beliefs that lead me to believe that the people of the United States will do anything to preserve our freedom and democracy even if it means reinstating the draft. I want to prove this notion, but am unsure how to accomplish this. I have not read any recent articles in newspapers or magazines that have dealt with this issue. My textbook was not a source either. So I decided to do two things. First, I went to the Internet for any information, articles, discussions, or statements relating to this issue. Second, I decided to conduct an informal poll. This informal poll consisted of male and female respondents with an age span of eighteen to sixty two. My poll started with classmates in my Western Civilization and Studio Art classes and the professors who instruct these classes. My poll included emailing friends and family who live and work in New York, family currently serving in the Armed Forces, and a family member who is a Veteran of the Viet Nam War. Also included in this poll is a random sampling of the townspeople of Los Alamos. Medical personnel at Los Alamos Women’s Health Services, and the lunch crowd at Café’ Allegro rounded out my poll. This cross section of Americans evoked many feelings and opinions and stimulated many conversations and critical thought. These conversations exhilarated me and the results I obtained amazed me. The results made me think twice about ever assuming anyone’s opinion, and ultimately disproved my hypothesis that many people would agree with me about reinstating the draft.

My first search utilizing the Internet was easy and informative. It was also my first surprise. I assumed that our government was probably initiating legislative talks to consider reinstating the draft so my first site for information was the Selective Service System. The Selective Service System issued a statement regarding this issue shortly after the tragedy of September 11. The statement included a question posed to Secretary of Defense Don ald Rumsfeld at a Pentagon news conference about possible reinstatement. “(The draft) … is not something that we’ve addressed and it is not something that is immediately before us. At the moment I do not foresee the need to do that” (Selective, par. 2). The Selective Service System still maintains that “young men are reminded that they are required by existing Federal law to register with Selective Service within 30 days of their 18th birthday” (Selective, par. 4). Despite not having a draft we still require our young men to register. I somehow find this a contradiction. I feel that requiring our young men to register for Selective Service gives our government a tally of who and how many men are available and ultimately who could be called upon for military service.

Further investigation on the Internet proved equally informative. In various news statements especially from the Armed Forces the consensus seemed to be an overwhelming “no” to reinstating the draft. I couldn’t believe it, and I began to wonder why was I assuming almost automatically that the answer would have been an overwhelming yes. As my search continued I came across more articles with the same response. I could not find one article that was in favor of reinstating the draft. In the article “Resisting the Draft: A Survival Guide for Youth Of Color” it describes ways for young men “to document their opposition to war. Not necessarily just this war, but any war. This may help to get a conscientious objector exemption, and not be drafted” (Incite! Par. 3). Regardless of what the government or the military are saying now, activist groups are preparing young men with skills necessary to legally abstain from the draft in the unlikely event that the draft is reinstated.

I am stunned with all the information I have gathered. I could not believe no one was for reinstating the draft. I wondered where all the impassioned pleas for courage and freedom came from. My own passion for this cause seemed almost trivial. My logic for sorting out this issue of reinstating the draft seemed misplaced. I just assumed everyone would rush to join which of course is different than being required to join. I was now ready to implement my second strategy, an informal poll. Surely, the human response would be as impassioned as mine. I still assumed most people would be in favor of reinstating the draft.

Taking this poll was a lot of fun, and very informative, and I was hoping many would agree with me. I started with my History class. Most of my classmates are younger than myself, late teens and early twenties. They are forthright and have very strong opinions. I noticed the girls answered right away with “no” and felt it would be unfair for anyone to be forced to go to war. The guys were hesitant, but said they would “fight” for our country. Our instructor gave a very enthusiastic “yes” for reinstating the draft. The majority however was still “no” to reinstating the draft. I spent several days emailing and calling friends and relatives in New York. I wondered if their answers would be different. I wondered because they live in the state where this tragedy occurred, most have lost someone, and all have been very fearful since the attack. My logic predicted that when we are fearful we usually look for protection. In the September 11 attack our protection would be our military. The majority of people polled feel we are sufficiently protected by our current volunteer military, and the majority voted “no.” Veterans voted no; Art class voted no; Women’s Health voted no; but the lunch crowd voted “yes.” They couldn’t believe how my poll was going, the majority voting “no.”

Here are the results of my informal poll.

Twenty seven people were polled; 6 men and 19 women. Their ages spanned from eighteen to sixty two.

17 voted no, 4 were men, 13 were women --- 8 voted yes, 7 were women, 1 man --- 2 voted maybe, 1 man, 1 woman --- All who said “yes” ranged in age from 35- 50+ ---

The man and woman who were “maybe” are both approximately twenty years old.

I have learned a lot from this assignment. I took a stand on an issue and assumed I was in the majority and that most people would agree with me. I was wrong. We can never assume anyone’s opinion or anyone’s answer to any question. For those people who offered an answer for their significant other I did not include that answer in this poll. I needed to speak to each person, I would not allow anyone to speak for them. I have learned not to assume anything ever again. My heart has not changed its opinion on reinstating the draft, but my head has. I am still for it and feel as passionately in my opinion at the end of this essay just as I did at the beginning. It is truly my opinion, but I know it is an uneducated opinion. I feel passionately for those who are opposed to reinstating the draft. They are equally impassioned by their opinion. They only difference is now I have done some research, listened, and thought about this issue. I believe that the majority, our government, the military, and the majority of people in my informal poll against reinstating the draft are correct. Logic tells me it would be impossible to reinstate the draft. We cannot force our young people to go to war. The military and the government already know this so do the majority of the people polled. My own logic temporarily escaped me, and it was my emotions that dominated my thinking. Many of the people in this poll spoke eloquently and compassionately about military and war. They spoke of Vietnam and realistically we know we can never go back to a time that forced young people to fight wars on foreign soil. It is our volunteer Armed Forces that are compelled and proud to serve and that is why it is working. One thing everyone agreed upon. We thank all our service men and women for their ultimate service and sacrifice for all of us and our country.