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Today was Veterans Day in the US, and similarly celebrated elsewhere.
It is a day to remember the men and women who have served in the military,
and to realize the situations of families who have lost members in times of war.
It's also a time when generations misunderstand one another
because they do not have the same shared experiences.
World War II vets had a view of what life should be,
and molded the US government to fit that view.
To them, the government was not the beast-to-be-starved.
Agencies were created to meet the needs of private citizens.
Unions formed and the seeds of racial tolerance were embedded.
Political parties had their differences, but as viewed today they were definitely "moderate".
Twenty years later, the Viet Nam War drove a wedge between
young men and those WWII vets, who had become "the establishment".
Young men faced decisions about whether to serve in a so-called "immoral war".
Love It or Leave It - Draft Dodgers - Peaceniks - Long Haired Hippies
During all this, the boots-on-the-ground military changed complexion.
The Black and Hispanic communities were enlisted far beyond their numbers,
while college deferments and Canada were ways out for those who rejected military service.
So a military draft was established ---
But when the numbers of dead and wounded hit the middle class,
the anti-war revolt began in earnest.
Thirty-five mostly peaceful years later, the generations are missing one another again.
Support for the military actions in the middle east is flagging.
Military families, and especially the National Guard and Reserve, are stretched to breaking.
This "volunteer army" has almost borne the weight of this war alone,
while other citizens went about their private lives without being affected.
Today, there has been many talking heads on TV, and these issues are being discussed.
Some have said there is a need to involve the entire nation in this war on terrorism.
Involvement seems to mean "skin in the game" and there was discussion of calling for a draft.
But strangely enough, the soldiers of the Viet Nam era are now the officer corps,
and they speak highly of the quality of the current "volunteer" military.
As a liberal, it is hard for me to view the idea of a draft with equanimity.
My own young adult phase came during that Viet Nam era,
and those ideas are the ones that mean the most to me.
If it were a perfect world, a draft could be a way to "distribute the pain"
and to give more citizens a "stake" in the outcomes of political decisions.
But it's not a perfect world.
The "have's" will always find their way out of the "bad",
and the "have-not's" will end up carrying the loads.
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