A Volunteer Army
by KevinJanuary 1st, 2007
Why should soldiers be forced to extend their tours or to serve more than one tour in a conflict they do not believe in? There have been a lot of stories lately about soldiers being sent back for two or three tours or being recalled after they had thought they had left the service. The stories are full of heart break, privation, anger, and frustration. Those kinds of stories should not happen in a democracy. Soldiers should have the right to refuse to participate in any conflict that they wish. These people are making the ultimate sacrifice: they are putting their lives on the line for the country. They should have the right to decide when an where that sacrifice is justified. Asking a man to be the last one to die for a mistake is bad enough; forcing that man t be the last one to die for a mistake is unconscionable.
Some will complain that such a rule would make military operations more difficult. Those people are correct: certain kinds of military operations would become more difficult. But I consider that a feature, not a bug. Presidents would have to convince soldiers that the action was justified and then continue to earn the soldiers trust throughout the operation. Military adventures like Iraq or Vietnam would become harder to start and harder to sustain, and that can only be to the good. And since I doubt that anyone would argue that the military would refuse to fight when the country was well and truly threatened, I fail to see the problem. If the 101st keyboarders want their Pax Americana through the barrel of the gun, they can either convince the military they are right or join up themselves. But they would no longer be able to use soldiers as if they were pieces in a game of Risk.
Death is a terrible thing. To steal a line, it takes away everything you ever had and everything you ever could have had. No one should be forced to risk that in a fight they don’t believe in.
What part of “volunteer army” do you not understand. What kind of person joins the military thinking that he can’t be called on to fight in a war?
There are good points in your article. I would like to supplement them with some information:
I am a 2 tour Vietnam Veteran who recently retired after 36 years of working in the Defense Industrial Complex on many of the weapons systems being used by our forces as we speak.
If you are interested in a view of the inside of the Pentagon procurement process from Vietnam to Iraq please check the posting at my blog entitled, “Odyssey of Armaments”
http://rosecoveredglasses.blogspot.com/2006/11/odyssey-of-armaments.html
The Pentagon is a giant, incredibly complex establishment, budgeted in excess of $500B per year. The Rumsfelds, the Administrations and the Congressmen come and go but the real machinery of policy and procurement keeps grinding away, presenting the politicos who arrive with detail and alternatives slanted to perpetuate itself.
How can any newcomer, be he a President, a Congressman or even the new Sec. Def.Mr. Gates, understand such complexity, particularly if heretofore he has not had the clearance to get the full details?
Answer- he can’t. Therefore he accepts the alternatives provided by the career establishment that never goes away and he hopes he makes the right choices. Or he is influenced by a lobbyist or two representing companies in his district or special interest groups.
From a practical standpoint, policy and war decisions are made far below the levels of the talking heads who take the heat or the credit for the results.
This situation is unfortunate but it is absolute fact. Take it from one who has been to war and worked in the establishment.
This giant policy making and war machine will eventually come apart and have to be put back together to operate smaller, leaner and on less fuel. But that won’t happen until it hits a brick wall at high speed.
We will then have to run a Volkswagen instead of a Caddy and get along somehow. We better start practicing now and get off our high horse. Our golden aura in the world is beginning to dull from arrogance.