Let's Rock MTV

MTV has a feature called "Rock the Vote", which exhorts America's youth to get themselves informed on ths issues, and then vote Democratic. Oh, I'm kidding. Or maybe not - their information page covering "War and the Draft" does not meet my exacting standards for "fair and balanced".

The page is not dated, whcih may cause confusion. Careful readers will detect that it must have been written in the spring, since it eventually refers to the upcoming transition in Iraq on June 30. However, they have this scary lead:

A NEW MILITARY DRAFT?

It's on everyone's lips. And it directly affects YOU.

There's no question about it: the United States military is being stretched thin. Our Armed Forces are not only on active duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, but also in some areas of the former Soviet Union, South Korea and Europe.

At a hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee last week about post-occupation Iraq, Senator Chuck Hagel (R-NE) thrust the issue of reinstituting a military draft right into the public debate. "There's not an American ... that doesn't understand what we are engaged in today and what the prospects are for the future. Why shouldn't we ask all of our citizens to bear some responsibility and pay some price?" The Senator went further and argued that restoring compulsory military service would force "our citizens to understand the intensity and depth of challenges we face."...

Eventually they mention that the only bill in Congress is sponsored by Dem. Charles Rangel. They do not trouble to describe his anti-war motivation, nor do they use the phrase "publicity stunt".

They do provide supporting links to the Village Voice, also from April, and to "Choose or Lose", also from April, which also downplays Rangel's real objective.

We have our own earlier thoughts here; my suggestion to MTV is that they add to their resources this NY Times article from July. They will feel comfortable with the tilt (and the paranoid, conspiratorial air), but, although I mocked it, some of the news is there.

UPDATE: Mr. Cooper writes about persistent draft rumors in the inaccessible WSJ; I happend to see a dead tree version lying about. He urges us to check the Selective Service website, which prominently announces "No! Draft! Coming!"

Mr. Cooper also provides a comedy classic from an unexpected source - Ralph Nader delivers a stern warning: "Young Americans need to know that a train is coming..."

OK, Ralph - is it a Slow Train Coming? Will we all Ride on the Peace Train? Take the Midnight Train to Georgia (or Florida!)? Karaoke on the campaign trail with Ralph.

UPDATE 2: OK, while we are rocking MTV, let's rock the equally credible CBS News. Good job by RatherBiased.

Comments

[Pouncer]

The military is "stretched thin" for speakers of Arabic (or Farsi, I hope...), for MPs, and a limited set of other specially skilled troops. It's not clear that a 1960's era lottery-based draft of random young people is more likely to fill those slots than targeted recruiting, backed by pay increases; and/or recruitment and retention bonuses. Common sense might suggest the reverse is clear -- the military is more likely to get who they need by advertising on Monster.Com and offering a good salary than via the draft.

[Eric Lindholm]

Those "Choose or Lose" spots on MTV are so transparently Dem-leaning/GOP-bashing, they cannot seriously call themselves unbiased. Too bad for them: the youth vote is trending towards Bush.

Somewhere, Russell Simmons is saying "WTF?!? - Don't these kids watch Def Poets?"

[Lurking Observer]

For those who are propounding the idea that W=draft, here's a question for you:

John Kerry, at his website, says that he will expand the US Army by 40,000 troops. But no one suggests that he would do so by reinstituting the draft. What makes people think that George Dubya will need a draft to meet military requirements?

[kimsch]

My stepdaughter instant messaged me the other day about the draft. She believed every word of it. I told her that democrats were the ones introducing the bills and that they knew there was no chance in h**l that it would ever pass. I told her again and again, in all caps, that there was no draft. She still didn't believe me. 17 years old, what can you say?

[abb1]

Of course there will be draft if the Bushies are re-elected. Who is going to invade and occupy Syria and Iran while continuing killing Iraqis until they get tired of it? That's exactly the point Charlie Rangel was trying to make. They'll need at least a half million more units of cannon fodder. Either all you fellas volunteer or it's your children and grandchildren. I don't see any of you volunteering, so it must be them.

Give some credit to your stepdaughter for having common sense, will ya?

[Lurking Observer]

abb1:

If the entire point is simply to go kill Syrians and Iranians, then there is little need for infantry. A thorough bombing campaign should achieve the equivalent of Hafez al-Assad's "example" of Homs in substantially less time.

IIRC, he required several weeks to systematically reduce his own city to pulverized rubble. With modern fuel-air explosives and bunker-busters, it would require far less time.

And since Syria doesn't even have oil, simply exterminating the population would be much simpler than trying to occupy it. As for the Iranians, it may require a little more effort, but then, we could simply "outsource" the effort to the likes of the Sunni Afghans (who had little love lost for the Iranians under any regime). Couple that with administration by the Shi'a of Iraq, and again a much more liberal application of FAEs and bunker-buster munitions, and it'll be much easier and neater than Iraq.

Having now seen how inefficient Iraq was, after all, and how little the rest of the world appreciates our efforts to limit casualties (such as from the likes of you), perhaps a little compare and contrast is in order? After all, the US chooses to fight a war which limits the level of destruction; it could just as easily look like Grozny. (Perhaps that's the solution: Invite the Russians in, and let them take care of business.)

But thanks for your concern.

[abb1]

It sure does look like Grozny. And the idea to keep killing them till they get tired and submit is not mine, it's Mr. Rumsfeld's.

You do have a point about Syria; I suppose it could be pulverized for the sake of freedom and world's peace. But you are certainly wrong about Iran. There are 60 million people there and they need to be methodically killed, a couple of hundred a day, until they get tired and give up. A lot of work for your stepdaughter. Only then we can give to those who are still alive our great gift of freedom and democracy and liberate their oil. And then - don't forget - someone will have to defend our oil's liberty against evil terrorist thugs. So much to do, so few soldiers.

[Father of Two Boys]

The Kerry campaign continues to try to scare young people with “The Draft”, and their parents with charged Vietnam-era words like “quagmire”. They assume that both groups will run to him, begging to be “saved”, without stopping to investigate any of his wild charges and nuanced innuendo. The polls would seem to indicate that many of them ARE stopping to investigate and turning AWAY.

Turning away because they find that the Democrats introduced the bills in congress just so they could point to them, and give their candidate a “boggieman” to scare people with.

Turning away because they find that “quagmire” doesn’t describe the situation in Iraq, and that Iraq and Vietnam are NOT analogous situations.

Turning away because they don’t like John Kerry insulting their intelligence and/or they really don’t like the taste of Kool-Aid.

There are lots of other reasons they are turning away...but the point is that they ARE!

[Lurking Observer]

abb1:

To compare anywhere in Iraq w/ Grozny simply magnifies your ignorance. Really, do some reading. Or even pull up some videotapes from Russian television, and compare the devastation of Grozny with just about any panorama shot of downtown Baghdad, Fallujah, or Najaf.

As for Iran, why in the world do you insist that we need to do the killing at a retail level? If the point is simply to liberate their oil, then why not kill them in the hundreds of thousands? A few decent firebombings of the cities should do that. This is quite achievable with conventional munitions.

The only reason to kill them at such a low level, when we have the ability to do more, is to suggest that we might be choosing to limit our destructiveness.

But that really wouldn't fit with your preconceptions, would it?

[Oliver Willis]

Hey abb1, like flypaper to stupid is my schtick. You can't keep acting like a poleaxed frenchman. That is taking the food from my kids, er my mouth.

I'm calling the union to lodge a grievance.

[abb1]

Sorry Oliver, I couldn't imagine anyone would want this gig. You can have them here if you want, I'll find another sect.

[S.C.]

What Charlie Rangel has proposed is worse than military conscription-he has proposed two years of "national service" for every young American-join the military or sweep the streets-your choice. The guy blows but what do you expect from a great admirer of Fidel Castro?

[abb1]

Yup, he is another one of those treasonous Democratic cowards:

Congressman Rangel served in the U.S. Army from 1948-52, during which time he fought in Korea and was awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star.

Thank God we now have our Brave Leaders Bush and Cheney to defend our freedom from the evil A-rabs.

[S.C.]

Hey abb1-Benedict Arnold was a war hero and Timothy McVeigh served with distinction killing A-rabs,not all of whom,I'm sure,were evil.

[HowardDeanSupportersSentKerryAPairOfFlipFlopsLastChristmas(TheyKnow!)]

(yawn) abb1 is a troll. The Lefties are desperate.

[Angus Jung]

"You can have them here if you want, I'll find another sect."

This seems to be the closest thing to sects you've ever had.