As the new year begins, an uprising of worry has also begun. Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran’s elite Quds Military Force, was killed early January 3, 2020, after President Trump approved a US-led drone strike on the airport the major general was departing. Following this attack, Iraq was quick to respond, with the supreme leader “vowing” severe revenge on America.

Following the news reports, people all over Twitter and various social media platforms began posting about it. Quickly, the talk about a possible war had become a meme. Many of today’s youth had begun posting about “being drafted.” There has been a lot of misinformation put out through various forms of media and most don’t know the current state of the drafting law.

Drafting, otherwise known as the Selective Service Act, was passed on May 18, 1917. This service was presented to all men ages 21 to 30. They were required to register for military services to help fill the many vacancies that were present in the military at the time. Over time, the military has become fully voluntary, so many of those vacancies have been filled. Though men are still required to register in case the need for a draft were ever to present itself, the ages have been changed to 18-25. Even though all males are still required to register, the Selective Service Act is currently not instated. 

The likelihood of a draft being reinstated is very low. July 1, 1973, almost 38 years ago, was when drafting law was completely eliminated. For the law to be reinstated congress would have to present legislation. The legislation would have to pass through the Senate and the House of Representatives. After approval, the legislation would need to get signed off and approved by the President. 

After asking eight Alliance High School senior boys about the current news on the war, four responded they have registered while the remaining four haven’t. Six of the boys knew about the current state of the drafting law, five believe that there won’t be a draft for various reasons, and all of the boys knew of the law regarding the selective service. To this, four of the boys responded that the military was large enough and the draft was unnecessary, two knew the law had been abolished. One said, “it’s war.”

This year started off with a possible war, and memes about it. The current news has not improved with things slowly getting worse, but drafting will most likely not happen. It is important that our young men know and understand the laws and the current state of the drafting legislation.