December8, 2006: Proposals to bring back the draft are generally ignorant of how it actually worked back then. For example, during the Vietnam Era (1960 through 1975, which was two years after draft calls ended) some 26.8 million men were legally liable for compulsory military service. But very few were actually drafted. During that period, some 8.7 million voluntarily joined the military, and 2.2 million (less then ten percent of those of draft age) were drafted. Some 15.4 million were either disqualified or deferred. Approximately 500,000 men were technically draft dodgers, but of these only about 210,000 were charged, and only 8,700 actually convicted.

This makes it clear what the biggest problem with the draft is: who should go? The military needs even fewer troops today (the military is less than a third of its 1960s size), but has more people eligible. You still have plenty of volunteers, in fact the military has been able to maintain its strength with volunteers despite there being a war on. Do you choose who should go according to a lottery? Or some other system? In fact, there is no way to select who shall be drafted that does not end up enraging a large section of the population. And that's why, whenever some politician (usually Representative Charles Rangel of New York) brings up the idea, it is promptly shot down by legislators and voters alike. The Pentagon doesn't want conscription either, as volunteers make much better soldiers. Bringing back the draft simply doesn't add up, except as a a cheap way to grab some media attention on a slow news day.