Military recruitment increasingly difficult

When President Lincoln and Congress decided to draft young men for military service during the Civil War the public reaction produced riots in several cities. Despite public opposition, the need for men to replace those killed or wounded meant that conscription would last as long as combat continued. The military draft ended when the Civil War ended.

There was no peacetime military draft, but war in Europe raised concerns that the United States could be threatened if the conflict continued. The draft began during World War I and ended when the war ended. In 1940 conscription was begun again, although some changes had been instituted. Religious exemptions had been narrowed, and the terms of service were lengthened. On Dec. 5, 1942, U.S. Army inductees' term of service was set to be the duration of the war plus six months.

The Korean War began in June 1950 and ended with an armistice in 1953 and resulted in 1.5 million men drafted to military service. The draft was still in effect during the Cold War, and it was increased along with the increase in U.S. involvement in Vietnam. Of the 8,744,000 service members in the military between 1964 and 1975; 3,403,000 were deployed to Southeast Asia.

The end of the war in Vietnam meant the end of the draft, and the United States Armed Forces became an all-volunteer force. As the military made its recruitment goals, it raised the standards for enlistment. Military leaders were more than satisfied with the quality of the recruits they were getting. Education levels were higher, criminal records were clean, and physical fitness levels were higher.

Today, with increased employment opportunities and higher pay levels the military is beginning to find it harder to meet it's enlistment goals. The Army missed its annual recruitment goals by 6,500 soldiers for the first time since the war on terror began. Standards for recruits are being lowered, and the military is looking at new recruiting methods, including social media.

The question the Department of Defense must address is what it will do if recruitment levels continue to drop. I suspect there is not a politician in Washington who would dare suggest a return to the draft.

Jack Dragoni attended Boston College and served in the U.S. Army in Berlin and Vietnam. He lives in Chaffee, Missouri.