Hackworth thinks there will be a draft

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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Hackworth thinks there will be a draft

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:31:21 AM EDT

Hack's Target

Uncle Sam Will Soon Want Your Kids

By David H. Hackworth

Recently, when John Kerry brought up the possibility of a return to the draft, SecDef Donald Rumsfeld was quick to respond that Kerry was full of it.

But my take is that Kerry is right on the mark. Not only because Rummy has been flat wrong on every major military call regarding Iraq, but because this is a war that won’t be won by smart weapons or the sledgehammer firepower we see every night on the tube.

Right now – with both our regular and Reserve soldiers stretched beyond the breaking point – our all-volunteer force is tapping out. If our overseas troop commitments continue at the present rate or climb higher, there won’t be enough Army and Marine grunts to do the job. And thin, overworked units, from Special Forces teams to infantry battalions, lose fights.

Clearly, this war against worldwide, hardcore Islamic believers will be a massive military marathon, the longest and most far-flung in our country’s history. By Christmas, more troops could be needed not only in Iraq and Afghanistan, but wherever the radical Islamic movement is growing stronger, from the Horn of Africa to Morocco, Kenya, Somalia, Yemen and across Europe – remember Spain?! – to Asia.

Accordingly, we need to bring our ground-fighting and support units to about the strength they were before the Soviet Union imploded, especially since the proper ratio of counterinsurgent-to-insurgent in places like the Middle East should be around 15 to 1. You don’t have to be a Ph.D. in military personnel to conclude we need more boots on the ground.

Most of our warriors – who are mainly from blue-collar families from Small Town, USA – have few political connections and few conduits though which they can effectively sound off. So when they get screwed over by a desperate Pentagon’s makeshift policies – such as the “Stop Loss” program that’s holding over large numbers of our servicemen and -women well beyond their contractually agreed-upon terms of enlistment, or the widespread calling up of out-of-shape, ill-trained citizen soldiers from the Individual Ready Reserve – these “volunteers” salute, suck it up and lay their lives on the line.

But like elephants, they won’t forget that they are “backdoor draftees,” as Kerry and John McCain call them. Which means that when their hitches are up, they won’t be rushing to re-enlist. And they’re also warning their younger brothers, sisters and pals to stay away from recruiting stations.

Although Pentagon puff artists insist they’re making quota, recruiters are already saying it would be easier to find $100 bills on the sidewalk outside a homeless shelter than fill their enlistment quotas, even with the huge bonuses now being paid.

So the draft – which will include both boys and girls this time around – is a no-brainer in ‘05 and ‘06.

Oh sure, the Pentagon suits will fight it. Volunteers tend to go with the flow and seldom blow the whistle on military stupidity, flawed tactics and self-serving leadership. And draftees don’t hesitate to make waves and tell the truth. Not to mention influential citizens with draft-age kids who’ll soon be demanding an answer to the same type of hard question their moms and dads shouted during the Vietnam War: “Hey, hey, LBJ, how many kids did you kill today?”

Rumsfeld, in fact, has already kicked off the anti-draft campaign by denigrating the draftees who fought in Vietnam. The SecDef, who prefers sycophants who don’t ask questions, recently stated that Vietnam-era draftees added “No value, no advantage, really, to the United States armed services ... because ... it took an enormous amount of effort in terms of training, and then they were gone.”

Wrong once again. I led draftees for almost four years in Vietnam and for several years during the Korean War. If well-led, there are no finer soldiers. Ask the Nazis, the Japanese and the Reds in Korea and in Vietnam, where “no value” draftees cleaned their clocks in fight after fight.

Israel, a country that has lived under the barrel of the Islamic terrorist gun for decades, has the most combat-experienced counterinsurgent force in the world – and boy and girl draftees are its major resource.

Count on it. We will follow their lead.

--Eilhys England contributed to this column.

Col. David H. Hackworth (USA Ret.) is SFTT.org co-founder and Senior Military Columnist for DefenseWatch magazine. For information on his many books, go to his home page at Hackworth.com, where you can sign in for his free weekly Defending America. Send mail to P.O. Box 11179, Greenwich, CT 06831. His newest book is “Steel My Soldiers’ Hearts.” © 2004 David H. Hackworth. Please send Feedback responses to [email protected].

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:34:44 AM EDT

[#1]

I heard something on the news yesterday about a draft bill that was voted on in Congress yesterday. The bill was overwhelmingly voted down.

Anyone know anything about this? Who introduced it?

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:36:45 AM EDT

[#2]

It was a Democrat that introduced it - Charlie Rangle

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:37:37 AM EDT

[#3]

Nonsense.
If we need more troops, all that Congress needs to do is FUND more troops.
The armed forces will then recruit more.

A draft would be too costly.
Without lowering standards, it would also be difficult.
Right now, the military requires recruits to have a HS diploma, or the equivalency.
Draft Dodgers would simply "drop out" of High School. This would cause the military to have to lower its standards. That would be costly.
It's easier to just increase the budget for the military, and give a boost to recruiting.

Anyone who suggests that there would be a draft is lying.

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:37:42 AM EDT

[#4]

I'm really starting to wonder if Hack has suffered a small stroke with resulting brain damage.

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:38:54 AM EDT

[#5]

Dupe topic, but the same thing I said in that one I'll say here: Hack is the Ultimate Attention Whore, nothing more.

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:39:52 AM EDT

[#6]

What is the draft cut off age? I can't remeber. I mean obvously if it gets bad enough, there is no age, but what is the age order of the draft? I thought it was something like 20,18,19,21,22,23,24

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:42:40 AM EDT

[#7]

There is no draft. Therefore there is no draft order. Get it?

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:43:54 AM EDT

[#8]

Quoted:
Hack is the Ultimate Attention Whore, nothing more.

+1 to that. I think that he used to have his shit together, but now he's just out of touch, and
grasping at straws. Anything for "Hey, Pay Attention To Me!"

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:44:45 AM EDT

[#9]

GOP votes to quash draft rumor.

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:45:12 AM EDT

[#10]

Quoted:
There is no draft. Therefore there is no draft order. Get it?

Um. I thought that the draft was always roughly scetched out ready for final touches and implementation. Am I correct, or is there absolutly no plan on how to do a draft until they decide we need it, and then, a plan will be made?

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:49:33 AM EDT

[#11]

the final vote was 402-2 against the draft.

We will now return you to your regular scheduled program

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:50:13 AM EDT

[#12]

Is Hackworth still sulking because Westmorland would not let him win the Vietnam War single handed?…

…well, he reckoned he could have…

ANdy

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:54:30 AM EDT

[#13]

Hackworth can suck my ass.

The congressional Republicans brought up the bill the RANGLE authored for a vote. For the fact that it can be said that "look we voted on it and beat it down resoundingly".

Second, the military is NOT tapped out. Someone PLEASE find the info on recruiting and how all goals are being met. That "over-extended" bullshit is a PERFECT example of "tell a lie long enough and it will become the truth" Yes we do have a lot of troops deployed, but we are going to realign them as needs have changed, such as the thousands of troops in Germany.

And What in all that is holy is this fucking bullshit: "Accordingly, we need to bring our ground-fighting and support units to about the strength they were before the Soviet Union imploded, especially since the proper ratio of counterinsurgent-to-insurgent in places like the Middle East should be around 15 to 1. You don’t have to be a Ph.D. in military personnel to conclude we need more boots on the ground."

This cock-holster wants 15 US troopers to each insurgent? ummm, I thought we were better armed and much more able to kill insurgents at the opposite ratio times 10? This man is an IDIOT!

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:55:32 AM EDT

[#14]

Someone please post that pic of the attention whore on the beach.

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:56:12 AM EDT

[#15]

Quoted:
Quoted:
There is no draft. Therefore there is no draft order. Get it?

Um. I thought that the draft was always roughly scetched out ready for final touches and implementation. Am I correct, or is there absolutly no plan on how to do a draft until they decide we need it, and then, a plan will be made?

Needs to be voted on and and approved by the House and the Senate.

Of course there is a "plan".
Hell, there are "plans" to invade Canada.
It would be negligent to NOT have a plan.

But a bill that is making its way through congress and onto the Presidents desk?
Nope.
Can it be ordered with an executive order?
Nope.

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:56:57 AM EDT

[#16]

That motherfucker has been wrong about everything he's ever written.

"Hack" worth is aptly named.

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:57:48 AM EDT

[#17]

Quoted:
Someone please post that pic of the attention whore on the beach.

Damn. Does this make it BOTD, now?

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:59:04 AM EDT

[#18]

Quoted:
Quoted:
Someone please post that pic of the attention whore on the beach.
www.fatwillie.net/cpg/albums/userpics/10006/attention_whore3.jpg

Damn. Does this make it BOTD, now?

not BOTD but RED X rated

Posted: 10/6/2004 5:59:07 AM EDT

[#19]

LOL. Thanks, Brother Z.

Posted: 10/6/2004 6:00:38 AM EDT

[#20]

Quoted:
Someone please post that pic of the attention whore on the beach.

Posted: 10/6/2004 6:03:39 AM EDT

[#21]

That motherfucker has been wrong about everything he's ever written.

True, but his quotes support the agenda that the Leftist media is pushing. Thus, they always turn to Hack for a sound bite.

Frustrating & sad...

Posted: 10/6/2004 6:05:36 AM EDT

[#22]

Quoted:
LOL. Thanks, Brother Z.

My pleasure.

Don't know why the &^%&^%&^% link broke. It was working before!

Posted: 10/6/2004 6:07:09 AM EDT

[#23]

Rangle is not stupid. He knows that this thing would never fly, especially in an election year. Unfortunately, the Dems have been working overtime to link a possible draft to the GOP. Joe and Jane Public are conditioned to think Draft = War = Bush.

That the news report DIDN'T say who introduced the bill, led me to believe that it was a Democrat. Face it, if a Republican had introduced it, the headlines would have screamed "Bush/GOP Introduce Draft Bill".

Nice piece of disinformation. Really quite elegant, but it would not have worked without the collusion of the press.

Posted: 10/6/2004 6:10:37 AM EDT

[#24]

Quoted:
Dupe topic, but the same thing I said in that one I'll say here: Hack is the Ultimate Attention Whore, nothing more.

+1

Hackworth has been so wrong about so many things that I don't really give a shit what he has to say, except for my own amusement...

Posted: 10/6/2004 6:14:52 AM EDT

[#25]

Plain and simple, Hackworth is puke

Posted: 10/6/2004 6:45:15 AM EDT

[#26]

Hack is just that - an angry hack. He is upset thathe never made it past O5 and takes it out on the military establishment.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Hackworth thinks there will be a draft

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