DRAFT THE NFL
A SPIN NEWS NETWORK EDITORIAL
Today America faces numerous threats around the world, rouge regimes like North Korea and Iran, huge standing armies in Russia and China as well as terrorist groups like ISIS and al-Qaida.
For over four decades our nation has been protected by an all volunteer force, since the Vietnam War era lottery based draft system ended in 1973. President Nixon campaigned successfully to end the draft, which had conscripted nearly 2.2 million men between 1961 and 1973. The United States withdrawal from Vietnam made an end to the draft possible, had another major conflict erupted at the time, such as a second Korean War, the draft would have remained.
Our volunteer force had been very effective over the relatively peaceful period of the mid 1970’s to late 1990’s that was marked by the end of the Cold War and a global coalition during the first Gulf War, but that all changed on 9/11. Some argue that sixteen years of war in Afghanistan and Iraq have stretched the volunteer military to its breaking point and bonuses and expanding benefits have brought personnel funding to its limit. More importantly the American people are more disconnected from the military than at any time in history.
Plans for a return to the draft are already in place, but to reinstate conscription on a generation of sheltered snowflakes unable to cope with the world as it is and clearly not as resilient as their predecessors would take time. Polling indicates most millennials do not wish to serve in the military and physically they would have to undergo extensive basic training to become an effective fighting force. Draftees who want to go to college would have to complete a Reserve Officer Training Corps program first and if they fail or quit ROTC they would be forced to enlist. If an existential national crisis erupted, such as a large conventional war that we haven’t seen since World War II, the success of America would depend on how quickly we can react. Fortunately we have approximately 1700 individuals in the NFL who already have undergone the necessary physical training and have shown great skill working as a team.
Drafting the NFL during a time of conflict will send a message of shared sacrifice both to the Soldiers already on Active Duty and the American citizens forced to give up Monday Night Football for the war effort. Drafting the NFL will also restore the reputation of the franchise tarnished by players protesting the national anthem and disrespecting the nations flag. As Army Ranger Captain Alejandro Villanueva once said, “I don’t know if the most effective way to protest is to sit down during the national anthem with a country that’s providing you freedom, providing you $16 million a year … when there are black minorities that are dying in Iraq and Afghanistan for less than $20,000 a year.”
Spin News Network commends Villanueva, who stood for our National Anthem while the rest of his team hid in a Chicago locker room.
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