Should Military Service Be Mandatory Or Not

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Being US citizens, it is our responsibility to protect our nation. In the United States, there is a system of volunteering military forces and those militaries protect and control terrorism inside and outside the nation. I believe the American government should enforce mandatory military service for at least two years for every able-bodied citizen so that every citizen would be capable to take part to protect and fight for the nation in times of necessity. Many countries in the world today still force their men, and in some cases women, to go into military service.

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North Korea, Israel, Norway, South Korea, Egypt, Brazil, etc. are the countries with Mandatory military service (Countries with Mandatory Military Service). Therefore, mandatory military service is important for national security, and national unity and to make citizens physically and mentally stronger.

So, should military service be mandatory? It is undeniable fact that the US is the most powerful country in the world. “The United States military has been all-volunteer since 1973.

But the government can still reinstate the draft in case of a national emergency (Selective Service). But the questionable fact here is, should military service enlistment be made compulsory for every citizen, or should it be left voluntary? Some argue that mandatory enlistment will be the highest level of hypocrisy for the country exercising personal freedom and justice while other groups of people assume that the Nation should always come first. The nation is our second mother. They further claim that if there is no nation, no one can enjoy their freedom and personal rights.

I firmly believe that it should be our constitutional duty to protect the nation from foreign invaders and conspirers. In the modern world of globalization and rapidly changing regional and global power alliances, every country wants to be powerful and demonstrate its power and possession. Being a powerful country in the world, the US always faces challenges from foreign rivals and invaders. We can take the 9/11 event as an example of it. This supreme power comes at the cost of limitless duties. For the US to maintain this position, it has to fight against terror by using a blend of human capital and technologies. I believe enforcing mandatory military service will benefit the US to avoid incidents like 9/11, making its citizens capable to fight and react during real combat situations.

Mandatory military service will increase national security and makes the nation stronger and safer. Servicing in military service for a nation will bring changes in our perspective and make us responsible people and citizens of our nation. Mandatory military service is beneficial for the country, citizens, and the military forces. The real power of the nation is indeed in the hand of civilians but not in the hand of the military. If every civilian participates in military service, then it makes the country more strong and more secure. When people are in the military, they can learn to defend themselves as a result of defending the whole nation. This will be even more effective in today’s scenario where we are facing gun violence in school, workplace, and crowded environments. With the knowledge earned in the military, at least, we can minimize the severity of the incident by applying those weapons skills and self-protection skills.

In the military service, nobody is biased on his or her race, religion, ethnic group, and culture. Everyone is treated equally and has to go through the same training, which plays a significant role to bring the citizens together as a single unit to guard the nation. “The United States benefits from conscription because national spirit increases, national unity improves, neighborhoods become safer, and society grows healthier” ('Mandatory Military Service Would Benefit the U.S.'). It motivates and inspires every citizen to work together for the common welfare of the nation. It does not matter which ethnic group we belong to. Society needs to consider all human beings possess equality and treat everyone equally. Society cannot discriminate against persons for reasons such as race, color, religion, or gender. When everyone is treated equally and provided with equal opportunities, it brings peace, and a decline slowly the rate of violence, crime, and domestic terrorism in the country, which will stand as a strong foundation for the national power later in long run. Hence, the mandatory military will assist to established unity among the people in the nation.

Apart from this, Mandatory military service will make the American citizens physically strong and mentally alert. “The conscript benefits from the military service because they learn practical life skills such as first aid, wilderness survival, computer proficiency, and self-defense. They become physically fit, mentally strong, and knowledgeable in multiple areas (Mandatory military service, Williams, Armstrong).” In military service, especially in the training camp or boot camp, all the recruits are put through hard training. It includes physical training and field exercise. Physical training and field exercise involves physical activities like pushups, pull-ups, set-ups, and running. Boot camp training plays a vital role to make recruits physically fit and strong not only during the military service but in every part of their life. Armies have to perform activities like pushups, pull-ups, and running for miles on daily basis carrying their bags and weapons not only during the boot camp training but also in the service which will increase their energy levels, stamina, and ability to a tolerance of pains. Such activities give better shape to the body and grow muscles that will keep them physically healthy. In military service, they have to go through the physical test from time to time. If they could not pass the physical test, they won’t be eligible for promotion and enlistment extension or even might get disqualified to stay in service depending upon their physical situation. To be just eligible for promotion and enlistment extension also, they have to maintain their physical body and perform physical activities on daily basis in the military service. Therefore, they will stay physically fit and healthy in the service.

Furthermore, servicing in military service provides us opportunities to learn skills and characteristics that are helpful in our life which will make us mentally strong. We learn basic skills like first aid, self-defense, surviving in the wilderness, etc. that might be needed at any time or in any emergency. We never know what happens tomorrow in our life but if we have those basic skills, it might save our as well as someone else’s life during an emergency. Military service also provides a person with job skills, which helps him/her to get a better career in the civilian market after they come out of the military service. We learn strategies and plans to execute in the military that makes our minds broaden and mentally sharp. For some people, it even stands as the base foundation for their career development. In this, advancing world get success in any field, required skills, knowledge, and good character. People are trained as engineers, doctors, pilots, IT specialists, chefs, etc in the military service depending on their interests and ability. Citizens joining the military will make the nation strong with different skills and overcome any danger to the nation. Mandatory military service for citizens has many advantages. So, mandatory military service for citizens should enforce in the United States.

In addition to this, Military service provides opportunities to travel around the world and broaden our minds. We get to see new places, experience new cultures, lifestyles, new environments, etc. This opportunity enhances our understanding, of why America is considered the best nation among the rest of the nations in the world. We see how American people are facilitated and live in an advanced society and technology than people in other countries, especially in developing countries. Military service is not a single person or one-man job. It is a team working service. They should be able to communicate, make decisions, and commands, and follow the commands. We get to learn qualities like leadership, coordinating, authority, and communicating while working in a team. It also makes us self-disciplined as well as punctual. The rules in the military make us do things on time, which helps us to manage time properly. Broad thinking is one of the important aspects which is learned in the military. Therefore, mandatory military service should be enforced because it makes us hardworking, respectful, honorable, determined, and well- a prepared people for life which will eventually help us to become better sons, daughters, nephews, grandchild, fathers, and mothers.

Additionally, military and paramilitary forces like the coast guard, navy, and so on have given so many flexible options to students that they can serve their part-time and continue their studies as well. They provide all tuition reimbursement for that and pay attractive salaries for doing that. This is a wonderful opportunity for every student and citizen as the cost of education is seriously high in the US.

My opponent may say enforcing mandatory military service for citizens will take their freedom away. However, I will respond by saying that the freedoms we lose for a short period are nothing compared to what we learn and achieve servicing in military force. It brings a hugely significant change in our life by shifting the perspective that can help us to see and understand our life differently and inspire us to work hard in every step of our life. It makes us more responsible people towards our nation, family, and society. In addition, my opponent may say military services will give power to citizens, which may be wrongly used. However, I will respond by saying that it will give power, but it would help them to self-defense in any kind of threatening situation and they can fight for themselves and the nation.

In conclusion. Should military service be mandatory or not? Compulsory for all citizens for various reasons. There may be certain obstacles to implementing such rules. Age may be the problem which we face because not all the citizens will be under the 18-30-year age group. But at the same time, we can divide the category by listing it in different age groups. Military work can be divided according to the list. If there are any skilled persons such as doctors or engineers, they can be placed in the category in which they are trained. Another problem that we may face is convincing the people who do not want to join the army. Most people may think of it as taking away their civil rights and freedoms. But with proper campaigns and discussions, they may be persuaded to join the army. In discussions, we should mention how it will benefit the country in terms of national security, and national power and how they will be benefited themselves leaving them to be responsible, career determinants, and more mature in their thinking and seeing the things differently by joining the military. They may also think of it as a threat to national security because all the citizens will know about the workings of the US military. But this can also be avoided because people will be joining for only basic military training and is not for a long-term basis as long as they choose the military itself as their career. People may also think of it as a waste of money and resources but serving in the military will open other jobs which will boost the economy and helps the United State to overcome any kind of economic crisis. It will also provide economic and social benefits to those people who are serving as well as create a benefit for the general public as well as the nation as a whole.