If there won't be a draft, what's the 28 million for ?

[Sensei_Rebel]

Someone explain that correctly and believably, and I'll rest easier. But all this "I'm 100% sure there won't be a draft" doesn't sit well with me. Draft fear never stopped Vietnam.

Remember that Bush lives in the 1800s ? It's not so far-fetched with this guy.

[trof]

1. You're not supposed to look over there.

You're supposed to look over HERE.
There's nothing IN that hand.:thumbsdown:
Look at THIS hand.:thumbsup:
jeez

Welcome to DU.
:hi:

[achtung_circus]

2. Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain. nt

[Sensei_Rebel]

3. Look, you democrats

Stop speaking cryptically. I'm not downloaded with all information in the universe. What are you talking about ???

[trof]

4. OK

The neocons would rather you not pay attention to the fact that they're funding preparations for a draft.
They'd much prefer that you direct your attention elsewhere.
Maybe they can stretch out the Reagan funeral for another week.

[Sensei_Rebel]

5. ok then...

[Sensei_Rebel]

7. I don't get why in Independence Day...

... they didn't send more men around the White House. Where was the draft then ?

[leftchick]

10. here you go....

read it and weep if the aWol* idiot is re-selected...

http://www.bushdraft.com/index.html

[Sensei_Rebel]

12. It's just another web conspiracy nut

Not much trust with these dudes, I always say.

[leftchick]

14. I know, those crazy internet conspiracy nuts...

A bunch were going on and on about some PNAC group wanting to take over the middle east with Israel well over a year ago. Oh, wait a minute... they were DEAD RIGHT!

:eyes:

[Sensei_Rebel]

15. yeah u got me

Nice of you to pick one of the times they're right without looking at majority of the nuts who are wrong.

Have you read all webpages on the Web to know for sure ? Congrats

[leftchick]

6. CBS news aired the "D" Word last night....

on their nightly news segment. It was about how stretched thin our troops are, how we are now sending our training troops overseas. The reporter ended the piece by saying more and more people are whispering a Draft is the only way to keep up with the current pace of deployments. Yes, if shrub* is re-selected it is a done deal....

[Sensei_Rebel]

9. So what are you guys waiting for ???

Get out there and tell everyone you know about the draft !!!!! We'll never kick him out if we don't spread the word, like a VIRUS.

[Dems Will Win]

8. The Bombshell Document -- benn studying it fo 8 months. Ask me anything!

They are gearing up the whole DRAFT machinery, so it looks like the first draft according to "THE BOMBSHELL DOCUMENT" (http://www.sss.gov/perfplan_fy2004.html) would be June 15, 2005.

"No plans" to re-instate the draft? No, there are just EXERCISES and $28 million extra to get the whole Selective Service ready and open for business by June 15, 2005!

Read this official budget carefully, and you will see that Bush is gearing up the draft--there is no longer any doubt about it. Selective Service must report to Bush on March 31, 2005, that the system is ready for activation within 75 days. So on June 15, 2005, expect the announcement that the first draft lottery since Vietnam will be held for 20 year-olds.

To put this all into context, the SSS has lain basically dormant for decades and now in the 2004 budget, Bush has added $28 million to SSS to get the whole thing ready to fly in 2005. The 4 performance goals below basically make the system ready for activation within 75 days.

This is way bigger than the Web ad to recruit draft board members. That was just the tip of the following iceberg:

http://www.sss.gov/perfplan_fy2004.html

INCLUDES THIS:

This FY 2004 APP identifies the activities and strategies that will take place during the
fiscal year to achieve Agency goals and objectives. It also identifies relevant performance
measurement target goals to be achieved. The performance goals for FY 2004 are:

1. Develop an Area Office Prototype Exercise that will test the Health
Care Personnel Delivery System (HCPDS) work flows and support
programs.

2. Redefine Agency infrastructure based on a Quinquennial Workload
Study.

3. Prepare and conduct an Area Office Prototype Exercise which tests
the activation process from SSS Lottery input to the issuance of the
first Armed Forces Examination Orders.

4. Ensure 90% of people tested are capable of implementing activation
procedures.

5. Ensure that 95% of the predefined readiness objectives are attained
and validated during an Area Office Prototype Exercise.

6. Train 90% of assigned State Directors (SDs) and Reserve Force
Officers (RFOs) on HCPDS and Timed-Phased Response (TPR)
functions and responsibilities.

7. Attain a 92% or greater compliance rate for men 18 through 25 years
old.

8. Attain and appoint Registrars in 85% of the Nation’s high schools.

9. Obtain 75% of all registrations electronically.

10. Maintain an average systems change request implementation time of
39 days.

11. Maintain a functional proponent and customer satisfaction level of
87%.

12. Have a telephone call completion rate of 93% or higher.

13. Answer correspondence in less than 10 days.

14. Train 90% of assigned SDs and RFOs on Alternative Service plans
and procedures.

ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REPORT

An annual report providing the results of the implementation of these performance
measures will be submitted by March 31, 2005. This report will address attained versus
planned levels of performance, explain unattained target levels, and identify where and
how strategies, performance goals, and performance indicators should be changed to
ensure that the SSS reaches its strategic and annual goals and objectives.

AND THIS!

Strategic Objective 1.2: Ensure a mobilization infrastructure of 56 State Headquarters,
442 Area Offices and 1,980 Local Boards are operational within 75 days of an authorized
return to conscription.

Most ominously, the Alternative Service is geared up for the first time in 31 years as well as the Medical Draft (HCPDS)

BUSH '04 = DRAFT '05
KERRY '04 = PNAC OUT THE DOOR!

[Sensei_Rebel]

11. Do you think I could get drafted...

... with a mental condition ?

WTF are you guys on ? How are they gonna get us to go with 90 percent not wanting to be drafted ? We'll all turn our guns on each other to end the war.

[Dems Will Win]

13. They'll pick you off one-by-one with FBI arrests if you openly resist

Just like Vietnam

[bearfan454]

25. They sure will.

I remember that.

[Dems Will Win]

19. Document the shit out of the condition NOW

Then bring the docs to your physical...

[Dems Will Win]

16. If we all sing this loud enough, it will stop the war!

THE IRAQNAM RAG

Give me an O
Give me an I
Give me an L
What's that spell?
What's that spell?
What's that spell?

OIL! OIL! OIIIIIILLL!!!

Well, come on all you real young men
That son of a Bush needs your help again.
He's got himself in a terrorist jam
Way over yonder in Iraqnam
So put down your books and pick up a gun,
We're gonna have a whole lotta fun!

And it's one, two, three --
It’s OIL we’re fighting for!
That’s why we hadda get Saddam,
Next stop is Iraqnam;
And it's five, six, seven,
Open up the pearly gates,
Well the media don’t wonder why,
Whoopee! we're all gonna die.

If you don’t know, here’s the PNAC Plan:
Lose Osama in Afghanistan,
Then take over in Iraqnam
You we need the gas for our mini-vans.
Uzbekistan, Tajikistan,
There you got the PNAC Plan!

And it's one, two, three --
It’s OIL we’re fighting for!
That’s why we hadda get Saddam,
Next stop is Iraqnam;
And it's five, six, seven,
Open up the pearly gates,
Well the media don’t wonder why,
Whoopee! we're all gonna die.

Well, come on PNAC, let's move fast;
Your big chance has come at last.
Our need for oil's just increased,
I hear they got some in the Middle East.
We’re gonna make sure, it’s for certain
The world’s safe for Halliburton!

And it's one, two, three --
It’s OIL we’re fighting for!
That’s why we hadda get Saddam,
Next stop is Iraqnam;
And it's five, six, seven,
Open up the pearly gates,
Well the media don’t wonder why,
Whoopee! we're all gonna die.

Well come on soccer moms throughout the land,
Pack your kids off to Iraqnam!
Come on fathers, don't hesitate,
Send your kids off before it's too late.
Be the first one on your block
To have your kid come home in a box.

And it's one, two, three --
It’s OIL we’re fighting for!
That’s why we hadda get Saddam,
Next stop is Iraqnam;
And it's five, six, seven,
Open up the pearly gates,
Well the media don’t wonder why,
Whoopee! we're all gonna die.

Come on now people! There’s something like 35,653 of you out there and if you really want to end this war you’re going to have sing louder than that! Are you ready?

And it's one, two, three,
It’s OIL we’re fighting for!
That’s why we hadda get Saddam,
Next stop is Iraqnam;
And it's five, six, seven,
Open up the pearly gates,
Well the media don’t wonder why,
Whoopee! we're all gonna die!!

[Dems Will Win]

17. Impending Draft timeline

Greetings!

The following timeline gives you the main events indicating the resumption of the military draft. According to this, the draft will be needed to maintain troop levels in Iraq past March 2005, barring double deployments. $28 million is allocated by the Selective Service to reduce activation time from the current 8 months to 75 days by March 31, 2005. If Bush asks Congress on April 1, 2005 to reinstate conscription, the first Draft Lottery could be June 15, 2005. A Medical Draft and a new Special Skills Draft would also be activated automatically.

Impending Draft Timeline

1994 – The Grand Chessboard by Zbignew Brzezinski compares Central Asia to a chess game with Russia and China--which must eventually result in an American “win”. Control of the world’s oil supply and dominance in the 21st Century is at stake, as cheap oil ends in the 2010s. Noting that the Central Asian Republics are infinitely more important than any other region--save the Mideast--because “an enormous concentration of natural gas and oil reserves is located in the region, in addition to important minerals, including gold… Any successful American policy must focus on Eurasia as a whole and be guided by a Geostrategic design…That puts a premium on maneuver and manipulation in order to prevent the emergence of a hostile coalition that could eventually seek to challenge America's primacy…"
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0465027261/102-5321285-9753763?v=glance

1990s – “Project For A New American Century” and other right-wing organizations develop strategy for a “uni-polar world” ruled by the United States with many US bases in the Mideast and Central Asia. Invading Iraq and controlling the world’s oil supply becomes the Neo-Con manifesto.
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/nightline/DailyNews/pnac_030310.html
http://www.presentdanger.org/pdf/frontier/1031neocon.pdf
Article by Will Pitt: http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article1665.htm
http://www.newamericancentury.org/RebuildingAmericasDefenses.pdf

September 11, 2001 – The 9-11 Attack. A “War on Terror” is begun by Bush with the agreement of the Congress. In the mission of the Selective Service, it is stated that the Volunteer Army is only intended for peacetime. In case of war, the nation may turn to the Selective Service. That is why it must always be kept as an option, even if dormant.

January 8, 2002 - On January 8, 2002, President Bush signed the No Child Left Behind Act, supposedly to provide accountability education policies. Yet hidden within the 670-page piece of legislation is Section 9528: “…each local educational agency receiving assistance under this Act shall provide, on a request made by military recruiters or an institution of higher education, access to secondary school students names, addresses, and telephone listings.” All schools must comply with this unfunded mandate or they lose their federal funding. This amounts to legislated blackmail for student names. The act also says: “A secondary school student or the parent of the student may request that the student’s name, address, and telephone listing … not be released without prior written parental consent, and the local educational agency or private school shall notify parents of the option to make a request and shall comply with any request.”
http://www.ed.gov/policy/elsec/leg/esea02/index.html

Early 2003 - Iraq War, 250,000 out of 480,000 active-duty troops deployed, conquer Iraq within a few weeks. Yet the U.S. has no plan ready for reconstruction or democracy and Iraqis, happy at liberation from Saddam, grow sour at the slow pace, the continued lack of electricity and fuel and the isolated civil control of the CPA. Garner soon replaced by Bremer who is no better at speeding up Reconstruction, and the resistance grows with disaffected Iraqis, old regrouped Baathists and new foreign fighters. Except for the British, substantial foreign troops are impossible, given Bush’s desire to keep total control of Iraq. The lack of diplomacy, planning and incompetence adds years to the time high US troop levels will be needed to maintain control of Iraq and rebuild and exploit its oilfields.

Summer 2003 – Philadelphia Draft Board members “unexpectedly” told to recruit new members for Board vacancies during Summer training. (from Nov. 3 Salon article)
http://archive.salon.com/news/feature/2003/11/03/draft/index_np.html

July 25, 2003 – World Net Daily article on plans for the medical draft (HCPDS). System could draft up to 80,000 doctors, nurses and specialists, men and women.
http://wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=33754

September 3, 2003 – The Congressional Budget Office warns that “the Army lacks sufficient active-duty forces to maintain its current level of nearly 150,000 troops in Iraq beyond next spring (march 2004). "The Army does not have enough active-duty component forces to simultaneously maintain the occupation at its current size, limit deployments to one year, and sustain all of its other commitments" http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A16689-2003Sep2?language=printer

September 23, 2003 – Draft Board Recruitment ad appears on Defense.Link site. First public ad for Draft Boards in decades. Page scrubbed within a few days of being noticed by some media in early November. Spokesman says there is “no plan” to reinstate draft, which must be authorized by Congress. http://www.defendamerica.mil/articles/sss092203.html
http://www.thememoryhole.org/mil/draft-boards.htm

October 16, 2003 – Donald Rumsfeld memo leaks, saying Iraq “will be a long, hard slog”. www.usatoday.com/news/washington/ executive/rumsfeld-memo.htm

Nov. 4, 2003 – NY Times article on Army Honor Guard Company B being sent to MidEast, revealing how thin troops are being stretched to cover the 2004-2005 rotation.
http://villagenews.weblogger.com/stories/storyReader$10007

Nov. 5, 2003 – Toronto Star article quotes Ned Lebow “This (draft board ad) is significant”, Lebow, a presidential scholar at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire and former professor of strategy at the National War College in Washington, adds, "What the department of defence is doing is creating the infrastructure to make the draft a viable option should the administration wish to go this route." http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1068073289288&call_pageid=968332188854

Nov. 5, 2003 – Guardian article on Draft Board ad. SSS spokesman Amon said 80% of 11,000 Draft Board slots are vacant. (2,000 local boards, over 8,000 empty seats) http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1077906,00.html

Nov. 12, 2003 – “If President Bush is re-elected, it is likely that he will reinstate the draft. The war on terrorism will not end in Iraq, but instead will proceed into countries like Syria and Iran," said Daniel Ellsberg, of Pentagon Papers fame. http://www.seacoastonline.com/news/11122003/news/60246.htm

November, 2003 – Selective Service 2004 “Performance Plan” summarizes how $28 million will be allocated in 2004 to reduce draft activation time from current 8 months to just 75 days. Nation-wide Readiness Exercises, testing the Draft Lottery and examination system, as well as gearing up the Medical Draft (3.4 million doctors and nurses, men and women age 20-44 are eligible). Ominously, the Alternative Service delivery system for Conscientious Objectors is readied for the first time in decades, with the SSS being funded to compile lists of available Alternative Service jobs for those who win non-military CO status. All systems will be pushed to reach 95% readiness during 2004.
http://www.sss.gov/perfplan_fy2004.html

Nov. 23, 2003 – Boston Globe article: “Army Reserve battling an exodus
War is seen as drain on ranks. The US Army Reserve fell short of its reenlistment goals this fiscal year, underscoring Pentagon fears that the protracted conflict in Iraq could cause a crippling exodus from the armed services.”
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2003/11/23/army_reserve_battling_an_exodus/

Nov. 24, 2003 – NY Times: Army plans for 100,000 troops until 2006 in Iraq.
http://www.iht.com/articles/118775.html

Nov. 26, 2003 – Ron Paul (R-TX) says “Draft likely to be reinstated”. http://www.lewrockwell.com/paul/paul144.html

December, 2003 - Draft Board Recruitment ad re-appears on the Selective Service Home Page with 2 new sentences stressing the ad has “NO connection” to Iraq. (scrubbed March 2004) http://www.sss.gov

Dec. 4, 2003 – Ted Rall predicts Bush will “have to bring back the draft.” Notes 8,000 empty Draft Board seats to be filled by Spring 2005. Wonders about a “February (2005) Surprise” if Bush is re-elected. http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=127&ncid=742&e=7&u=/uclicktext/20031204/cm_ucru/acolddraft

December 22, 2003 – In an article entitled “Beware of Attempts to Revive Military Draft,” Newsday reports that “the Center on Conscience and War… executive director, J. E. McNeil… has heard of rumblings, from the Republican side of the aisle in Congress, about a draft after the election”. The opinion piece worries whether a revived draft “would give this war-without-end presidency an endless source of warm bodies to pursue its cowboy foreign policy.” Author Keeler also wonders about a “February (2005) Surprise”.
http://www.newsday.com/news/opinion/ny-vpkee223594883dec22,0,6735184.story?coll=ny-viewpoints-headlines

December, 2003 - The Selective Service Register magazine talks about the new Special Skill Draft, a top priority for Director Lewis Brodsky. Like the Medical Draft, the Special Skills Draft will induct men and women up to age 44 if they have needed DoD skills like computer expertise, engineering or they are a linguist. As with the health care draftees, no medical deferments are allowed except for total disability. Anyone with these skills will have to register with the SSS if Bush is re-elected and asks Congress for this. Moving quickly!
http://www.sss.gov/PDFs/NovDec2003-Register.pdf (go to P. 6) – from sss,gov home page

December 29, 2003 - WP article: “Army Stops Many Soldiers From Quitting, Orders Extend Enlistments to Curtail Troop Shortages” 40,000 soldiers and Guard put on Stop-Loss. A “Draft Per Se” already exists! With the new stop-loss orders the Armed Forces actually go 20,000 past 480,000 active troops, the maximum before Congress steps in.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A36979-2003Dec28.html

[Pepperbelly]

18. I don't think it's time to worry ...

The thing to look for is if they increase the numerical size of the standing army and then are unable to meet the number with recruiting. Right now, the manpower shortages are not a reflection of the inability to recruit. It is the result of the statutory size of the army being too small to do everything that Bonehead wants it to do.

[Dems Will Win]

20. Yes, but Bonehead plans to invade 5 more countries if re-elected

That's why he's gearing up the DRAFT at all.

That's why Bush needs the DRAFT and Kerry won't

[Sensei_Rebel]

21. Thanks Pepperbelly

Finally, someone who thinks for himself. There's some extremists on this board otherwise.

But what I want to know is this: survey says , half the army isn't reenlisting. Does that affect things ?

[Kanary]

22. Interesting approach

You ask for information.......

........... then attack those who reply to you.

Just an observation.

:hi:

Kanary

[Sensei_Rebel]

24. Fielding opinions from all kinds. Never said everyone was nuts

Where else am I supposed to go ? You ppl seem to know a lot, but a lot of it may or may not be reality.

[Dems Will Win]

26. Here's reality:

Hack's Target

Voting with Their Feet

By David H. Hackworth


-snip-


“We're stretched too thin,” reports a sergeant. “Our CO (commanding officer) admitted this to us during our tour in Afghanistan. He also admitted that morale is down due to the extending of tours. Yet the Pentagon insists there’s no problem with morale. We lost over 75 percent of our unit when we got back. I know other units are having the same problems. If this trend continues, we won’t have enough people to defend this country when the need arises.”



An Apache pilot in Korea says, “It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that the Army is going to be losing a lot of people as soon as they get the chance to vote with their feet.”



I’m sure the brass have all the paperwork to back up their propaganda campaign. But as far as the old saw that “figures don't lie” goes, I’ve been around long enough to know that liars figure and soldiers know the truth. So I’ll go with the soldiers.


Unless so-called Army short tours in the badlands of Iraq and Afghanistan become manageable based on the number of troops available – right now the Army is trying to do the work of 14 divisions with 10 under-strength, active-duty divisions – we’ll see a mass exodus from the Green Machine and the inevitable return of the draft.



Eilhys England also 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, wehre 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 [e-mail].

[Pepperbelly]

23. If half of them are not re-enlisting ...

that's about a ka-zillion times better a ratio than when I was in the service. Hardly anyone then re-enlisted. More like 10%.

I understand everyone's uncertainty about the draft and for damned sure, it is not a good thing. But I really think that we should generally spend our time more concerned about the myriad fuck-ups that are real and now and in our face. The draft, IMO, is a very long shot, particularly with Bushco in a death spiral in the polls and hardly anything working out the way they want.