Comments on: Tom Weiner http://www.vietnamwardraftstories.com/blog Called To Serve: Stories of Men and Women Affected by the Vietnam Draft Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:39:35 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Eliza Cooney http://www.vietnamwardraftstories.com/blog/those-who-found-ways-to-beat-the-draft/tom-weiner/comment-page-1/#comment-224 Eliza Cooney Sun, 18 Nov 2007 13:49:11 +0000 http://www.vietnamwardraftstories.com/blog/?page_id=5#comment-224 Your investigation of the draft is vital to our collective understanding of this aspect of the war machine. The fact that your blog provides a means for Veterans from both wars to express themselves is a genuine gift. Thank you Tom! Your investigation of the draft is vital to our collective understanding of this aspect of the war machine. The fact that your blog provides a means for Veterans from both wars to express themselves is a genuine gift. Thank you Tom!

]]> By: Nancy Felton http://www.vietnamwardraftstories.com/blog/those-who-found-ways-to-beat-the-draft/tom-weiner/comment-page-1/#comment-183 Nancy Felton Sat, 13 Oct 2007 18:30:39 +0000 http://www.vietnamwardraftstories.com/blog/?page_id=5#comment-183 Hi Tom, Someone was in today asking about your book, Called to Serve. Is it in fact a book and is it available? Thanks, Nancy Hi Tom,

Someone was in today asking about your book, Called to Serve. Is it in fact a book and is it available?

Thanks,
Nancy

]]> By: Tom Weiner http://www.vietnamwardraftstories.com/blog/those-who-found-ways-to-beat-the-draft/tom-weiner/comment-page-1/#comment-7 Tom Weiner Sat, 11 Aug 2007 12:00:17 +0000 http://www.vietnamwardraftstories.com/blog/?page_id=5#comment-7 Thank you for being the first official visitor to my blog. It feels great to have someone respond! Would you believe that there is an article in today's Gazette entitlted, "Bush adviser: Draft is worth considering". The story is about an interview on yesterday's NPR show "ALL THINGS CONSIDERED" with Army Lt. Gen. Douglas Lute, in which he says about a draft during the Iraq War, "I think it makes sense to certainly consider it...I can tell you, this has always been an option on the table." The rest of the interview is at http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=12688693 Your comment about the draft having played a significant role in helping to motivate folks to protest and eventually contribute to ending the war is certainly a compelling one. One huge difference also worth mentioning between these wars - Marilyn Young's recent book listed on the blog does a great job in pointing out the similarities, especially the mistakes! - is that when we demanded an end to the Vietnam War there was a government fully prepared to take over the awful conditions we left on the ground there. In Iraq, though I wholeheartedly believe we have made things far worse than they ever were under Saddam, there is definitely not a government that can be predicted to sustain itself. Still, the fact remains that when there was a draft during Vietnam, the college campuses were hotbeds of protest and the anti-war movement around the country in the civilian population cross pollinated with the GI anti-war movement and had an immense effect on another horribly inept administration, which finally managed, years after it should have happened, to bring the troops home. Again, thank-you for your interest, your words and your support, Sarah... Thank you for being the first official visitor to my blog. It feels great to have someone respond! Would you believe that there is an article in today’s Gazette entitlted, “Bush adviser: Draft is worth considering”. The story is about an interview on yesterday’s NPR show “ALL THINGS CONSIDERED” with Army Lt. Gen. Douglas Lute, in which he says about a draft during the Iraq War, “I think it makes sense to certainly consider it…I can tell you, this has always been an option on the table.” The rest of the interview is at http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=12688693
Your comment about the draft having played a significant role in helping to motivate folks to protest and eventually contribute to ending the war is certainly a compelling one. One huge difference also worth mentioning between these wars – Marilyn Young’s recent book listed on the blog does a great job in pointing out the similarities, especially the mistakes! – is that when we demanded an end to the Vietnam War there was a government fully prepared to take over the awful conditions we left on the ground there. In Iraq, though I wholeheartedly believe we have made things far worse than they ever were under Saddam, there is definitely not a government that can be predicted to sustain itself. Still, the fact remains that when there was a draft during Vietnam, the college campuses were hotbeds of protest and the anti-war movement around the country in the civilian population cross pollinated with the GI anti-war movement and had an immense effect on another horribly inept administration, which finally managed, years after it should have happened, to bring the troops home. Again, thank-you for your interest, your words and your support, Sarah…

]]> By: Sarah http://www.vietnamwardraftstories.com/blog/those-who-found-ways-to-beat-the-draft/tom-weiner/comment-page-1/#comment-6 Sarah Sat, 11 Aug 2007 11:34:50 +0000 http://www.vietnamwardraftstories.com/blog/?page_id=5#comment-6 Starting to read through these stories, it so obviously strikes me that the real failure of this current war--this sounds wrong I know--is that there isn't a draft, because it means the stakes aren't high enough across the class board & that allowed 1) some misguided patriotism/revenge attitude & 2) disinterest for a long time. What if my kids (okay, too young, but my friends' kids) had to actually fear participating in this war? Where would be? Would we have taken different lessons or taken lessons more quickly from Vietnam? A powerful & enduring subject this is, to keep documenting a war past even as we deal with the quagmire of war present... Starting to read through these stories, it so obviously strikes me that the real failure of this current war–this sounds wrong I know–is that there isn’t a draft, because it means the stakes aren’t high enough across the class board & that allowed 1) some misguided patriotism/revenge attitude & 2) disinterest for a long time. What if my kids (okay, too young, but my friends’ kids) had to actually fear participating in this war? Where would be? Would we have taken different lessons or taken lessons more quickly from Vietnam? A powerful & enduring subject this is, to keep documenting a war past even as we deal with the quagmire of war present…

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