"Political systems are run by self-selecting politicians.
We don't draft people; it's not jury duty."
P.J. O'Rourke
The military draft made men wonder why they were fighting for freedom when their individual freedoms were being violated. It put a hold on plans and lives while giving young men the possibility of having their lives taken.
David Miller publicly burned his draft card. Barry Bassin explains his opposition to the draft.
Reporter: "Barry, why do you object to the draft?" Barry Bassin: "Because it is an attempt by the state to make slaves of the citizens. I think if the United States wants an army, it should be a voluntary army. If the people of the United States are willing to defend the country militarily, they should do it voluntary. Personally, I am not willing to defend this or any other country through military means." Reporter: "Do you think this country is in danger?" Barry Bassin: "I think it's in danger, yes of the government but no other cause." Reporter: "Have you refused to serve in the army?" Barry Bassin: "Yes I have." |
Though Mick Jagger was not affected by the American draft, he was in support of the draft resistance movement. "By 1969, the city [Boston] had become so clearly identified with draft resistance that when the Rolling Stones performed at the Boston Garden, Mick Jagger strutted out onto the stage in a tight long-sleeve T-shirt emblazoned with a hand-painted omega symbols, the mark of the Resistance, on his chest." Michael S. Foley, Confronting the War Machine: Draft Resistance During the Vietnam War |
"Regardless, the all-volunteer military works, and few in uniform would relish unwilling draftees in their ranks. And conscripts would not, in any event, solve the multiple deployment issue."
Charles J. Dunlap Jr., New York Times |
"In contrast, a draft that forces young people into service at salaries insufficient to attract them voluntarily concentrates the cost of military involvement unfairly on those young people who are drafted."
Donald J. Boudreaux, New York Times |
Bailey Adolph
Senior Division Webpage
Senior Division Webpage