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This is a somewhat misleading argument. The US did away with the draft so that most people have not had to make this choice. The troops that did go to the Middl

This is a somewhat misleading argument. The US did away with the draft so that most people have not had to make this choice. The troops that did go to the Middle East wars have suffered many casualties (6-7K dead, many more wounded, many US contractors dead/wounded, PTSD/suicides/mental health issues afterwards, etc.). [1] All those affected were volunteers. It's also clear that there are times when virtually everyone in the US has agreed on the necessity of war, the 9/11 attacks being the latest case in point. Conversely, many wars that in retrospect might seem to have been widely supported were in fact quite controversial. The Civil War is a case in point. [2] [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_military_casualties_of_war https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_military_casualt... [2] https://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/draft-riots https://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/draft-riot...

Nimitz14 7y ago
> The troops that did go to the Middle East wars have suffered many casualties (6-7K dead, many more wounded, many US contractors dead/wounded, PTSD/suicides/mental health issues afterwards, etc.). That is objectively not "many casualties". Which was also his point (which you apparently did not understand, somehow). And I find your implication that as long as people volunteer it's fine if they die quite disturbing, although funnily enough a perfect example of the "me"-generation the poster you were replying to was talking about! Who cares what my country is doing as long as I'm not affected right!
- tripzilch 7y ago
  Besides, they're not just volunteering for dying, but also for killing.
- hodgesrm 7y ago
  It seems you inferred something quite different from what I was trying to say. Having a small fraction of US society bear the costs of prolonged wars is a terrible policy that brought unnecessary pain to 10s of thousands of American families and many more in countries like Iraq. It also allowed American involvement in those wars to continue unchecked. If we want them to stop the simplest solution is to bring back the draft. p.s., I was in the volunteer military (USAF).

Nimitz14 7y ago

> The troops that did go to the Middle East wars have suffered many casualties (6-7K dead, many more wounded, many US contractors dead/wounded, PTSD/suicides/mental health issues afterwards, etc.). That is objectively not "many casualties". Which was also his point (which you apparently did not understand, somehow). And I find your implication that as long as people volunteer it's fine if they die quite disturbing, although funnily enough a perfect example of the "me"-generation the poster you were replying to was talking about! Who cares what my country is doing as long as I'm not affected right!

tripzilch 7y ago
Besides, they're not just volunteering for dying, but also for killing.
hodgesrm 7y ago
It seems you inferred something quite different from what I was trying to say. Having a small fraction of US society bear the costs of prolonged wars is a terrible policy that brought unnecessary pain to 10s of thousands of American families and many more in countries like Iraq. It also allowed American involvement in those wars to continue unchecked. If we want them to stop the simplest solution is to bring back the draft. p.s., I was in the volunteer military (USAF).