The question was asked of me by my grandson, I think he heard it on the radio, should women have to register for the draft ? It is something I really hadn't given any thought to. I read just a while back that the government will now allow women in a combat role. My first response was, sure, why not ? We spoke about it for a while and moved on. The question has lingered in my thoughts. My answer has not changed, I would vote, Yes. In our striving to become " gender neutral " in all things I can not answer otherwise. The thing I take issue with is the whole premise of gender neutrality. I can't seem to get past a basic observation of mine, boys and girls are different ! They are different physically, and in some ways emotionally. And neither of those qualities has to do with intelligence so don't go getting upset about that. I'm just pointing out a few facts. Are there exceptions and aberrations ? Well of course there are.
I am surprised it has taken this long for this issue to come up. Equality has been at the forefront for quite a long time now. Would requiring women to register for the draft provide that government endorsement/acknowledgement that some feminists seek ? Is allowing women to serve, in all capacities, enough ? Or is the only way imposing the same requirement upon our young women as we require of our young men the only way ? True equality answers that question.
No one has been drafted in the United States since 1973. No one had to register from '73 to '80. Then President Carter required males to again register for the draft, just in case. The thinking being it would be a good thing to know the numbers available should that need arise. In 1987 it became necessary to have a social security number assigned to a child at birth. That was for tax reasons but it also provides an enumeration of birth and gender. One I would think that is more complete than one done so voluntarily without a reward. Being able to claim that child on the parents tax form is the benefit, see my point ? Anyone born in 1987 would now be 28 years old. So the question now becomes do we really need a separate enumeration for a conscription ? I would think that the social security database would suffice. But will the federal government draft women ? In the past the reasoning was that women could not serve in a combat role and therefore the drafting of women was unnecessary. You could only conclude that it is now necessary, unless we are going to make exceptions based only on gender. That is a contradiction to the whole point. If the ladies are now going to be required to register, those born in 1987 and after would have to be included. They would then fall under the same rules as the men. It is a felony to not register ! Jail time and a fine can be the result of failure to register for the draft. No one has ever been prosecuted however.
Now having given this some thought I can only reach the same conclusion as my original thought, why not. Why are we even discussing this ? In our " gender neutral " thinking equality should be unquestioned. What consideration should be afforded to females that is not afforded to males ? Careful, mustn't appear chauvinist in your responses. Moms could be drafted and Dad left home to care for the children. Men are just as capable of housekeeping as women, right ? Men can cook, clean, and raise children. Women can serve in combat roles. I admit it is a different view that I am used to. Call it progress. That is what we label anything we wish to change. Many other countries have women serving and have done so for years. Of course, this is America. I like to think we do things a little differently and a little better than most others. Call it patriotic. Label it bias. Doesn't really matter. Sign'em up !
I am surprised it has taken this long for this issue to come up. Equality has been at the forefront for quite a long time now. Would requiring women to register for the draft provide that government endorsement/acknowledgement that some feminists seek ? Is allowing women to serve, in all capacities, enough ? Or is the only way imposing the same requirement upon our young women as we require of our young men the only way ? True equality answers that question.
No one has been drafted in the United States since 1973. No one had to register from '73 to '80. Then President Carter required males to again register for the draft, just in case. The thinking being it would be a good thing to know the numbers available should that need arise. In 1987 it became necessary to have a social security number assigned to a child at birth. That was for tax reasons but it also provides an enumeration of birth and gender. One I would think that is more complete than one done so voluntarily without a reward. Being able to claim that child on the parents tax form is the benefit, see my point ? Anyone born in 1987 would now be 28 years old. So the question now becomes do we really need a separate enumeration for a conscription ? I would think that the social security database would suffice. But will the federal government draft women ? In the past the reasoning was that women could not serve in a combat role and therefore the drafting of women was unnecessary. You could only conclude that it is now necessary, unless we are going to make exceptions based only on gender. That is a contradiction to the whole point. If the ladies are now going to be required to register, those born in 1987 and after would have to be included. They would then fall under the same rules as the men. It is a felony to not register ! Jail time and a fine can be the result of failure to register for the draft. No one has ever been prosecuted however.
Now having given this some thought I can only reach the same conclusion as my original thought, why not. Why are we even discussing this ? In our " gender neutral " thinking equality should be unquestioned. What consideration should be afforded to females that is not afforded to males ? Careful, mustn't appear chauvinist in your responses. Moms could be drafted and Dad left home to care for the children. Men are just as capable of housekeeping as women, right ? Men can cook, clean, and raise children. Women can serve in combat roles. I admit it is a different view that I am used to. Call it progress. That is what we label anything we wish to change. Many other countries have women serving and have done so for years. Of course, this is America. I like to think we do things a little differently and a little better than most others. Call it patriotic. Label it bias. Doesn't really matter. Sign'em up !
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