Planning for a Brighter Future

-Occasionally I get into one of those moods where I long for the so-called "gold old days". Watching too much news on TV will do that to a baby boomer. So here I go with another observation and a potential solution for one of today's problems. By the way, before I get too far into this, we boomers should not claim to have the answer to the world's ills. Many of the 60's generation insisted that we would bring peace and prosperity to the planet. How has that worked out? Anyway, here goes my older-guy rant.

Not all, but many, young people today seem to think they are entitled to everything without having to do anything. I don't know how that mindset develops except for the possibility that people younger than 50...heck even 60...have not HAD to perform any sort of public service. I HAD to. I was one of the last people in this country to be drafted into the armed forces after the Vietnam war. I went kicking and screaming to eight weeks of Army basic training and another eight weeks of advanced training. But it probably was sixteen weeks of the thing I needed most at age 21. I had just graduated from college and had lived at home the whole time. I was still a kid with mom doing my laundry. As a result of my military training, I was forced to grow up, learn to take care of myself, understand how lucky I was to live in the United States, exercise some self-discipline, and appreciate service to others in this world. I came home a much different person.

After basic training and AIT, I spent six years in the Army Reserve. Sure, I could have done other things with my time. But putting on a military uniform and representing this country in an official way does something to you inside...and outside. Most, not all, but most people who put on the uniform of one of the services become changed in a positive way. They become part of one of the greatest "teams" in the world. They then develop an understanding of the value of teamwork...and the necessity of it. Working with others, and relying on them...and them on you, brings real respect for the other humans we interact with regularly. This is particularly true, I think, when training to defend your country. Suddenly, your self-importance and belief that the world owes you something is gone. Additionally, if one has the urge to fire a weapon, that itch is scratched in basic training too. And you certainly then understand the damage a military-style weapon can do.

Why do we see so many bullets flying and killing innocent people these days? I would say primarily because the person holding the gun has no respect for him or herself, and certainly very little for anyone else. If there were more respect for others, and less of a sense of entitlement among younger people, I'm saying there would be much less bad news to have to suffer through.

So what's my solution? It may sound like caveman thinking to some, but I'm suggesting required military training and public service for at least six months after high school. A full year would be better.

If you think this is barbaric, well you might be part of the problem. There are still several countries in this world who believe in such service to the nation...and apparently what it does for the development of the individual...and further what it does for the growth of society. Bermuda, Burundi, Cape Verde, Colombia, France, Kuwait, Mali, Mauritania, Singapore, Sweden, Thailand and Venezuela all have some form of compulsory military service.

Because I have spent some time in Sweden, and admire their way of life, I am particularly impressed with that country's commitment to military conscription. In fact, they abandoned it in 2010, but re-instituted conscription last year and at the same time made it gender-neutral. So in Sweden a percentage of young people of a certain age are drafted into military service. Those who conscientiously object are given the chance to perform in the country's civilian reserve. Either way, there is a mandatory commitment to country for a percentage of the population. So Sweden, thought of as one of the most liberal nations on the planet, requires a year of public service or military service for a percentage of its young people. (With tongue in cheek)- How draconian!

I would suggest our country take it a large step further to require it of all young people upon reaching age 18, or graduating high school. Make it a requirement as well for people who are in the country illegally as a part of the citizenship process.

The sense of entitlement would then be different, but justified. "I am an American and am entitled to all this country has to offer. I have earned the respect of others, and I respect them as well." Perhaps then the Pledge of Allegiance would become more than a grouping of meaningless words written by some old man to our youth.

OK...there's the main plank in my platform as I run for president in 2020. Thank you! And God Bless America!