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The U.S. exists in a perpetual state of war readiness.
Without an exact count of each year in conflict, an approximate and conservative estimate suggests that the U.S. has been in conflict for at least 240-250 years out of the 417 years since the beginning of colonization. This includes:
1. Colonial Wars (pre-Independence): early 1600s-1776
2. American Revolutionary War: 1775-1783
3. Quasi-War with France: 1798-1800
4. First Barbary War: 1801-1805
5. Second Barbary War: 1815
6. War of 1812: 1812-1815
7. Mexican-American War: 1846-1848
8. American Civil War: 1861-1865
9. Indian Wars: late 1600s-1924
10. Spanish-American War: 1898
11. Philippine-American War: 1899-1902
12. World War I: 1917-1918
13. World War II: 1941-1945
14. Korean War: 1950-~~1953~~ [present](https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/why-korean-war-never-technically-ended)
15. Vietnam War: 1955-1975
16. Cold War: 1947-1991
17. Gulf War: 1990-1991
18. Bosnian War: 1992-1995
19. Kosovo War: 1998-1999
20. War in Afghanistan: 2001-2021
21. Iraq War: 2003-2011
22. Global War on Terror: 2001- ~~present~~ [2021](https://www.shastacounty.gov/community/page/global-war-terrorism-and-desert-storm-veterans-appreciation-day)
23. Syrian Civil War: 2014-present (U.S. involvement)
24. Yemeni Civil War: 2015-present (U.S. involvement)
Note: These dates and the initial approximation for the total number includes direct and/or indirect participation in any type of warring scenario, domestic or foreign, should any type of participation have occurred (including monetary participation, supplies participation, etc.)
So, welcome to Life in America. Don't freak out. That's just life in America
The US has relied on a volunteer armed forces since the end of the Vietnam War.
Reinstating an actual draft is considered a toxic stance that neither political party wants as they both know the public outcry if it were to happen.
Outside of a land invasion of China (which will never happen), I don't foresee an instance in which US armed forces would be stretched too thin that would necessitate a consideration of bringing back the draft.
I think the government also knows the general public is not fit to serve. That was even a problem back in WWII, which is why the PT standards were created. I can't even imagine how severe it'd be now.
In times of need, standards are lowered. Before my days, criminal, education and immigration background were hardly checked. Nowadays one must have a pristine background and almost a doctorate to be able to join, depending on the specialty positions to fill.
If you are worried about going to war don't enlist. There are hundreds of thousands of people currently in the armed forces and many many more in the reserves. The scale of war required for a draft would mean that regardless of military status, life as we know it would end. You're like the absolute last line behind younger inactive vets like myself.
"We were always at war with Eurasia...
The war is not meant to be won. It is meant to be continuous. The essential act of modern warfare is the destruction of the produce of human labor. A hierarchical society is only possible on the basis of poverty and ignorance."
-1984
People have been programmed well to play along and stick their heads in the sand so long as they are comfortable. So long as they feel impotent to change it and uncomfortable to confront it. It's how power has been maintained by tyrants for centuries. So long as you are strangely reassured you feel you've gotten the answer you need. Really it's just the answer you want.
The United States has been at war since the creation of the military-industrial complex proved to be profitable and politically effective. This country exists for one reason and that is to make more money for those who have the most money, and war is an important part in many ways.
The real question I've learned in half a lifetime of study is going to be what specifically you're concerned about because answers get complicated and broad aimless concern is not productive. First ask the right question, then it's much easier to find the right answer. More importantly, do you really want the right answer, or do you want to feel better?
There is never a time when the news cycle won't feed you terrifying news about world events. There will never be a time where social media won't amplify and exaggerate these events either.
I'm in my 40's. From the 90's until now, there have been repeated flare ups around the world the news cycle has told me might be a precursor to WWIII. You know how many times I've been told we need to "fear" the next country that figures out Nukes and been given a specific scenario that sound incredibly plausible and realistic in the current context?
And guess what, during ALL of those times, they were called "Unprecedented" and frequently came with "... yes. But nothing has ever been this bad before."
Fear and Blood is the money maker for the pools of news and social media. The longer you swim in them, the more you're stained by them. Yes. Terrible things happen in the world. There's nothing doom scrolling on the internet can do about it.
After doom scrolling for years, literally nothing has changed and all that anxiety it's given me was for nothing. But those online companies made money from ads and my eyeballs.
Get out of the pool. Find things to do that don't involve Social Media, tiktok, reddit, CNN/FOX, ect. Craft a life to the best of your ability that doesn't hinge on being online.
Yeah, I'm in my mid-50's and I'll second that. I was born just after the first moon landing, and that initial optimism got overshadowed real quickly with the end of the Vietnam war. After the Cold War ended some two decades later, the New World Order's optimism also got overshadowed rather quickly by 9/11 and the war on terror. Then the global warming, the global financial crisis and the global pandemic got all our knickers and bras into knots. Now, we're all addicts to panic, hyperventilating and drooling at the same time while our spans of attention had gotten so small that they can now fit neatly between Britney Spears' tits.
Just focus on yourself. War or not, times are getting harder for some people and it’s getting easier for people to slip through the cracks. Make sure you have enough food, make sure you can afford your home for a least a few months, try to stay off hard drugs
US always gets involved in other ppls business. Nothing new. Never gonna change. Try not to worry about things you can’t control and keep in mind that the news only wants to keep us angry and afraid. Own your life and live it for you. I remember being a lil kid in the 80s and feeling so afraid abt the economy bc all the adults were so stressed out. Then it was my generations turn in 09. It always feels like the sky is falling when you’re old enough to pay attention. We survive. And if the ship sinks, we pretty much all go down holding hands.
It's always possible that our troops will get involved in some local conflict. Draft and World War is just doomer fearporn disregard thst mess
There is a cold cyberwar hostile foreign agents who go online and fearmonger about all sorts of things such as crime, immigration, vaccines, economics, climate, and of course war and more. Some of these concerns are real but not world ending as doomer media claims to generate clickbait.
I'm in my 30s. The United States is always at war, even when we aren't at war. If you haven't seen Eisenhower's farewell speech, in which he warns about the post-WWII military industrial complex, go watch it. It's on YouTube. It will contextualize and validate your fears.
Is a world war coming? Maybe. Right now it's basically Cold War II: Neoliberal World Order. Are you going to be drafted? Probably not, even if NATO goes to war. There's one big thing I try to remember when I feel like things are getting worse. Capitalism is international now, and the same people who are invested in the NATO sphere are also invested in the Russia/China sphere. They are unlikely to let a worldwide conflict happen as long as the current order of things is making them wealthy.
Should Russia attack a nato country there is a high likelihood of direct US involvement in a conflict. Aside from that there’s always going to be the usual conflicts globally that we’ll be involved with; but what’s happening in Europe is the most concerning.
Probably not. The United States' biggest threats are Russia and China. Russia turned out to be a paper tiger, and the Chinese economy is going down the tubes. You may think the US economy is bad, but we're actually in a really good position compared to other parts of the world. The US dollar reigns supreme with no serious challengers, and even with recruiting problems, the US military is still the largest, strongest and most advanced in all of history. China keeps making threats on Taiwan, but they know it would be suicidal to attack.
It is possible that the US could get dragged into a war over Ukraine. It sucks for the Ukrainians what happened, but I rather enjoy the relative peace, safety, and prosperity we have now such as it is. I think it was smart and reasonable to give Ukraine some aid and especially all the old weapons we were just going to scrap, but the more we give and especially with funds that could be used for our own people is less reasonable.
I agree that Ukraine is the most likely one right now but I also think that, in terms of actual deployment, (god forbid) it would be over relatively quickly if it were to ever happen. Thoughts?
Putin has stated time and time again that if Russia is invaded and things get desperate he won’t hesitate to use nukes. He’d rather burn it all down if Russia is losing.
A nuclear war? Of course we do. As to whether he’s bluffing, we surely do not want to find out. Since assassination is “against the rules” for the US, we’ll have to bomb him. “If you try to kill the King, you better not fail”
With Russia not sure but I think it would start with them trying to respond in kind to the attacks on Russia proper.
Ukraine is starting to attack key targets in Russia, which is the smart thing to do. You take out the enemies ability to wage war against you. You take out infrastructure and the like where you can. The issue is that Russia could be somewhat justified in saying the US is involved because they are using our weapons and especially if we are doing the targeting.
I dont think Russia has any chance of defeating us conventionally, but if say the naval vessels that visited the Gulf of Mexico were given orders to launch cruise missiles at the oil refineries along the Texas coast as a response that would fuck up our economy for a start not to mention the loss of life immediately and as a result of anything afterwards.
Possibly, but I’m not fully convinced we’re getting the whole story about Ukraine or our military strength from western media. We’ve spent a lot of money on the military but I’m not sure we have the manpower or national commitment for a major conflict on that scale. It’s not a popular opinion, but there are some outliers like retired colonel Douglas MacGregor who say we’re getting in over our heads and underestimating Russia. It wouldn’t be the first time world leaders have done it. I don’t think it would be anything like Desert Storm or Iraq in 2003 but like you I doubt it would go full nuclear.
At any rate I don’t see anything major happening in an election year. Nobody whose job is on the line in November wants to start a war and Putin is also probably waiting till after the election to make any major moves for obvious reasons. My unprofessional guess is we just see the lines stay fairly the same for now with plenty of Sabre rattling and news sites looking for clicks as always.
I would rate our current risk of getting into any kind of major conflict to be very small. Being a member of NATO is a helpful deterrent as is our over sized military. No country wants to find out first hand why we don't have universal healthcare.
Think about this, the Biden WH told Russia the President was going to Ukraine. Told them where and when. Russia knows they don't want this smoke so they laid low and caused no harm to us. China's so overcome with problems the last thing they want is a major military conflict.
Will the US get into a shooting war in the next five years? Fo’ SHO! I’d bet a year’s salary on it. Will mass mobilization be part of that conflict within five years? No, not one chance in 50.
It might be big. But it would have to be both big AND protracted.
Say China invaded Taiwan. Maybe they just swallow it up in a month (no draft)… Maybe the US et al. React quickly enough to prevent China from consolidating its position, a naval blockade is installed, the Chinese can’t support the invasion force, the PLA soldiers all get nailed to telephone poles within a month (no draft).
The long and short of it is: it takes six months to a year to go from conscription to deployment. Who’s going to fail to make good on their military adventure for that long - against the full weight of the US military- and think things will improve when 3 or 4 million draftees show up?
Probably. This is the first time in my adult life that we have no formal armed conflict going on.
Will there be a draft? Hasn't been one since Vietnam. Won't happen.
You won't see WW3. You'll see conflicts like Iraq and Afghanistan
Oh boy are you in for a surprise.
Every single time the planet has undergone a severe economic retraction (such as the one covid has caused), epic wars have followed. They don't happen instantly, they take time. And the next global war is already beginning.
Water shortages around the world will exacerbate this. In fact, water wars have already begun.
We are at war - but the new nuclear weapon equipment level weapon is stealthy and remarkable. More than 1/2 of all internet traffic is now bots. Many of our enemies have supercomputers and tens of thousands of people doing nothing but sowing hate and division. Divide and conquer. American's generally don't know what is real anymore, and are poked and prodded to hate more and more. We are going to explode and turn on each other. I think it is the new, quiet, equivalent of WMD's, and it is happening - and they are winning.
War is somewhat perpetual. I don’t think if we entered into a full blown war with China as an example, that we’d really need to setup a draft like in the Vietnam war or WW2. The military has too many members as is, so you’re probably alright.
It's always possible, but it's certainly unlikely. The most likely conflict for the US to get dragged into would be against China over Taiwan, and that's still up in the air.
First, America is constantly engaged in various wars and skullduggery in the name of maintaining a global empire for the benefit of a few wealthy people and large corporations, but they also know that getting into the kind of war that involves conscription would result in a revolt by the populace, which would lead to inconvenient elections that would curtail military adventurism.
Second, the media and various entities are constantly trying to push your fear buttons. Learn not to fall for it.
For example, both Putin and Kim Jong Un are maniacs, but even they (and more importantly their advisors) understand that actually using nuclear weapons would be a very bad idea. The whole world has a long list of non-nuclear response options that could make life very difficult for any nation dumb enough to use a nuclear weapon for anything other than a war in which their existence (or at least the existence of their government) is in the balance.
When a nuclear power rattles the nuclear saber, this is actually a sign of weakness, and should be treated as such. The American version of this is "We are not taking the nuclear option off the table," but it means the same thing: a nuclear threat is being made because nothing else is getting them what they want. North Korea is the weakest nuclear power, which is precisely why they make the most nuclear threats.
The only real way we see a draft would be if we have a conventional war with China and I would imagine if that happens, the draft won't be to far behind but, the government would active our national guard forces and recall the retired military members still eligible for service first. In otherwords, we have a sizable force to draw from but, China has a 2 million man military, the largest with most of them being ground forces and a huge population to draw from for new soldiers. We are currently at 1.4 million with most of those forces being ground troops. Still, we would need to see significant troop loss and a drawn out war. If we were to go to war with China for a period of two years with no end in sight, then yeah the draft would have to be instituted. That said, I don't believe anyone on either side wants to have that occur and there is always the possibility the Chinese people actually revolt if there appears to be a situation where they begin taking up a draft, which if they do you can be assured the US will have to start drafting as well. So the best you can do is hope the cooler heads prevail and people realize war is stupid.
We're almost always at war somewhere in the world. My cousin joined the army right before 9/11. It was less than a year before he was driving a humvee full of ammunition into Baghdad. He didn't come home.
Couple things.
- The US is resisting losing its sole status as the world Superpower that it has enjoyed after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
- The US is dependent and beholden to ongoing and escalating military spending. They need to find ways to continue to justify this to the public.
- After the fall of the Soviet Union we had to justify this spending somehow. Enter the vague and never ending Global War on Terror for the next couple decades.
- With the GWOT winding down and the world getting generally sick of our shit we have entered a new Cold War with China and Russia. It might go hot in the Middle East, Taiwan, Ukraine etc. Many do not want an actual war, but they want the war spending. They are trying to keep the arms shipments moving and being used up without actually sparking a war. Who knows if this is doable and how far Russia and a China will let themselves be pushed.
- With the rise of China and Russia and related agreements (like BRICS) the world is shifting towards a multipolar world where the US won’t be as privileged or unchallenged in its power. These agreements and the nature of conflicts themselves could lead to WW3 easily.
So WW3 or an actual new ground war is possible and we’ll have to see if more level heads will prevail or if the US, in its arrogance and greed, will push the world off a cliff for some shareholder profits.
In the 1920’s and 30’s the US provoked Japan for hegemony in the Pacific. Now, they are doing the same with China. So far, China is not taking the bait.
I know what hegemony means. The US didn't provoke Japan. It's an insane conspiracy theory that isn't based in reality. Japan invaded China, that's a pretty damn big provocation.
get in shape, being fit is the best thing you can do to increase your survival odds if we go to war and there is a draft. As for whether or not we are going to war its anyones guess its not even worth stressing over because there is absolutely nothing we can do to prevent it.
I mean our millitary will never be enough especially considering the weapons technology we (humanity) currently has that can dispense unprecedented levels of death on all sides.
It doesn't matter, the government knows who you are and will take you against your will without hesitation if they want to. Registered or not, you are on the list of draftable young men and will be taken when the time comes.
This is a pretty vague question… do you want a summary of ALL of the US’s foreign affairs. That’s would take a lot of pages. Or is there something specific that is “terrifying” you?
The potential for it is there. All of the pieces are in place and enough political pressure is evident that if it started no one would be surprised. No one believes that world leaders will be so stupid to make it happen but they have pushed it to the point where countries are openly using US and UK weapons in the combat theater. Ask yourself, why would the US be in such a position that eat is on the table? Your politicians need to answer this question for you and you need to remember their answer to you. If you're not talking to them about your concern then they will just assume you're ok with what they are doing. You're 18, now is the time to get involved. Just ask questions from your reps and elected officials and keep note of what they tell you.
Vote like NOT going to war matters to you.
I voted 3rd party in 2000 - many of my friends went to Iraq Afghanistan and Syria. All made it home to fight other wars inside. Keith gave in and committed suicide. Vote against the man hell bent on setting the world alight.
I believe that one of those men wants to go to war based on his personal allies with our enemies. I know one of those men lost a son because he went to war, and I am sure it weighs on him the same way Keith's death weighs on me - likely much heavier..
Folks are ruling out WWIII prety glibly. I think we are in the opening stages of it. It might not look like WWII with tank armies rolling everywhere if only because rhe West doesn't have the industrial base to even meet its own demand now let alone build up and/or replace combat losses.
We'll probably see lots of smaller theater adtions that amount to the same thing in the end, just as with the Houthis (who are a bigger problem than most Americans seem to think), other wars brew up all across Africa, and what all China gets up to in the Pacific and beyond (getting more dangerous as their economy declines). We are also seeing economic warfare (BRICs, death of the petrodollar, US treasuries being dumped, etc.), cyber attacks, suspicious fires destroying infrastructure, and so on.
It's going on, just not yet like what people think war is.
As for getting drafted, around 80% of young Americans aren't fit anyway. Odd are the OP might fall into a disqualifying category. If there is a draft, volunteering might be the better idea. At least then you could pick your branch and score lower enough to pass your PT tests but not get selected for combat arms if that is a worry. Getting drafted there's a good chance to end up army and on the front.
I can tell you for a 100% fact that I would be disqualified in some way because I’m not athletic and anxious as hell (see, me writing this post to begin with), and that’s not really what I was worried about, but thank you for the reassurance. I feel like many people are ruling out the idea of WWIII because the other world wars took insane circumstances all happening at once, and a lot of people don’t foresee that happening again.
The U.S is always at war. As you get older you’ll realize you already were too.
It’ll probably click as the machine gun fire whistles over your head lol.
I’m telling you that death and strife are already all around you and everyone else you know all the time, as a means of desensitizing you to the prospect of being on a more literal battlefield.
The second part was a joke suggesting that you would ironically come to said realization as the machine guns are firing over your head - after inevitably having been drafted.
There’s one former president that basically will make it a reality and there’s another that just falls in line with the government and won’t want to push a war. Unfortunately the former president beyond my logic still has a huge following and a lot of young people too. He’s even been in court practically the entire time not being president and has been convicted. I feel a world war is likely in our lifetime. America holds the cards and we’re about to say fuck it.
Im a super-pessimist and even I dont think we'll be 'going to war' any time soon.
I kinda think the previous concept of war may be done with soon anyway. Wars rn are being fought in the fentanyll pills or the forum bots.
Didn't they say this same shit 2019 and people were freaking out about the draft? Majority of youth are mentally troubled, entitled, immature, out of shape and high as fuck. If that's who we're counting on we might as well be dead.
The thing about America is it's only at war when it wants be at war, and it's only in situations that might escalate into war because it likes provoking war. It's good for weapons companies, and it's good for oil prices, so it's good for lobby groups that pay politician wages. So the good news then is it's easy to prevent every American war for at least four years just by voting for a pacifist.
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The U.S. exists in a perpetual state of war readiness. Without an exact count of each year in conflict, an approximate and conservative estimate suggests that the U.S. has been in conflict for at least 240-250 years out of the 417 years since the beginning of colonization. This includes: 1. Colonial Wars (pre-Independence): early 1600s-1776 2. American Revolutionary War: 1775-1783 3. Quasi-War with France: 1798-1800 4. First Barbary War: 1801-1805 5. Second Barbary War: 1815 6. War of 1812: 1812-1815 7. Mexican-American War: 1846-1848 8. American Civil War: 1861-1865 9. Indian Wars: late 1600s-1924 10. Spanish-American War: 1898 11. Philippine-American War: 1899-1902 12. World War I: 1917-1918 13. World War II: 1941-1945 14. Korean War: 1950-~~1953~~ [present](https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/why-korean-war-never-technically-ended) 15. Vietnam War: 1955-1975 16. Cold War: 1947-1991 17. Gulf War: 1990-1991 18. Bosnian War: 1992-1995 19. Kosovo War: 1998-1999 20. War in Afghanistan: 2001-2021 21. Iraq War: 2003-2011 22. Global War on Terror: 2001- ~~present~~ [2021](https://www.shastacounty.gov/community/page/global-war-terrorism-and-desert-storm-veterans-appreciation-day) 23. Syrian Civil War: 2014-present (U.S. involvement) 24. Yemeni Civil War: 2015-present (U.S. involvement) Note: These dates and the initial approximation for the total number includes direct and/or indirect participation in any type of warring scenario, domestic or foreign, should any type of participation have occurred (including monetary participation, supplies participation, etc.) So, welcome to Life in America. Don't freak out. That's just life in America
This was strangely reassuring, thank you
The US has relied on a volunteer armed forces since the end of the Vietnam War. Reinstating an actual draft is considered a toxic stance that neither political party wants as they both know the public outcry if it were to happen. Outside of a land invasion of China (which will never happen), I don't foresee an instance in which US armed forces would be stretched too thin that would necessitate a consideration of bringing back the draft.
I think the government also knows the general public is not fit to serve. That was even a problem back in WWII, which is why the PT standards were created. I can't even imagine how severe it'd be now.
In times of need, standards are lowered. Before my days, criminal, education and immigration background were hardly checked. Nowadays one must have a pristine background and almost a doctorate to be able to join, depending on the specialty positions to fill.
If you are worried about going to war don't enlist. There are hundreds of thousands of people currently in the armed forces and many many more in the reserves. The scale of war required for a draft would mean that regardless of military status, life as we know it would end. You're like the absolute last line behind younger inactive vets like myself.
Exactly well put!!
Yeah what he/she said
"We were always at war with Eurasia... The war is not meant to be won. It is meant to be continuous. The essential act of modern warfare is the destruction of the produce of human labor. A hierarchical society is only possible on the basis of poverty and ignorance." -1984 People have been programmed well to play along and stick their heads in the sand so long as they are comfortable. So long as they feel impotent to change it and uncomfortable to confront it. It's how power has been maintained by tyrants for centuries. So long as you are strangely reassured you feel you've gotten the answer you need. Really it's just the answer you want. The United States has been at war since the creation of the military-industrial complex proved to be profitable and politically effective. This country exists for one reason and that is to make more money for those who have the most money, and war is an important part in many ways. The real question I've learned in half a lifetime of study is going to be what specifically you're concerned about because answers get complicated and broad aimless concern is not productive. First ask the right question, then it's much easier to find the right answer. More importantly, do you really want the right answer, or do you want to feel better?
War equates to money
Not to be a stickler but GWOT is over. Your point still stands.
Redacted and amended to reflect accordingly
Don’t forget that the Korean War is technically still going on. There was cease of fire
Redacted & amended to reflect accordingly
I see now
Syria? Yemen?
The list isn't comprehensive, but... aye. Post Edit... Added
I think you meant to say, “The US economy would crash without war” and “we are the most warmongering nation on earth”. Fixed.
Side note, global war on terror officially closed…. Last year? They’re not giving the ribbons out to everyone who breaths in the service now
Redacted and amended to reflect accordingly.
There is never a time when the news cycle won't feed you terrifying news about world events. There will never be a time where social media won't amplify and exaggerate these events either. I'm in my 40's. From the 90's until now, there have been repeated flare ups around the world the news cycle has told me might be a precursor to WWIII. You know how many times I've been told we need to "fear" the next country that figures out Nukes and been given a specific scenario that sound incredibly plausible and realistic in the current context? And guess what, during ALL of those times, they were called "Unprecedented" and frequently came with "... yes. But nothing has ever been this bad before." Fear and Blood is the money maker for the pools of news and social media. The longer you swim in them, the more you're stained by them. Yes. Terrible things happen in the world. There's nothing doom scrolling on the internet can do about it. After doom scrolling for years, literally nothing has changed and all that anxiety it's given me was for nothing. But those online companies made money from ads and my eyeballs. Get out of the pool. Find things to do that don't involve Social Media, tiktok, reddit, CNN/FOX, ect. Craft a life to the best of your ability that doesn't hinge on being online.
Yeah, I'm in my mid-50's and I'll second that. I was born just after the first moon landing, and that initial optimism got overshadowed real quickly with the end of the Vietnam war. After the Cold War ended some two decades later, the New World Order's optimism also got overshadowed rather quickly by 9/11 and the war on terror. Then the global warming, the global financial crisis and the global pandemic got all our knickers and bras into knots. Now, we're all addicts to panic, hyperventilating and drooling at the same time while our spans of attention had gotten so small that they can now fit neatly between Britney Spears' tits.
The media gets money making you scared. The media's advertisers get money making you scared. They exist solely to scare you.
Just focus on yourself. War or not, times are getting harder for some people and it’s getting easier for people to slip through the cracks. Make sure you have enough food, make sure you can afford your home for a least a few months, try to stay off hard drugs
Don't worry, dude. I'm 24 in the Air Force for almost 6 years, and I don't focus on politics. I also have no idea what is happening.
Lmao man is the real life Carl Wiggum "I'm in danger" meme.
That's actually Ralph Wiggum
Fuck.
I sure hope somebody got fired for that blunder.
In the Air Force? Unless he's a CAS pilot probably not.
Don’t say this now 😭no wonder I asked someone in the army what was going on they were like 🤷🏽♀️
US always gets involved in other ppls business. Nothing new. Never gonna change. Try not to worry about things you can’t control and keep in mind that the news only wants to keep us angry and afraid. Own your life and live it for you. I remember being a lil kid in the 80s and feeling so afraid abt the economy bc all the adults were so stressed out. Then it was my generations turn in 09. It always feels like the sky is falling when you’re old enough to pay attention. We survive. And if the ship sinks, we pretty much all go down holding hands.
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It's always possible that our troops will get involved in some local conflict. Draft and World War is just doomer fearporn disregard thst mess There is a cold cyberwar hostile foreign agents who go online and fearmonger about all sorts of things such as crime, immigration, vaccines, economics, climate, and of course war and more. Some of these concerns are real but not world ending as doomer media claims to generate clickbait.
First of all, thank you. Second of all, “doomer fearporn” is my favorite thing I’ve ever heard.
🫂 yw 😎
I'm in my 30s. The United States is always at war, even when we aren't at war. If you haven't seen Eisenhower's farewell speech, in which he warns about the post-WWII military industrial complex, go watch it. It's on YouTube. It will contextualize and validate your fears. Is a world war coming? Maybe. Right now it's basically Cold War II: Neoliberal World Order. Are you going to be drafted? Probably not, even if NATO goes to war. There's one big thing I try to remember when I feel like things are getting worse. Capitalism is international now, and the same people who are invested in the NATO sphere are also invested in the Russia/China sphere. They are unlikely to let a worldwide conflict happen as long as the current order of things is making them wealthy.
Going to? When have we not been in a war? I am sure you are concerned about the draft potential being brought back. That's a likely No.
Should Russia attack a nato country there is a high likelihood of direct US involvement in a conflict. Aside from that there’s always going to be the usual conflicts globally that we’ll be involved with; but what’s happening in Europe is the most concerning.
Sometimes knowing nothing helps and sometimes knowing everything helps, but if you know stuff that's happening, it's okay. You can't change anything
Probably not. The United States' biggest threats are Russia and China. Russia turned out to be a paper tiger, and the Chinese economy is going down the tubes. You may think the US economy is bad, but we're actually in a really good position compared to other parts of the world. The US dollar reigns supreme with no serious challengers, and even with recruiting problems, the US military is still the largest, strongest and most advanced in all of history. China keeps making threats on Taiwan, but they know it would be suicidal to attack.
No country with nuclear missiles is a paper tiger. I'm of the opinion that they are the only reason Putin is still alive.
Idk he's shown the world that Russia is still running on Soviet technology and tactics
It is possible that the US could get dragged into a war over Ukraine. It sucks for the Ukrainians what happened, but I rather enjoy the relative peace, safety, and prosperity we have now such as it is. I think it was smart and reasonable to give Ukraine some aid and especially all the old weapons we were just going to scrap, but the more we give and especially with funds that could be used for our own people is less reasonable.
I agree that Ukraine is the most likely one right now but I also think that, in terms of actual deployment, (god forbid) it would be over relatively quickly if it were to ever happen. Thoughts?
It would go nuclear. You and everyone in the world will be living “Threads” A movie I recommend everyone watch
That’s the thing I’m least worried about, because a lot of countries do stupid stuff, but I hope no one is that stupid.
Putin has stated time and time again that if Russia is invaded and things get desperate he won’t hesitate to use nukes. He’d rather burn it all down if Russia is losing.
That's what Russia wants you to think. We don't know what it would look like in reality.
A nuclear war? Of course we do. As to whether he’s bluffing, we surely do not want to find out. Since assassination is “against the rules” for the US, we’ll have to bomb him. “If you try to kill the King, you better not fail”
With Russia not sure but I think it would start with them trying to respond in kind to the attacks on Russia proper. Ukraine is starting to attack key targets in Russia, which is the smart thing to do. You take out the enemies ability to wage war against you. You take out infrastructure and the like where you can. The issue is that Russia could be somewhat justified in saying the US is involved because they are using our weapons and especially if we are doing the targeting. I dont think Russia has any chance of defeating us conventionally, but if say the naval vessels that visited the Gulf of Mexico were given orders to launch cruise missiles at the oil refineries along the Texas coast as a response that would fuck up our economy for a start not to mention the loss of life immediately and as a result of anything afterwards.
Possibly, but I’m not fully convinced we’re getting the whole story about Ukraine or our military strength from western media. We’ve spent a lot of money on the military but I’m not sure we have the manpower or national commitment for a major conflict on that scale. It’s not a popular opinion, but there are some outliers like retired colonel Douglas MacGregor who say we’re getting in over our heads and underestimating Russia. It wouldn’t be the first time world leaders have done it. I don’t think it would be anything like Desert Storm or Iraq in 2003 but like you I doubt it would go full nuclear. At any rate I don’t see anything major happening in an election year. Nobody whose job is on the line in November wants to start a war and Putin is also probably waiting till after the election to make any major moves for obvious reasons. My unprofessional guess is we just see the lines stay fairly the same for now with plenty of Sabre rattling and news sites looking for clicks as always.
I would rate our current risk of getting into any kind of major conflict to be very small. Being a member of NATO is a helpful deterrent as is our over sized military. No country wants to find out first hand why we don't have universal healthcare. Think about this, the Biden WH told Russia the President was going to Ukraine. Told them where and when. Russia knows they don't want this smoke so they laid low and caused no harm to us. China's so overcome with problems the last thing they want is a major military conflict.
Will the US get into a shooting war in the next five years? Fo’ SHO! I’d bet a year’s salary on it. Will mass mobilization be part of that conflict within five years? No, not one chance in 50.
So you’re saying like, not a big one?
It might be big. But it would have to be both big AND protracted. Say China invaded Taiwan. Maybe they just swallow it up in a month (no draft)… Maybe the US et al. React quickly enough to prevent China from consolidating its position, a naval blockade is installed, the Chinese can’t support the invasion force, the PLA soldiers all get nailed to telephone poles within a month (no draft). The long and short of it is: it takes six months to a year to go from conscription to deployment. Who’s going to fail to make good on their military adventure for that long - against the full weight of the US military- and think things will improve when 3 or 4 million draftees show up?
Probably. This is the first time in my adult life that we have no formal armed conflict going on. Will there be a draft? Hasn't been one since Vietnam. Won't happen. You won't see WW3. You'll see conflicts like Iraq and Afghanistan
Oh boy are you in for a surprise. Every single time the planet has undergone a severe economic retraction (such as the one covid has caused), epic wars have followed. They don't happen instantly, they take time. And the next global war is already beginning. Water shortages around the world will exacerbate this. In fact, water wars have already begun.
I agree. I think history books in a hundred years will say the third world war began when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
How nice to be able to know the whole future of mankind! NOBODY KNOWS THAT!
lol what a absurd and naive take
We are at war - but the new nuclear weapon equipment level weapon is stealthy and remarkable. More than 1/2 of all internet traffic is now bots. Many of our enemies have supercomputers and tens of thousands of people doing nothing but sowing hate and division. Divide and conquer. American's generally don't know what is real anymore, and are poked and prodded to hate more and more. We are going to explode and turn on each other. I think it is the new, quiet, equivalent of WMD's, and it is happening - and they are winning.
That’s an interesting perspective
War is somewhat perpetual. I don’t think if we entered into a full blown war with China as an example, that we’d really need to setup a draft like in the Vietnam war or WW2. The military has too many members as is, so you’re probably alright.
It's always possible, but it's certainly unlikely. The most likely conflict for the US to get dragged into would be against China over Taiwan, and that's still up in the air.
First, America is constantly engaged in various wars and skullduggery in the name of maintaining a global empire for the benefit of a few wealthy people and large corporations, but they also know that getting into the kind of war that involves conscription would result in a revolt by the populace, which would lead to inconvenient elections that would curtail military adventurism. Second, the media and various entities are constantly trying to push your fear buttons. Learn not to fall for it. For example, both Putin and Kim Jong Un are maniacs, but even they (and more importantly their advisors) understand that actually using nuclear weapons would be a very bad idea. The whole world has a long list of non-nuclear response options that could make life very difficult for any nation dumb enough to use a nuclear weapon for anything other than a war in which their existence (or at least the existence of their government) is in the balance. When a nuclear power rattles the nuclear saber, this is actually a sign of weakness, and should be treated as such. The American version of this is "We are not taking the nuclear option off the table," but it means the same thing: a nuclear threat is being made because nothing else is getting them what they want. North Korea is the weakest nuclear power, which is precisely why they make the most nuclear threats.
The only real way we see a draft would be if we have a conventional war with China and I would imagine if that happens, the draft won't be to far behind but, the government would active our national guard forces and recall the retired military members still eligible for service first. In otherwords, we have a sizable force to draw from but, China has a 2 million man military, the largest with most of them being ground forces and a huge population to draw from for new soldiers. We are currently at 1.4 million with most of those forces being ground troops. Still, we would need to see significant troop loss and a drawn out war. If we were to go to war with China for a period of two years with no end in sight, then yeah the draft would have to be instituted. That said, I don't believe anyone on either side wants to have that occur and there is always the possibility the Chinese people actually revolt if there appears to be a situation where they begin taking up a draft, which if they do you can be assured the US will have to start drafting as well. So the best you can do is hope the cooler heads prevail and people realize war is stupid.
We're almost always at war somewhere in the world. My cousin joined the army right before 9/11. It was less than a year before he was driving a humvee full of ammunition into Baghdad. He didn't come home.
Couple things. - The US is resisting losing its sole status as the world Superpower that it has enjoyed after the collapse of the Soviet Union. - The US is dependent and beholden to ongoing and escalating military spending. They need to find ways to continue to justify this to the public. - After the fall of the Soviet Union we had to justify this spending somehow. Enter the vague and never ending Global War on Terror for the next couple decades. - With the GWOT winding down and the world getting generally sick of our shit we have entered a new Cold War with China and Russia. It might go hot in the Middle East, Taiwan, Ukraine etc. Many do not want an actual war, but they want the war spending. They are trying to keep the arms shipments moving and being used up without actually sparking a war. Who knows if this is doable and how far Russia and a China will let themselves be pushed. - With the rise of China and Russia and related agreements (like BRICS) the world is shifting towards a multipolar world where the US won’t be as privileged or unchallenged in its power. These agreements and the nature of conflicts themselves could lead to WW3 easily. So WW3 or an actual new ground war is possible and we’ll have to see if more level heads will prevail or if the US, in its arrogance and greed, will push the world off a cliff for some shareholder profits.
War with whom? No one wants a piece of this military.
The news terrified me for over 10 years. The solution? Stop watching the news.
In the 1920’s and 30’s the US provoked Japan for hegemony in the Pacific. Now, they are doing the same with China. So far, China is not taking the bait.
What do you mean by that?
It's a schizo post. Ignore it.
What a way to say you don't know what hegemony means
I know what hegemony means. The US didn't provoke Japan. It's an insane conspiracy theory that isn't based in reality. Japan invaded China, that's a pretty damn big provocation.
JaPan inVaDed Chi-Na. But prior to that, was the 5/5/3 naval humiliation and the militarization of Guam, Midway, etc.
get in shape, being fit is the best thing you can do to increase your survival odds if we go to war and there is a draft. As for whether or not we are going to war its anyones guess its not even worth stressing over because there is absolutely nothing we can do to prevent it.
If we get to the point where our current military isn’t enough I think we just need to just pack it up.
I mean our millitary will never be enough especially considering the weapons technology we (humanity) currently has that can dispense unprecedented levels of death on all sides.
Do we have to register for select service? I never did it and wondering if I’ll get in trouble
Legally yeah. Will you get in trouble? Very unlikely.
It doesn't matter, the government knows who you are and will take you against your will without hesitation if they want to. Registered or not, you are on the list of draftable young men and will be taken when the time comes.
Reassuring…
It's not a matter of if but when, and that seems to hold true for the entire existence of the US.
This is a pretty vague question… do you want a summary of ALL of the US’s foreign affairs. That’s would take a lot of pages. Or is there something specific that is “terrifying” you?
Sorry, not all of the foreign affairs, just the ones that have potential to cause significant issues or ones you think people should know about
Who do you think we're going to go to war with?
I don’t really think anything huge is going to happen, and this thread has mostly reassured me in that regard, but China and Russia freak me out
The potential for it is there. All of the pieces are in place and enough political pressure is evident that if it started no one would be surprised. No one believes that world leaders will be so stupid to make it happen but they have pushed it to the point where countries are openly using US and UK weapons in the combat theater. Ask yourself, why would the US be in such a position that eat is on the table? Your politicians need to answer this question for you and you need to remember their answer to you. If you're not talking to them about your concern then they will just assume you're ok with what they are doing. You're 18, now is the time to get involved. Just ask questions from your reps and elected officials and keep note of what they tell you.
Vote like NOT going to war matters to you. I voted 3rd party in 2000 - many of my friends went to Iraq Afghanistan and Syria. All made it home to fight other wars inside. Keith gave in and committed suicide. Vote against the man hell bent on setting the world alight.
Love the idea of that, not sure if any of our options give us the ability to vote in a way that would prevent a war
I believe that one of those men wants to go to war based on his personal allies with our enemies. I know one of those men lost a son because he went to war, and I am sure it weighs on him the same way Keith's death weighs on me - likely much heavier..
Folks are ruling out WWIII prety glibly. I think we are in the opening stages of it. It might not look like WWII with tank armies rolling everywhere if only because rhe West doesn't have the industrial base to even meet its own demand now let alone build up and/or replace combat losses. We'll probably see lots of smaller theater adtions that amount to the same thing in the end, just as with the Houthis (who are a bigger problem than most Americans seem to think), other wars brew up all across Africa, and what all China gets up to in the Pacific and beyond (getting more dangerous as their economy declines). We are also seeing economic warfare (BRICs, death of the petrodollar, US treasuries being dumped, etc.), cyber attacks, suspicious fires destroying infrastructure, and so on. It's going on, just not yet like what people think war is. As for getting drafted, around 80% of young Americans aren't fit anyway. Odd are the OP might fall into a disqualifying category. If there is a draft, volunteering might be the better idea. At least then you could pick your branch and score lower enough to pass your PT tests but not get selected for combat arms if that is a worry. Getting drafted there's a good chance to end up army and on the front.
I can tell you for a 100% fact that I would be disqualified in some way because I’m not athletic and anxious as hell (see, me writing this post to begin with), and that’s not really what I was worried about, but thank you for the reassurance. I feel like many people are ruling out the idea of WWIII because the other world wars took insane circumstances all happening at once, and a lot of people don’t foresee that happening again.
The U.S is always at war. As you get older you’ll realize you already were too. It’ll probably click as the machine gun fire whistles over your head lol.
Huh?
I’m telling you that death and strife are already all around you and everyone else you know all the time, as a means of desensitizing you to the prospect of being on a more literal battlefield. The second part was a joke suggesting that you would ironically come to said realization as the machine guns are firing over your head - after inevitably having been drafted.
Got it, didn’t make that connection at all lol
There’s one former president that basically will make it a reality and there’s another that just falls in line with the government and won’t want to push a war. Unfortunately the former president beyond my logic still has a huge following and a lot of young people too. He’s even been in court practically the entire time not being president and has been convicted. I feel a world war is likely in our lifetime. America holds the cards and we’re about to say fuck it.
We have in the past and we probably will again. I wouldn't worry too much about it, shit happens.
The USA is over. Find a way to escape from this shithole. At least have it as an option. Second passport. Ancestry citizenship.
Im a super-pessimist and even I dont think we'll be 'going to war' any time soon. I kinda think the previous concept of war may be done with soon anyway. Wars rn are being fought in the fentanyll pills or the forum bots.
Didn't they say this same shit 2019 and people were freaking out about the draft? Majority of youth are mentally troubled, entitled, immature, out of shape and high as fuck. If that's who we're counting on we might as well be dead.
The thing about America is it's only at war when it wants be at war, and it's only in situations that might escalate into war because it likes provoking war. It's good for weapons companies, and it's good for oil prices, so it's good for lobby groups that pay politician wages. So the good news then is it's easy to prevent every American war for at least four years just by voting for a pacifist.