How did you deal with the draft?

[AZrailwhale]

When younger people talk about someone being a "draft dodger" I think they should ponder the well-distributed pictures and films of Woodstock (August 15, 1969), with the hundreds of thousands of revelers engaged in debauchery of various forms, ingesting controlled substances, and generally having a blast.

Virtually every one of the males in those pictures was a draft dodger of one kind or another and they were proud of it. There was no "disgrace" in being a draft dodger at the time. It was something you just did if you could.

It may not have been a disgrace to the draft dodger, it was and is, to the men who served.

 

[Invisibleflash]

I just finished an interesting book written by one of my contemporaries about his experiences as an infantry squad leader in Vietnam*. It was poignant to me because the author faced EXACTLY the same choice in August of 1968 that I did. My view is that I made the right choice and he made the wrong one.

He and I were both done with college and we both knew that we would shortly be drafted. He was in Iowa; I was in Pennsylvania. The choice was this: You could volunteer for the draft (or wait for it to happen) and accept whatever duty the Army gave you for TWO (2) years, or you could enlist in the Army, take a third year, and CHOOSE the training you would get. Choosing the draft probably meant that you would be assigned to the infantry (MOS 11B20) and sent to Vietnam. Enlisting probably meant that you would go to Vietnam, albeit in a non-combat role (which the vast majority of us did while in Vietnam). And of course, enlisting added a year to your time in the service.

He decided to "roll the dice" and volunteer for the draft. With a 4-year degree, he didn't think the Army would make him an infantryman, but he was wrong. But he made the most of it, volunteering for "NCO School" - 16 weeks of post-AIT training that qualified him to be a Buck Sergeant (E-5) when he got to Vietnam, which made him a squad leader. Timing-wise, it meant that by the time he finished his 12 months in RVN he would be eligible for an early-out, making his total time in the service somewhat less than the two years.

I chose training in exchange for the third year, but I chose a stupid one called "Stock Control and Accounting," because I liked the sound of it. It taught you how to fill out self-explanatory forms and to count rolls of toilet paper. Fortunately or not, when I got to that school (Ft Lee, VA), I was given the choice to opt out of the school, and OJT in "Personnel," which would have the same effect as the training - keeping me out of the infantry. My Army path was a bit convoluted, spending a year at Ft Lee, six months or so at Ft Belvoir, VA, and ultimately volunteering to go to Vietnam as a Personnel Specialist. In fact, my MOS was 71H30, the "30" meaning that I SHOULD be assigned to some headquarters unit rather than out in the boonies. I ended up in Danang, which was possibly the best duty one could have in the Army in Vietnam - not as nice as the Air Force, but pretty good, all things considered.

Sgt Dick Hogue got out of the Army in August 1970, two years after he went in, albeit somewhat worse off for the experience (read the book). I got out in April 1971, in excellent health and condition, with a nice bank account. (In Vietnam we got extra pay and paid no Federal or State income tax).

While I've done a lot of stupid things in my life, there is no question in my mind that I made the right choice in August 1968, and I would make the same choice today if I were put back in that situation with the same options in front of me.

If the draft were reinstated today and you were 18, what would you choose?

______________________
* "A Soldier's Story: Forever Changed" by Richard F. Hogue

They ended the war the year my number came up...lucky me.

 

[Admiral Rockwell Tory]

I just finished an interesting book written by one of my contemporaries about his experiences as an infantry squad leader in Vietnam*. It was poignant to me because the author faced EXACTLY the same choice in August of 1968 that I did. My view is that I made the right choice and he made the wrong one.

He and I were both done with college and we both knew that we would shortly be drafted. He was in Iowa; I was in Pennsylvania. The choice was this: You could volunteer for the draft (or wait for it to happen) and accept whatever duty the Army gave you for TWO (2) years, or you could enlist in the Army, take a third year, and CHOOSE the training you would get. Choosing the draft probably meant that you would be assigned to the infantry (MOS 11B20) and sent to Vietnam. Enlisting probably meant that you would go to Vietnam, albeit in a non-combat role (which the vast majority of us did while in Vietnam). And of course, enlisting added a year to your time in the service.

He decided to "roll the dice" and volunteer for the draft. With a 4-year degree, he didn't think the Army would make him an infantryman, but he was wrong. But he made the most of it, volunteering for "NCO School" - 16 weeks of post-AIT training that qualified him to be a Buck Sergeant (E-5) when he got to Vietnam, which made him a squad leader. Timing-wise, it meant that by the time he finished his 12 months in RVN he would be eligible for an early-out, making his total time in the service somewhat less than the two years.

I chose training in exchange for the third year, but I chose a stupid one called "Stock Control and Accounting," because I liked the sound of it. It taught you how to fill out self-explanatory forms and to count rolls of toilet paper. Fortunately or not, when I got to that school (Ft Lee, VA), I was given the choice to opt out of the school, and OJT in "Personnel," which would have the same effect as the training - keeping me out of the infantry. My Army path was a bit convoluted, spending a year at Ft Lee, six months or so at Ft Belvoir, VA, and ultimately volunteering to go to Vietnam as a Personnel Specialist. In fact, my MOS was 71H30, the "30" meaning that I SHOULD be assigned to some headquarters unit rather than out in the boonies. I ended up in Danang, which was possibly the best duty one could have in the Army in Vietnam - not as nice as the Air Force, but pretty good, all things considered.

Sgt Dick Hogue got out of the Army in August 1970, two years after he went in, albeit somewhat worse off for the experience (read the book). I got out in April 1971, in excellent health and condition, with a nice bank account. (In Vietnam we got extra pay and paid no Federal or State income tax).

While I've done a lot of stupid things in my life, there is no question in my mind that I made the right choice in August 1968, and I would make the same choice today if I were put back in that situation with the same options in front of me.

If the draft were reinstated today and you were 18, what would you choose?

______________________
* "A Soldier's Story: Forever Changed" by Richard F. Hogue

When I turned 18, I had been on active duty with the Navy for 5 months.

 

[Admiral Rockwell Tory]

I wasn't old enough to be in the Vietnam draft. When Jimmy Carter instituted the draft, I did not register after turning 18 in 1980, because if a war started, I knew I would join on my own. Six months later, I joined the Army without a war, and had two awesome years of partying in Germany, in between sleeping in the snow.

When I finished my enlistment, one of the last parts of outprocessing was to - register for the draft. Even though I was in the IRR for a few more years. Go figure.

Decades later, my daughter, who has a name that is often mistaken for a boy's name, was turned down for student loan because she had not registered for the Carter-era draft.

The gov'ment am so smurt!

Carter reinstituted the Selective Service, not the draft. I signed up in 1980, but I was already a veteran at age 19.

 

[Mashmont]

I just finished an interesting book written by one of my contemporaries about his experiences as an infantry squad leader in Vietnam*. It was poignant to me because the author faced EXACTLY the same choice in August of 1968 that I did. My view is that I made the right choice and he made the wrong one.

He and I were both done with college and we both knew that we would shortly be drafted. He was in Iowa; I was in Pennsylvania. The choice was this: You could volunteer for the draft (or wait for it to happen) and accept whatever duty the Army gave you for TWO (2) years, or you could enlist in the Army, take a third year, and CHOOSE the training you would get. Choosing the draft probably meant that you would be assigned to the infantry (MOS 11B20) and sent to Vietnam. Enlisting probably meant that you would go to Vietnam, albeit in a non-combat role (which the vast majority of us did while in Vietnam). And of course, enlisting added a year to your time in the service.

He decided to "roll the dice" and volunteer for the draft. With a 4-year degree, he didn't think the Army would make him an infantryman, but he was wrong. But he made the most of it, volunteering for "NCO School" - 16 weeks of post-AIT training that qualified him to be a Buck Sergeant (E-5) when he got to Vietnam, which made him a squad leader. Timing-wise, it meant that by the time he finished his 12 months in RVN he would be eligible for an early-out, making his total time in the service somewhat less than the two years.

I chose training in exchange for the third year, but I chose a stupid one called "Stock Control and Accounting," because I liked the sound of it. It taught you how to fill out self-explanatory forms and to count rolls of toilet paper. Fortunately or not, when I got to that school (Ft Lee, VA), I was given the choice to opt out of the school, and OJT in "Personnel," which would have the same effect as the training - keeping me out of the infantry. My Army path was a bit convoluted, spending a year at Ft Lee, six months or so at Ft Belvoir, VA, and ultimately volunteering to go to Vietnam as a Personnel Specialist. In fact, my MOS was 71H30, the "30" meaning that I SHOULD be assigned to some headquarters unit rather than out in the boonies. I ended up in Danang, which was possibly the best duty one could have in the Army in Vietnam - not as nice as the Air Force, but pretty good, all things considered.

Sgt Dick Hogue got out of the Army in August 1970, two years after he went in, albeit somewhat worse off for the experience (read the book). I got out in April 1971, in excellent health and condition, with a nice bank account. (In Vietnam we got extra pay and paid no Federal or State income tax).

While I've done a lot of stupid things in my life, there is no question in my mind that I made the right choice in August 1968, and I would make the same choice today if I were put back in that situation with the same options in front of me.

If the draft were reinstated today and you were 18, what would you choose?

______________________
* "A Soldier's Story: Forever Changed" by Richard F. Hogue

I didn't want to spend my prime physical years doing something I would have hated and counted down the days until it was over. And that doesn't even include the chance of being killed. I'm so grateful I never had to go. My life has been charmed like that in every way. I worry about my purgatorial bill because I've had so little suffering in life. Really none. I wish I could say like everyone else "I overcame those hard times", but I've never had any hard times. I do appreciate and respect military vets and the sacrifices they made.

 

[RetiredGySgt]

Draft dodgers were cowards to a man.

 

[rightwinger]

When younger people talk about someone being a "draft dodger" I think they should ponder the well-distributed pictures and films of Woodstock (August 15, 1969), with the hundreds of thousands of revelers engaged in debauchery of various forms, ingesting controlled substances, and generally having a blast.

Virtually every one of the males in those pictures was a draft dodger of one kind or another and they were proud of it. There was no "disgrace" in being a draft dodger at the time. It was something you just did if you could.

Many of the men at Woodstock were Vets

 

[22lcidw]

The major thing was, there was a great change between the younger generation from the early 1960's and the late 1960's. Something happened to the people. Today, the remnants of the late 1960's era controls vestiges of politics. And it is tearing us apart when major tenets of civil social agendas are won, and it is never enough. Progs destroyed the nuclear family. And we are paying for it.

 

[Zincwarrior]

Sissyboys Bush and Quayle, etc., Made Sure They Were Born Rich

Trump had a terrible case of bone spurs.

 

[Mr Natural]

You can thank us Boomers for getting rid of the draft aka slavery.

 

[The Sage of Main Street]

I wasn't old enough to be in the Vietnam draft. When Jimmy Carter instituted the draft, I did not register after turning 18 in 1980, because if a war started, I knew I would join on my own. Six months later, I joined the Army without a war, and had two awesome years of partying in Germany, in between sleeping in the snow.

my daughter, who has a name that is often mistaken for a boy's name, was turned down for student loan because she had not registered for the Carter-era draft.

The gov'ment am so smurt!

A Henhouse for Chickenhawks

The GooberMint is extremely smart about the few things it cares about, such as exempting Parmpered Preppy Pipsqueaks from ever having to fight in its White Replacement wars.

 

[Zavulon]

When I turned 18, I had been on active duty with the Navy for 5 months.

Never understood (but always respected) people who volonteerly put themselves in those tin floaters. What perverted mindset a person should have to join Navy?

 

[The Sage of Main Street]

When younger people talk about someone being a "draft dodger" I think they should ponder the well-distributed pictures and films of Woodstock (August 15, 1969), with the hundreds of thousands of revelers engaged in debauchery of various forms, ingesting controlled substances, and generally having a blast.

Virtually every one of the males in those pictures was a draft dodger of one kind or another and they were proud of it. There was no "disgrace" in being a draft dodger at the time. It was something you just did if you could.

S

When younger people talk about someone being a "draft dodger" I think they should ponder the well-distributed pictures and films of Woodstock (August 15, 1969), with the hundreds of thousands of revelers engaged in debauchery of various forms, ingesting controlled substances, and generally having a blast.

Virtually every one of the males in those pictures was a draft dodger of one kind or another and they were proud of it. There was no "disgrace" in being a draft dodger at the time. It was something you just did if you could.

Ivy Conniving

Same goes for the well-dressed college-student audience of Conservative con-man William F. Buckley's dishonestly named Firing Line.

 

[Zavulon]

Draft dodgers were cowards to a man.

Not necessarily. Sometimes people just don't understand for what they are supposed to fight.
My cousin left Ukraine (and immigrated in Israel) in 2015 mostly because he wasn't ready to fight against Russians (on the side of Banderlogs) but he was ready to fight against Arabs (on the side of Jews).

 

[The Sage of Main Street]

Trump had a terrible case of bone spurs.

The Campus Commie Scum Never Exposed the Pro-War Draftdodgers. Class Loyalty.

Unlike the rest of us, Trump went to school with the pro-war sons of the Plutocrats who created the Vietnam War. Because of his inside information, he could see through the Hawk-talk as sucker bait.

 

[jwoodie]

I got a college deferment and just missed being sent to Viet Nam. I have always felt a little guilty about all the guys who went in right after high school and never came back. The draft did affect me in other ways: I had no future plans, and found the Army to be a complete waste of time. I got out as soon as I could, and spent the next six months enjoying a compensatory six month vacation. After that, I felt like I was several years behind my contemporaries who did not serve. It took me the next decade to figure out who I was and what I wanted to do. Fortunately, it eventually all worked out.

 

[The Sage of Main Street]

I resolved early on that I was not going to Vietnam and never did. I knew all the lyrics to

Phil Ochs committed suicide once he realized that Leftists were spoiled sheltered snobs and nothing more.

Here are the typical thoughts of an anti-warrior protester back then: "Daddy, you always told me that working-class people were stupid, lazy, and greedy. Well, I got one even better, Daddy! Their sons are baby-killers. Now will you finally start paying attention to me, Daddy, instead of spending all your time making money?"

 

[alang1216]

Phil Ochs committed suicide once he realized that Leftists were spoiled sheltered snobs and nothing more.

I suspect his drinking and bipolar disorder were more important factors.

 

[RetiredGySgt]

Never understood (but always respected) people who volonteerly put themselves in those tin floaters. What perverted mindset a person should have to join Navy?

I joined the Marine Corps.

 

[Zavulon]

I joined the Marine Corps.

Why?