These are the people who represent you

[UnderseaLcpl]

Originally Posted by Platapus

I am sure our Korean War and Viet Nam veterans appreciate that attitude.

I can only speak for myself, but I have the utmost respect for our conscripts. They served their country when they were needed and served it honourably.

Ps. Thanks for calling my Father and my Uncles garbage.

Hmmm.... yes, poor choice of words on my part. You have my sincere apology for that.

I didn't mean to imply that conscripts were not good people or that their sacrifices were any less worthy than those of volunteers. However, it is a pretty well-known fact that on the whole that they are not a match for professional volunteer soldiers. While I really am sorry for any offense caused, I'm not about to claim that anyone who is forced to pick up a rifle is as combat-effective as a crack trooper from a more thoroughly trained volunteer unit. It's just not true. We know this and we've seen it on battlefields across the globe.

Korea, Vietnam, and WW2, or WW1, or the Franco-Prussian war, or the Civil War, or any war one might care to think of, don't exactly make a strong case for the efficacy of conscripts. They generally died in large numbers in very short order because they were not interested in being soldiers. Also, I see no moral justification for dragging an unwilling civilian away from his life to fight.

In any case, I am sorry for offending you guys and for my choice of words. My only intent was to say that a more educated and trained soldiery would be more effective.