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Vietnam War Draft Essay

943 Words4 Pages

Vietnam has certainly remained as one of the most concerning and controversial wars of all time. One of the most disputed aspects of the war was the draft. As a result of the draft, many young men would never return home. From draft card burnings, to anti-war protests, it is evident that the draft and it’s process was seen as unfavorable in the eyes of many people in America. As the United States began to get involved in the Vietnam war, the draft process lingered in the air. The draft ranged from ages eighteen to twenty-six years old. The oldest people drawn from the draft lottery were chosen first. Some of the exceptions for the draft were if you were the only child, a full-time student in college, or a senior in college but only during …show more content…

It shows just how much draftees were infuriated by the war, by risking jail time for burning the cards.
A countless number of people who were chosen “dodged” the draft or avoided registering. During the Vietnam War, all men were required to have their draft cards with them at all time. For this reason, catching the “draft-dodgers” became an easier task. Some draftees would pay malpracticing doctors to give them a bad health exam, to dodge the draft. Some people moved to Canada. Over 250,000 young men resisted to even register for the war. The amount of people that avoided the draft is incredible. The reasons for draft evasion is understandable because of the horror and complete chaos that was the Vietnam …show more content…

In the Vietnam draft, there were many excuses that exempted men from the war. Some people even created fake illnesses to avoid it. Today, there are less excuses to dodge the draft, and there are more thorough examinations. Another difference is that a draft today would use a lottery call, instead of having no system enacted like in Vietnam. These changes were made in 1971. (Selective Service System). These changes could have prevented the chaos involved with draft-dodgers. Although theses changes to the draft should have been created a long time ago, it is beneficial and more efficient than the draft in

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All in all, Source 1 and 2 both have a different stance on how the Draft should or shouldn’t be available. While both do give their beneficial ideals, Source 2 was more logical with its stand than Source 1s idea of unity and income. However, both sources use the reason that Draft shouldn’t be passed from World war and Vietnam. For example, “ Vietnam was a war of attrition without a clear victory condition or civilian peace-building component, and thus unlike our more recent conflicts” (Source 1). Also , “First of all, World War II and the Vietnam conflict, both of which were very costly in terms of human life for numerous reasons, were also both wars of conscription, as was the Civil War, the bloodiest conflict in American history in terms of American lives lost” (Source 2).

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Their dread, and absence of being locked in will just make them simple prey and destroy forces one by one. When the draft initially started families were devastated to find out that their loved ones had to go away and fight in the war and doing so it tore relationships up and break the mentality of young adults. This created a inept amount of tension within the country and the public was not prepared for this moment and became a danger to the rest of the group they may have served. Ultimately, getting rid of the draft put civilians in ease knowing that they don't have to go off to war without being

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People who thought that sending men out unwilling would benefit the army force, I feel made a very poor judgement due to the lack of knowledge. I also think that the army would be better off if they just had people who enlisted because you do not know if someone is physically, emotionally, or mentally stable to go to war. Conscription was put into place due to heavy losses in the war, by demanding men to go to war after the fatal deaths of many, what makes this time

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