Colin Powell did get one thing right: if you're going to do something, don't hold back.

[hedgehog]

If we are going to stay in Afghanistan, it's time to enact a full draft of everyone between 18 and 35, college students or not, male and female. If you draft a nursing mother, give her a State side assignment and send someone else over. If it's worth sending people to die, then send everyone. If we're not willing to make that commitment, maybe Afghanistan really isn't that important to our national security after all.

[niyad]

1. not to mention that the first to go should be the families of those who insist on this, those who

vote for it, and those who openly and wholeheartedly support it.

[Ozymanithrax]

4. We should not punish people for their opinion...

Just make the draft as broad as possible and see if they change their mind.

[niyad]

10. "punishing people for their opinions"?? their OPINIONS are getting people killed in large

numbers, and draining our national treasury. we should give them medals, maybe? thoughts and opinions have consequences--and should be borne by those who have them.

[Ozymanithrax]

2. If it is critical to our national survival every parent should be proud to bury a child or two.

I agree 100% with this.

Though I think anyone wanting to note their approval of a war require they fill out a enlistment form. Any age should be able to apply. The old can die for their country, too.

[maglatinavi]

3. Powell

He certainly held back when he lied at the UN and said the there were wmd in Iraq. What a buffon!!! He deserves to be H2O boarded...:puke: :puke: :puke: :mad: :eyes:

[KG]

5. hell, why don't we just go there kill every-fuckin'-one of them?

god will know his own, and all that. :eyes:

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

6. But..but...Canada will become overpopulated with refugees swearing they love hockey. K&R

[CJCRANE]

7. That only works when there is an army to fight and infrastructure to knock down.

You need to implement the "overwhelming force" doctrine from the beginning. That window of opportunity has passed.

[RaleighNCDUer]

8. Strawman nonsense.

We could easily expand the forces in Afghanistan by 40,000 with manpower to spare by drawing down 80,000 from Iraq.

sometimes I think there is a troll infestation here trying to create the semblance of a 'movement' against being there, just so the Republicans can say "it's all Obama's fault" next time Al Queda attacks.

[hedgehog]

9. The point is, if it's worth risking the lives of those who signed up,

why should the rest of us be off the hook?

To me, it makes sense to maintain armed forces large enough to deter a sneak attack, but the main function should be to serve as a skeleton to expand as needed if we are in danger. Look where the American Armed forces were in 1938 vs those of Japan and Germany. We won with a citizen army trained by a relatively small number of professional military men. Maintaining a volunteer force to be used in brush wars that are out-of-sight, out-of-mind for most Americans is a step to Empire.