Conscription

 

Conscription is compulsory enlistment for state service, typically into the armed forces.

Conscription legally requires people to join the army, with penalties if they don’t. During the Vietnam War, many U.S. citizens protested conscription by burning their draft documents or fleeing to Canada, and some faced prison time because of these actions.

 

Conscription, also called draft, compulsory enrollment for service in a country’s armed forces. It has existed at least from the time of the Egyptian Old Kingdom (27th century BC), but there have been few instances of universal conscription (calling all those physically capable between certain ages).

 

Both draft evasion and desertion are usually criminal offenses and are therefore punishable by law. It is legitimate for countries to require their citizens to perform compulsory military service and therefore punishment for failing to complete this duty will not automatically be regarded as persecution.

 

Since we (that is the Imperial ‘We’) get jealous and angry and paranoid and threatened, we attack each other in a process called ‘wars’. It makes sense if you want to go into battle with another; you have lots of conscripts to use.

 

Back in the day an emperor or king or even a papal leader would decide they needed an army to go to war to conquer territories or defend the homeland. The ruler would contact the oligarchs (the land owners of the time) and order them to wage war. The barons and dukes would gather up all their peasants and walk off to another land to beat and slash on other peasants and the last one standing wins.

 

Later, families fueled battles and friends peer pressure to fight and die for land or country or following a flag into battle.

 

After technology introduced weapons of mass destruction, it is not a matter of how many people (mostly men in armed forces) but how many bullets there are to waste. 

 

So now there is another invasion of one land by another and all the men (between the ages of 18-60) are conscripted to fight for their country. Are the bakers, lawyers, schoolteachers and garbage collectors ready to die for their country? Where are the women? Everyone else is trying to get out of the way.

 

There are volunteers. There are folks who dig going into woods and shooting at each other. Sign here and get a red shirt.

 

While the rest of us sit on the sidelines and watch, this is not a movie set. As long as it is happening ‘over there’ and not falling on our heads, we can have all the opinions and talk shows to persuade no one. At the end of this show (hopefully there isn’t a apocalypse chapter) there will be destroyed architecture, body counts, fires, broken infrastructure, and the leftovers.

 

Who wins?

 

Maybe some day robots and drones can fight the war? There will still be broken buildings and lots of explosions and smoke and fire, but no bodies in the street. Or maybe the leaders can arm wrestle without any conscription? Too violent? How about a game of H-O-R-S-E?