Military Draft No longer Necessary

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Military Draft No Longer Necessary Over forty years has passed since the United States inducted the last draftee through the Selective Service System. The Selective Service System is an independent agency of the United States, which gives the President the right or power to conscript men for military service. There have been different Acts passed by congress since 1917 that require men of various ages to register for service. Although, the name of each Act and the age requirements of the registries changed, the Acts were all similar in nature. They all gave the President the right to call men to war when he deemed necessary. In January 1973, Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird announced the creation of the all-volunteer service, retracting the need for the draft (GAO.gov). Under current law, all men between the ages of 18-25 must register within 30 days of their 18th birthday, however this information is used mostly for recruitment purposes and in case of any future crisis. There has been much controversy over this matter since the Vietnam War, when people started to realize the draft was unfair due to loopholes and draft exemptions making the draft unfair for working men. At one point in time the military draft may have been necessary, but today’s all-volunteer military has eliminated the need for a draft. Simply put, the United States has no need for a draft. As of December 31, 2013 the United States has the second largest military in the world according to the Department of Defense. The largest military in the world is China’s People’s Liberation Army which is also all voluntary. The People’s Liberation Army consists of approximately 2,300,000 members. As of the end of 2013, the United States military consisted of approximately ... ... middle of paper ... ...012. 558-563. Print. Induction Statistics. 2007 Selective Service System. sss.gov. n. pag. 1 April 2014. Laird, Melvin. “We Don’t Need a Military Draft.” My Opinions. washingtonpost.com. February 21, 2013. n. pag. Web. 2 April 2014. Paul, Ron M.D. “The Military Draft and Slavery.” Weekend Edition. March 23-25, 2002. counterpunch.org. n. pag. Web. 5 April 2014. Rhem, Kathleen. “Rumsfield: No Need for Draft; Disadvantages Notable.” U.S. Department of Defense. Defense.gov. Jan 7, 2003. n. pag. Web. 29 March 2014. “Military Draft: Potential Impacts and Other Issues.” U.S. Government Accountability Office. GAO.gov. March 10, 1988. n. pag. Web. 1 April 2014. USLegal.com n. pag. Web. 2 April 2014. “40th Anniversary of the All-Volunteer Force (ARMY).” Stand-To: The Official Focus of the U.S. Army. Stand-To! Edition. July 1, 2013. army.mil. n. pag. Web. 1 April 2014.

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