> Maureen wrote: > > > During Vietnam all the poor and working > > class kids had to go. The others got student deferments or in > > the case of George Bush, Dad pulled some strings and got him > > in the National Guard.
And Steve wrote: > I don't disagree at all that, with money and influence, many were > able to avoid the draft. Don't forget, though, that student > deferments were eliminated (in 1970 or '71?). That certainly > affected MY life, and those of the people I was at school with. I think the deferments were eliminated in late '70 when Nixon went to the lottery system. My boyfriend at the time had a high lotto number and his brother had a low number and my boyfriend valiantly wanted to find a way to go in place of his brother. I think it was late '70 because I remember hearing LOTC the first time while discussing all this at their house. My observation of the time - I knew two rich kids who volunteered for the Marines and Navy right out of high school before student deferments ended. They had excellent, honor roll grades and didn't need to go into the service because they had no other options. I also knew two rich kids who got out of service on medical deferments (one a heart condition and one another medical problem). A couple guys I knew volunteered for the Navy Reserve and Coast Guard in lieu is being drafted and sent off to combat. The hitch was they had to serve for six years. Most of those years they had it pretty easy reporting once a month stateside but at one point they were called to active duty. One served a few years active in Guam and the other in Hawaii. They never were sent to Vietnam. Two other friends opted for conscientious objector status and served as clerk typists and did not have to go on the battlefield. One other friend volunteered and was sent to Vietnam. He convinced the authorities that he couldn't handle it and was discharged. Point is that some willingly went, some found other ways out, and some were allowed to opt out. The military service does have people who go into it for the benefits they can get (and some of those people are what some call disadvantaged). Others really are called to it. They are highly educated middle or upper class and could choose other paths more advantageous to themselves but they want to choose this path. There are many benefits that can be gained from military service - free higher education, and if they stay in for 20 years - a very nice lifelong pension when they retire at 39 or 40 and go into a civilian career. The U.S. military has been all volunteer for many years now. The ones now serving have willingly chosen this path and have not been forced to take it. It's a big difference now from the 50s and 60s when young men were drafted into service. Kakki
