Students and faculty at Fairfield are speaking out against reinstating a military draft, an idea that was proposed by U.S. Representative Charles Rangel (D-NY).
Sophomore Jeannette Symonds has very strong feelings about the possibility of Congress instituting a military draft.
“Wars are pointless. We’re fighting for nothing, so there shouldn’t be a draft,” she said.
According to a CNN.com article, Rangel feels that a draft would allow the military forces of America to better reflect its economic makeup.
Approximately 30 percent of the military is comprised of minority forces, leading Rangel to take a shot at the social and economic make-up of American armed forces.
“For those who feel the poor fight better, I say give the rich a chance,” Rangel told CNN.
Rangel’s comments and his proposal have faculty and campus clergy reacting strongly on the subject have strong opinions on the subject of a draft.
Fr. Michael Doody, director of Campus Ministry, sees Rangel’s ideas as a clash of the two echelons of economic status.
“The only kids who are sent are basically cannon fodder. The government provides very little in the army in terms of education and usually trains kids as cooks or other simple career paths,” said Doody. “If politicians’ nephews were the ones going off [to war], and then they would be more hesitant to start a war.”
Politics professor John Orman, who briefly ran against Lieberman for Congress in 2005, feels that the draft “would never pass, but was only done to prove a political point. The only shot is if we were to enter a World War III type conflict. The current war on terror can be fought solely through a volunteer force.”
According to another CNN.com article current House Speaker-elect, Nancy Pelosi claimed that the House leadership would not support any draft legislation that was put in.
Larry Purifoy, a recruiter for the U.S. Army, believes that he as a soldier shouldn’t enter the political realm of thought but feels “a draft is a little more than a topic of discussion for headlines that will never see the light of day.”
John Nicosia ’08 agrees with Purifoy about the low chances of a draft.
He also believes that if a draft did pass through the House, “kids would be more politically involved. There would be protests and more kids in college and grad school just to avoid it.”
Sarah Benach ’10 agreed.
“There would be a lot of protests, especially from the guys,” she said.
Doody’s views conflict with most students because he feels that the students would have a “Beef Stew Reaction.”
“Students wouldn’t become concerned unless it was publicized with a high likelihood of being implemented. As of right now, there is disinterest in the topic,” said Doody.
Orman supports the idea of bringing the news to students in order for them to care.
“During World War II, we were under attack, and people accepted the fight. If we put in a draft now, people would oppose it,” he said.
Symonds shared his sentiments. “It’s not worth it. [Rangel] has a good logic, but the expense of citizens is not worth the consequences from instituting the draft,” she said.
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