Women and the draft: It’s about time

In a commentary piece in Sunday’s ADN, Paul Jenkins wrote an article entitled: “Drafting women into the military would be a national disgrace.” I disagree with that idea whole-heartedly. Having women register for the draft would even things up as they should be. Here is news for Mr. Jenkins, women have already served in combat and they have been doing so for years. In Iraq and Afghanistan in many of the firefights that took place, female soldiers were in the middle of more than a few and they did well. The majority of those were during convoy operations. It was just until recently that the combat arms branches in the armed forces have been opened up officially for qualified female candidates to train and serve in. If they make the cut that is how it should be no matter the gender.

Mr. Jenkins has a strange logic that is nearly nostalgic. His article seems to hold a double standard where it is okay for both sexes to serve as officers and enlisted members in the military. Yet it is a male-only privilege when comes down to the being drafted. Like it is 1940 and not 2016. Why is that sir? Why is it so “mealy, amoral and cowardly” for the nation to consider drafting it’s daughters, granddaughters and sisters into combat when they already do so now? I have two daughters as well as two sons so I’m not heartless. Vicky, my oldest, served six years in the Army reserves as a supply SGT. I also admit I breathed a huge sigh of relief when she didn’t have to go to Iraq like her old man did. But if she was to go over there I would have supported her 100 percent. She got out on a medical discharge after a back injury during a training exercise.

The draft, if it ever gets reactivated, would mean the nation is in dire crisis. A desperate America is sending out the call to arms to its young people: “We need you!” Right now it is only males age 18 to 26 who must register and answer that call if the balloon goes up. This must change. Since women have proven themselves over the years as to be equals in service, it is logical that they should be allowed to register to be drafted as well. They are, after all, Americans too.

When I first enlisted 35 years ago, many of the soldiers I served with were Vietnam veterans. A good deal of them were draftees. The modern day draft, which had been around since 1940, ended in 1973 and an all-volunteer military was born. I was one of those soldiers to raise my right hand in the summer of 1980. It was a struggle at times during those early years of the post-draft era. Women were only in limited support roles back then. Not so any more, proving to many a skeptic that women could go the distance and soldier on.

I had to register thanks to President Carter’s reviving of the selective service registration act in July of ’80. I received nasty grams from the government that I had better register or else back when I was 19. I was puzzled because I was already into my first hitch with the U.S. Army. Don’t argue, just do it was the advice of my older, wiser comrades in arms. So take a wild guess what I did.

But if times should become that bad and the nation is in such pressing need, then both male and female citizens of age must answer the call equally. It won’t be a national disgrace as Paul Jenkins contends in his article, far from it. It would a be a greater dishonor if they women didn’t register. War should remain in the realm of the last resort. It should never be a casual thing as some pundits and politicians falsely prescribe in the media and beyond.

It may well be that with the addition of women into forced service (that is what the draft really is, people) that those in power would take stock and pause before taking such drastic action. The notion that American women are just Suzy homemakers playing soldier is insulting. I served with a lot of them in my Army career and they were some of finest soldiers I have ever seen. More than sugar and spice, they are fit to fight.

Daniel D. Grota is a retired U.S. Army veteran with over 21 years in service. He is also a Tuesday morning co-host on KVRF 89.5 FM, Radio Free Palmer. Write to him at news@frontiersman.com.