Draft or Volunteer Army: Our Nation's Best Interest

Abstract

Since the nation took its roots in 1776, the U.S. military forces have, at times, been an all-volunteer force and at other times a combination of a volunteer and a draft force. Many in today's military have reviewed writings concerning the Vietnam era draft years; however, they have only served as part of the all-volunteer force that was established in 1973. This research paper reviews the historical aspects of a military draft in the United States and in some foreign nations. It examines and compares today's all-volunteer force and the Vietnam era draft in the following major areas: (1) military effectiveness, (2) cost and other economic considerations, (3) socio-political force composition and equity, and (4) level of conflict. The author presents the arguments for a volunteer Army versus a non-volunteer Army. Finally, recommendations are given with regard to the continuance of the all-volunteer Army.

Open PDF

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Feb 20, 2008
Accession Number
ADA493683

Entities

People

  • Robbie Asher

Organizations

  • University of Texas at Austin

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Civil War
  • Enlisted Personnel
  • Intergovernmental Organizations
  • International Law
  • International Organizations
  • Iraqi-War
  • Law
  • Military Personnel
  • Military Training
  • Minority Groups
  • National Politics
  • National Security
  • Second World War
  • Students
  • United States
  • Ussr
  • War Colleges

Readers

  • East Asian Political and Security Studies within the Soviet Union
  • Military Mobilization and Reserve Forces Studies.