It's Time to Re-Institute the Draft!

To the editor:

No, I'm not recommending sending more of our young people to Iraq to
be cannon fodder. I'm talking about sending them to places where we
can begin to repair the image of the United States, and do work that
will actually benefit the countries we visit, the environment, and
(indirectly) ourselves. Some could be administered by the Peace Corps.
Others could help restore habitat, train park rangers, and help people
learn how to survive without killing endangered species. I'm sure that
there are many charitable organizations already doing such work, which
could come up with other good ideas.

If we had a Department of Peace, it could oversee this work, and do a
lot more good than our Department of "Defense". Of course, it would
require thinking about other countries in a new way, not just in terms
of whether they are part of an "Axis of Evil". To avoid contributing
to global warming, perhaps they could travel by bicycle or sailboat. .
.. . I think that such work would do far more good than the Olympics,
which harms the environment by causing huge amounts of airplane travel
and by promoting environmentally destructive sports like mountain
biking.

Sincerely,

Mike Vandeman
--
I am working on creating wildlife habitat that is off-limits to
humans ("pure habitat"). Want to help? (I spent the previous 8
years fighting auto dependence and road construction.)

Please don't put a cell phone next to any part of your body that you are fond of!

http://home.pacbell.net/mjvande

Mike Vandeman wrote:
To the editor:...

There is an editor here?

--
Tom Sherman - Holstein-Friesland Bovinia
When did ignorance of biology become a "family value"?

On Sun, 28 Oct 2007 15:56:01 -0500, Tom Sherman
wrote:

Mike Vandeman wrote:
To the editor:...

There is an editor here?

Define "here".
--
I am working on creating wildlife habitat that is off-limits to
humans ("pure habitat"). Want to help? (I spent the previous 8
years fighting auto dependence and road construction.)

Please don't put a cell phone next to any part of your body that you are fond of!

http://home.pacbell.net/mjvande

On Oct 28, 2:35 pm, Mike Vandeman wrote:
To the editor:

No, I'm not recommending sending more of our young people to Iraq to
be cannon fodder. I'm talking about sending them to places where we
can begin to repair the image of the United States, and do work that
will actually benefit the countries we visit, the environment, and
(indirectly) ourselves.

snip

Finally, a decent idea ... But just like the draft of the past there
should be limits (e.g. 17-27 as it was) to the draft. I would suggest
the draft be limited to over 50 Ph.d's in non-tenure tack positions.
Service should be overseas in countries with no internet services only
(too much of a distraction).

R

You were doing pretty good until you got to the part about traveling by
rowboat and the destructive nature of the Olympics and Olympic spectators.

I'm surprised you didn't put in a PS, we should ban wildfires too because
they result in the loss of habitat -- OR -- you could PS that we should
promote wildfires then ban rebuilding homes so the land could revert to
habitat.





"Mike Vandeman" wrote in message
...
To the editor:

No, I'm not recommending sending more of our young people to Iraq to
be cannon fodder. I'm talking about sending them to places where we
can begin to repair the image of the United States, and do work that
will actually benefit the countries we visit, the environment, and
(indirectly) ourselves. Some could be administered by the Peace Corps.
Others could help restore habitat, train park rangers, and help people
learn how to survive without killing endangered species. I'm sure that
there are many charitable organizations already doing such work, which
could come up with other good ideas.

If we had a Department of Peace, it could oversee this work, and do a
lot more good than our Department of "Defense". Of course, it would
require thinking about other countries in a new way, not just in terms
of whether they are part of an "Axis of Evil". To avoid contributing
to global warming, perhaps they could travel by bicycle or sailboat. .
. . I think that such work would do far more good than the Olympics,
which harms the environment by causing huge amounts of airplane travel
and by promoting environmentally destructive sports like mountain
biking.

Sincerely,

Mike Vandeman
--
I am working on creating wildlife habitat that is off-limits to
humans ("pure habitat"). Want to help? (I spent the previous 8
years fighting auto dependence and road construction.)

Please don't put a cell phone next to any part of your body that you are
fond of!

http://home.pacbell.net/mjvande

Mike Vandeman wrote:
On Sun, 28 Oct 2007 15:56:01 -0500, Tom Sherman
wrote:

Mike Vandeman wrote:
To the editor:...
There is an editor here?

Define "here".

Unmoderated Usenet groups.

--
Tom Sherman - Holstein-Friesland Bovinia
When did ignorance of biology become a "family value"?

Beer - It's not just for breakfast anymore!