> Now that I'm way past draft age, I see the virtue of a draft. We
> would not be in Iraq with a draft army. The imperialists realized
> that you need a professional army to be a proper imperialist power.
>
> And in a non-imperial power, with a genuine self-defense force,
> universal service seems hard to argue with.
You're right probably that we wouldn't be in Iraq with a draft army. I'm not sure how many other imperial adventures would have been avoided with a draft though -- probably Yugoslavia too.
My worry is that a draft would spread and strengthen martial values, which is something the U.S. definitely doesn't need. Don't a lot of conservatives blame "Vietnam Syndrome" on the fact that too few Americans have served in the military?
-WD