Backdoor Draft

Roxanne from Rox Populi directs my attention to a Seattle Weekly story about an upcoming case to be heard by the Ninth Circuit Court there. The story addresses the plight of Emiliano Santiago, a National Guardsman whose service with the Guard has been extended beyond eight years under a government policy called "stop loss." Even Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona considers the practice a "backdoor draft." I think of it as a "silent" draft, the forced and limitless indenture of American servicemen and women - citizens who at one time in their lives honorably volunteered to serve their country in the armed forces can now be all but enslaved because they did. Should we not be appalled by this practice? What justification should be able to salve the American conscience in such a way as to be satisfied with a blind eye turned toward this inexcusable suspension of fundamental liberty?

Of course we need soldiers to continue the interventions initiated by this country, and I realize the ranks of volunteers are shrinking, but should the answer to this situation then be to suspend the rights of honorable American citizens, particularly those who have already given so many years of their lives to protect and defend the freedoms the rest of us can take for granted?

Add this "prickly" issue to the list of concerns about which you'll dedicate yourself to knowing more. Then write an email to an American soldier with the assurance that you'll care about her(his) freedom to the same degree that your glad they care about yours.

Emiliano's freedom in on the line in Seattle soon. Two weeks before the completion of his initial eight-year commitment to the Guard, lawyers representing the U.S. Government (that’s you and me the last I checked) presented Emiliano with a revised contract – they still call it a contract - informing him of a new release date. If he loses his case in Seattle, Emiliano will not complete his commitment to the Army National Guard until the year 2031. He was 18 years old when he volunteered; he’s 26 right now, and he’ll be 52 years old if he serves the duration. Make sense of that or, for the love of liberty, make noise.