Try the political quiz
@ISIDEWITHQuestionsForeign policyStarted 9yrs agoActive 2 days ago

Should every 18 year old citizen be required to provide at least one year of military service?

Conscription is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national military service. In the U.S. the Select Service System drafted men for World War 1, World War 2 and Vietnam. Military service is currently not required in the U.S. Proponents of required service argue that it isn’t fair that a small percentage of Americans serve in the military to protect the rest of the population. Opponents argue that the requirement is unnecessary because modern warfare is fought less and less with ground troops and more with unmanned technology including drones.

+
Expand
+ Settings

Filter by type

Narrow down which types of responses you would like to see.

Filter by author

Narrow down the conversation to these participants:

Ideology:

Political party:

Political theme:

Voting for candidate:

State:

DMA:

Congressional District:

County:

State Senate District:

City:

Assembly District:

Zipcode:

7.7k Replies

 @8R5245N from Washington  answered…4yrs4Y

No and abolish the US military

 @9Q3BSWJ from Washington  answered…11mos11MO

No, service should be a choice. Soldiers should be better paid and after service benefits for those that choose to serve should be better

 @9DWT6M4Constitution  from Washington  answered…2yrs2Y

No, the people that would be forced wouldn't give their all and be a detriment to the military. Making it weaker in the process.

 @9D6K4XM from Washington  answered…2yrs2Y

No, but there should be a requirement for public service of some kind

 @92Z2MM7Republican from Washington  answered…3yrs3Y

Yes, but not for combat

 @92RPC2T from Washington  answered…3yrs3Y

Yes, as long as it's not for combat

 @92PFQJZ from Washington  answered…3yrs3Y

Yes, but not for combat purposes

 @8XBP8CR from Washington  answered…4yrs4Y

No, but it should be one option for fulfilling a 1-year national service mandate

 @8LBSHKL from Washington  answered…5yrs5Y

No, but every American citizen, including women, should be required to sign up for the draft.

 @8JFD2VL from Washington  answered…5yrs5Y

No, and the enlistment age should be raised to 21

 @9CZNT7M from Washington  answered…2yrs2Y

No, if you want to service your country, then great if not it shouldn't be required.

 @96Q554X from Washington  answered…3yrs3Y

No, but years of military or other civil service should be in​cen​tiv​ized with free or funded education and skills training, as part of or after service.

 @93VJQK5 from Washington  answered…3yrs3Y

Yes, but only if they're are no health issues preventing it. Additionally focused on education and skill development. And if they're not furthering their education outside of school.

 @93BHNVN from Washington  answered…3yrs3Y

Military or Social Services (eg Red Cross, Volunteer firefighting, food bank etc)

More conversations

Join in on more popular conversations.

 @ISIDEWITH submitted…7mos7MO

No One’s Safe: Trump’s ‘Border Czar’ Homan Promises Sweeping Deportation Operation

TOM COTTON is slated to be the chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, putting “I think mass deportation is just talk, but the era of open borders will be over,” Scott McConnell, a co-founder of The American Conservative, wrote on X. In July a Mexican-born Trump backer told The Times, “Last time, he didn’t even finish the wall. What’s he going to do this time?”Now the answer is taking shape: He’s going to oversee a militarized mass roundup of the undocumented. On Sunday, Trump named Tom Homan, his former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, as “border czar.”In a speech to this year’s National Conservatism Conference, Homan, who oversaw Trump’s family separation policy, promised a “historic deportation operation” from which no undocumented immigrant would be safe. “No one’s off the table in the next administration,” he said. “If you’re here illegally, you better be looking over your shoulder.”Then, on Monday, Trump named the obsessively anti-immigrant Stephen Miller as his deputy chief of staff. Miller’s portfolio, Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan reported in The Times, “is expected to be vast and to far exceed what the eventual title will convey.” Miller has been forthright about his desire to purge immigrants here illegally, as well as many here legally, from the United States.Among other things, Miller has said that Trump would cancel the temporary protected status of thousands of Afghans who fled here after the Taliban’s takeover and take another stab at ending DACA, the program that protects from deportation some immigrants brought to the United States as children.Most significantly, he’s laid out plans to use National Guard troops to help arrest migrants en masse, warehousing them in military camps while they await deportation. No one should be shocked when this happens. I suspect some will be anyway.

▲  2812 replies

 @ISIDEWITH submitted…6mos6MO

Hegseth Out, DeSantis In? Trump Rethinks Defense Pick

President-elect Donald Trump is considering Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as a possible replacement for Pete Hegseth, his pick to run the Pentagon, according to people familiar with the discussions, amid Republican senators’ concerns over mounting allegations about the former Fox News host’s personal life.Picking DeSantis, a 2024 GOP primary rival for the presidency, would amount to a stunning turn for Trump. But he would also find in the governor a well-known conservative with a service record who shares Trump’s—and Hegseth’s—view on culling what they see as “woke” policies in the military.Trump allies increasingly think Hegseth might not survive further scrutiny, according to people close to the president-elect’s team, which considers the next 48 hours to be crucial to his fate.DeSantis, who served as a Navy lawyer in Iraq and the Guantanamo Bay detention facility, was on an earlier list of potential defense-secretary candidates that transition officials presented to the president. Trump ultimately went with Hegseth. But as Hegseth’s nomination has faltered, that list has been revived and DeSantis is again among the choices Trump is considering, the people said.The discussions are in their early stages, one of the people said, adding that Trump has floated DeSantis’s name in casual conversations with guests at Mar-a-Lago, his private Florida club.Trump could decide not to choose DeSantis and select another replacement, if Hegseth’s nomination falls apart, the people said. Another potential defense-secretary candidate who has been discussed by Trump allies, according to people familiar with the matter, is Elbridge Colby, a former Pentagon official and ally of Vice President-elect JD Vance. Trump is also considering Sen. Joni Ernst (R., Iowa) for the job, some of the people said.DeSantis was once seen as an acolyte of Trump but his decision to challenge the former president in the 2024 GOP primary began a conflict between them, with Trump casting DeSantis as disloyal. Trump easily prevailed in the primary and friends of the two have worked to repair the relationship.

▲  279 replies