Royal Sargent recently wrote (9-26-07) a letter to the editor recommending the United States reinstate the draft. I fervently disagree with his recommendation, finding the draft reprehensible.

Mr. Sargent postulates a draft would strengthen the U.S. military, thus strengthening our position in world affairs. I’m not so sure. One’s reluctance or eagerness to join the ranks of the military is likely to reflect, in part, his/her sentiments toward the mission of that particular organization. An all-volunteer army is more likely to be a motivated group, whereas a group of draftees is going through the motions until their sentences are complete, much like an incarcerated criminal.

A draft’s most repulsive feature is that it compels people to participate in activities against their will, similar to slavery. If one will not participate freely, another man can not rightly force participation. To coerce one man to work and fight against his will is similar to Mike Vick’s activities with Pit Bulls—it robs one of free will.

I concede there are benefits to a draft, as Mr. Sargent assumes; I, however, also acknowledge there are significant costs as well, which are typically less observable. As with most proposed public policy, the benefits are easily ascertainable, while the costs are hidden.

It is the cost of the draft that Mr. Sargent ignores. A draft would impose additional taxes on society as it increased its military might, resulting in deadweight costs that are usually associated with taxes. We would also lose the difference in the value that these young men and women produce in the military and the output they would have produced in lieu of being drafted.

Gary Becker, a prominent economist and Nobel Laureate, equates a draft to a tax, and a very bad tax at that. He says, “It is a tax in kind, on the time of young persons, rather than a tax on income, wealth, or spending.” This tax hits the most capable workers the hardest, to society’s detriment down the road. For instance, suppose an industrious, capable young man was headed to Harvard to study medicine, but he was instead drafted. Instead of working to find answers to aid various cancers and a host of other illnesses, he would be stuck in the military for a number of years being shot at. He would lose several years of study and high income, and his contributions to society would be delayed or even lost, resulting, potentially, in thousands, even millions, of lives lost to illnesses that could have been treated with his contributions to medicine.

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