What are your thoughts on a mandatory military service requirement, also called the Draft? 

Periodically, this subject surfaces, often in connection with Israel. I saw it surface again last week. Israel has a mandatory service requirement for women and men. Should we?  

I'm opposed to the draft for two principle reasons. 

1. Forcing people to go to war seems to me to be an intrinsically bad idea. The all-volunteer military is the obvious alternative, and my personal preference.

2. I'm for freedom. If the state has the power to force you into harm's way, or possibly order you to surrender your life for the greater good, then you aren't truly free. 

"The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few." Mr. Spock said as much in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. To an extent he's right. The fate of a ship or a nation is more important that that of any single crew member or citizen. But, remember, Spock made the choice to sacrifice himself for his crew. He wasn't forced or compelled to do it. The needs of the many - in our case the state - might outweigh the needs of the few. But, in the course of defending its interests abroad and even its homeland, the state should never strip away the rights of the people it's sworn to protect and serve.  

Philosopher and noted author Ayn Rand [and others] have argued - and rightly so - that all other rights hinge upon personal property rights and, I would add, are given to us by our creator. See the Declaration of Independence for more on that. My body, my property. I lose that then I've lost everything. My rights don't come from the state, they come from God. I am not a ward of the state; the state doesn't own me. My life is a gift from God. The state may not cash it like common currency.  

Note: For this post, I'm specifically thinking of wars fought upon foreign soil. If America was invaded, I'm confident that, without being asked, tens of millions of the body politic would open their closets, take out their Remington bolt-actions and AR-15s, and refresh the tree of liberty with the blood of patriots and tyrants. 

Okay...let me know what you think. And thanks for reading.