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Milton Friedman on The draft and the volunteer army

The first question hardly needs discussion. Men who agree on little else about Vietnam would agree on the desirability of not using conscripts to fight the war.
No Draftees to Vietnam
Column, 1968, Newsweek (December 30, 1968); reprinted in full in the Congressional Record, Extensions of Remarks, January 16, 1969, pp. 1161 to 1162, introduced by Representative Henry B. Gonzalez as “Mr. Friedman’s column, from the December 30, 1968, issue of Newsweek”, Congressional Record, January 16, 1969, p. 1161
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  1. The key question is, therefore, whether it is feasible to man the Vietnam war with volunteers. I believe the answer is, Yes. Will it be easy to do so? The answer is clearly, No. But that is hardly decisive. The aim of national policy should not be to make life easy for government officials, whether civilian or military.
    No Draftees to Vietnam
    Column, 1968, Newsweek (December 30, 1968); reprinted in full in the Congressional Record, Extensions of Remarks, January 16, 1969, pp. 1161 to 1162, introduced by Representative Henry B. Gonzalez as “Mr. Friedman’s column, from the December 30, 1968, issue of Newsweek”, Congressional Record, January 16, 1969, p. 1161
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  2. Of the many attempts to explain this state of affairs that I have seen in the media, not one faces up to the crucial question: Why now? Why did shortages not emerge in 1968 at the height of the Vietnam war, or in 1958, or for that matter in 1938 or 1928? What is different about 1973?
    Why Now?
    Column, 1973, Newsweek (December 31, 1973); reprinted in full in the Congressional Record, Extensions of Remarks, January 24, 1974, p. 801, introduced by Representative John M. Ashbrook, who gives the issue as “the December 31, 1973 issue of Newsweek”, and reprinted again the same day at pp. 807 to 808 by Representative Earl F. Landgrebe, Congressional Record, January 24, 1974, p. 801
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  3. But, in the interim, the new Administration could reduce enormously the bitterness, … and division arising from the Vietnam conflict by taking a major first step toward an all-volunteer army: sending no more draftees to Vietnam.
    No Draftees to Vietnam
    Column, 1968, Newsweek (December 30, 1968); reprinted in full in the Congressional Record, Extensions of Remarks, January 16, 1969, pp. 1161 to 1162, introduced by Representative Henry B. Gonzalez as “Mr. Friedman’s column, from the December 30, 1968, issue of Newsweek”, Congressional Record, January 16, 1969, p. 1161
    Checked against the sourceRead the original

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