The last ever draft I was seventeen and I was scared to death. They published it in the paper each year. Birth-dates were assigned a number 1-365.

If your birthdate came up 365, you were golden.
My number was 10, they estimated they would draft 1 thru 100 that year.

I ended up enlisting when I was 18. The drawdown had already begun and I was never 'in country'.

 

I've heard "lesser of two evils" or an equivalent statement mentioned several times now in this thread. There are more than just democrats and republicans running for the presidency. If Obama and McCain are so bad, why give either of them your vote? Who are the other guys? Are they worse than these 2?

And no using the wasted vote excuse either. If Obama and McCain are the 2 evils then a vote for either of them is also wasted. IMHO.

 

I feel he is too much of a politician's politician. I hate politics and politicians. I am still very conservative by most standards. I would like to have seen Colin Powell run for President, though. He is a person I think you can trust to do what is right, regardless of politics. This is why I can still support GB. I think he did what he felt was in the best interest of our country and said politics be damned.

 

A vote is never wasted. What I get tired of is when the people who don't vote are the ones doing the the majority of the complaining.

Voter apathy is a major problem in this country. Far too many people sitting on their hands, content with just doing nothing. Nothing will ever get solved that way.

 

Because none of the others are qualified.

 

So your 51?

 

you see Raoul is really a closet conservative, when he looks left he sees Rush Limbaugh, but he wont admit it he likes to play devils advocate just to see if the rest of us are worthy of being called conservatives. he is really McCain's campaign manager and has a voodoo doll of obama mama that he sticks pins in at night.

(his real name is William and is really the kind of guy youd like to have a beer with )


sorry R. I had to

 

so there are NO qualified candidates running?

 

There was a lot of speculation back in 2000 about Powell throwing his hat into the ring.
I read that ultimately, he declined because his wife asked him not to.

I think you know what she was thinking.

 

What happened to me was weird. I was in college as the draft was cranking up in 63-64. So, there was automatically a student deferrment. I got married after my freshman year. They started drafting students, but no married guys. My wife and I had an "accident" and had our son when i WAS A junior in college. They started drafting married guys, but none with children. So, just by happenstance, I avoided the draft. At the time, I was glad, relieved, whatever, yet felt guilty as so many friends were going. It was a strange time.

 

Yes, and I respect that. It's just that he was a man of experience, conviction, integrity and a good brain. I think he would have been a good one.

 

None I like. I have not felt this bad about the candidates since LBJ. He was just a Texas crook.

 

I'll be 53 in October.
The last Draft was in 1973.
I enlisted in May 1974.
The Vietnam era officially ended May 1975.

I read a few years ago that the last man drafted (how would like to have his luck) retired as a Sergeant Major with 31 years service.
That musta been 2004.

 

I thought the last draft was 1974. I was close! I wasnt even born until 1976.

 

Technically, the Selective Service System didn't dissolve until 1975.
But, the last time they yanked a hippie off the street and cut off all his hair was 1973.

(and I had me some beautiful hair back in the day)