Republicans are losing their minds over the possibility women may be included in military draft registration.
Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, a Democrat from Pennsylvania and Air Force veteran is pushing to add to the House’s version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) language requiring men to be automatically registered for the draft based on existing federal records instead of registering themselves when they turn 18. Doing so could increase compliance and save money that is now used for outreach efforts to encourage men to register voluntarily.
Dudes, do you recall when you turned 18 and had to register yourself into the Selective Service System? I do and I didn’t sweat it. I remember driving my 1972 Gran Torino down to the post office in 1984 and registering (OK, I don’t actually remember where I went to register, but I think it was the post office). I didn’t believe we were going to war anytime soon, so I didn’t lose any sleep over it. I was wrong (we’re always at war) but the draft was never activated. We haven’t had a draft in this nation since the early 70s when we were sending poor kids who couldn’t get into college to die in Vietnam in a war we lost and never had a stake in.
Bill Clinton was a poor kid but was in college and smart enough to avoid the draft. He caught a lot of hell for it later when he ran for president. Donald Trump was a rich spoiled kid who dodged the draft with lies about having bone spurs. Later when he ran for president, he was given a pass. President Obama wasn’t old enough to be drafted into the Vietnam War yet, some Republicans still give him shit for that in the same way they criticize him for not stopping 9/11.
The NDAA is a yearly process of giving the military more money and every year, it’s more money than the last. This year’s NDAA may include changes that register guys for the draft automatically as soon as they turn 18. That sounds convenient because I had to remember to drive my 1972 Grant Torino to register back when I was even lazier than I am now all I could think about was boobs and guitars (honestly, I didn’t remember. My mom hounded me). Over half of the states (in case you’re a Republican, there are 50) already automatically register young men for the draft, so this isn’t really a big deal. What is the big deal is that after both chambers of Congress (in case you’re a Republican, the House and Senate) reach their compromises on this bill, it may include women in the registration.
Republicans are losing their shit over fears that women will be drafted into combat. But guess what. Women have been serving in the military since 1948. Being drafted doesn’t mean you will serve in combat. There is more than one job in the military. Also, nobody’s being drafted. It’s a registration for the draft in case it’s ever activated again. Republicans struggle with comprehension.
My question to every Republican upset about this is: So what?
Why can’t women be drafted?
Macy Petty, a columnist for Fox News, is upset over this. She thinks it’s a leftist thing except it cleared a Republican-controlled committee. She says it’s a “social experiment,” but how is it a social experiment when there’s not a draft? Do you remember when people said the same thing about women in the military? So far, women in the military haven’t upended society any more than integration has. We also haven’t self-destructed by allowing LGBTQ into the military. Don’t show Ms. Petty Starship Troopers.
Petty argues, “Drafting women for military service is the next step in the long ideological battle to erase any evidence of the age-old truth.” That is, men and women are different. Duh. Boys have wee-wees and girls have hoo-ha’s. But what makes Petty believe men are better for military service than women? Are we going to arm-wrestle the enemy?
She also writes, “Men have a civil obligation to defend the freedom they and their families at home enjoy every day. Inflating one to another is misinformation about familial obligations and disrupts the bedrock of society.”
First off, we have not defended OUR freedom in combat since the American Revolution. Britain was NOT trying to take away our freedom in the War of 1812. Spain wasn’t trying to steal our freedom. Nobody was trying to steal our freedom in World War I. Yes, we fought for freedom in World War II, but it wasn’t for our freedom (Japan and Germany were never a threat to invade us). We were never under attack from Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, or even Panama. Even Afghanistan hasn’t attacked us (that was al Qaeda). Thank you for your service but cut out the crap about fighting for our freedom. We’re free, fuckers. Thanks to the First Amendment, you can all crap on Kaepernick for exercising his First Amendment rights. God bless America.
As for the Civil War, half the country was trying to prevent freedom and the other half’s freeing a segment of our society was just a by-product of the whole thing.
Second, if men have an obligation to “defend our freedom,” then shouldn’t women? Let them all play. Every Israeli citizen (most anyway) must serve two to three years in the military as well as reserve duty until they’re 40. Israel is always at war, officially and unofficially, and they always win. Women don’t seem to be dragging it down at all.
We want the best for our military but we can’t have the best if we don’t include women. This isn’t about leftist policies, social experiments, or women’s rights. It’s about having the best military that we possibly can.
That said, there shouldn’t be any registration for the draft. Nobody should be forced to fight a war they don’t believe in and over the past 60 years, we have not been in a war to believe in.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to play my guitar while watching Starship Troopers (there are boobs).
Signed prints: The signed prints are just $40.00 each. Every cartoon on this site is available. You can pay through PayPal. If you don’t like PayPal, you can snail mail it to Clay Jones, P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402. I can mail the prints directly to you or if you’re purchasing as a gift, directly to the person you’re gifting.
Tales From The Trumpster Fire: I have five copies and you can order yours, signed by me, for $45.00. You can pay through PayPal to clayjonz@gmail.com. You can also snail it to P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402.
Knee-Deep In Mississippi: There are only 16 copies left of my first book, published in 1997. These can be purchased for $40.00
Tip Jar: If you want to support the cartoonist, please send a donation through PayPal to clayjonz@gmail.com. You can also snail it to P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402.
Watch me draw:
CLAYTOONZ 
Historically, a draft was necessary in war time. Marco Rubio has been saying there are not enough young people volunteering to join the military. Given my mistrust of MAGA Republicans, I guess female mandatory service is for the Trump development of his Schutzstaffel.
LikeLiked by 4 people
You are very funny!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Joining the military, or related organization, should be a free choice for anyone who wants to join — and a free choice for anyone who does not want to join. When the draft was designed there weren’t enough men to fight in a big war, and though I do not agree with even that, there certainly are enough people in America today who would be willing to join that there would be more than enough people to build an army! And there is no reason for anyone to be denied that choice.
Republicans do not live in the present, they think America is still a newly formed nation with needs that exceed reality — guns, defence spending, male chauvanism and dominance, etc. It’s time they got their heads out of their panties and learned how to be human beings, not ignoramuses. (I wanted to say Neanderthals, but that would be to insult any Neanderthal still living today. Republicans are way lower than that on the evolutionary scale!)
LikeLiked by 4 people
I am against the draft and have been since I learned of it back in the ’60s. I remember the days of the lottery when my friends were called up to serve in Vietnam. What a damn nightmare that was! When my son had to register I was so upset. My dad, a veteran of WWll spent years counseling conscientious objectors and I always hoped he (and I, a pacifist since childhood) would have some influence on my son, but no such luck, but at least he never joined up on his own and never got drafted into anything since he turn 18 in ’95 and there wasn’t much going on then. Now he’s too old. BUT – all that said – if they are going to insist on drafting men, it’s only fair that women get drafted, too. I’ll host as many draft card burning parties as needed, help people escape to Canada (or somewhere else so that we don’t overwhelm rawdog and his friends and family), whatever needs to be done. 🙂
LikeLiked by 2 people
I’m married to a man who spent 20-years in the Air Force. We lived all over the world and our two older children got an education in living in another country that a book doesn’t teach. We were able to adopt a little girl from S. Korea to complete our family and her siblings love her to death. Our oldest son went into the Army for three years out of high school. He was actually in Germany when the wall came down has a certificate to show it. I have no problem with women registering for the draft too. It works in other countries why not here too. Besides if these kids were inducted for a two or three year sprint in the military they wouldn’t have time to join gangs, get into trouble, do smash and grab robberies, shoot at each other killing innocent people. And they might even learn a skill that would help them find a good job. Besides all of that if you want to continue to live in this democracy than you need to defend it.
LikeLike
Clay, you made me do a spit take when you wrote:
“Duh. Boys have wee-wees and girls have hoo-ha’s.”
Recently went to Walgreen’s to pick up a prescription. Walking to back of store and an item caught out of the corner of my eye made do a cartoonish skidding stop and double take. There was a probiotic product from Olli, name was Happy Hoo Ha !!
Got me to want to go ask an employee if they have happy hoo ha. If unsure, an announcement over public address asking for the product.
LikeLiked by 1 person