called up for the services

A

Alan P

Active member
I am interested to Know when the last American citizen was called up into the forces (ie draftee) and how long did they serve.
I personally was called up to do my national service in 1960 in the British Army. I assune what happened to them was similar to what happened to me on www.getingetoutandgetaway.co.uk

Alan P.
 
Thanks for your reply.
The men who were drafted,what length of service did they have to do. Also if they served in Vietnam for a year did they still have to complete their length of service in the U.S.A

Alan P.
 
2 year term of service for draftees. Yes they had to complete 2 yrs before discharged unless seperated for another reason.
 
Thanks for your reply Sgt. Peralta.

It is over fifty years since national service was abolished in the U.K. Since then, now and again we get the do gooders and some politicians who have never been in the forces, saying bring back national service. They say this because of a small majority of youths who have not much respect for elders neighbours and the law. These youths who disrupt should be sorted out for that there is no doubt.
It all starts in the home then in the schools and in my opinion certainly should not be the forces problem. Parents and teachers must share their responsibility and stop passing the buck.
The overwhelming majority of young people in the U.K. are intelligent, dress well and courteous and should not be tarred by a few yobs. Bringing back national service because of these yobs should be a none starter.
Is there a similar outcry in the USA or how do they address the problem.
 
Alan P said:
Thanks for your reply Sgt. Peralta.

It is over fifty years since national service was abolished in the U.K. Since then, now and again we get the do gooders and some politicians who have never been in the forces, saying bring back national service. They say this because of a small majority of youths who have not much respect for elders neighbours and the law. These youths who disrupt should be sorted out for that there is no doubt.
It all starts in the home then in the schools and in my opinion certainly should not be the forces problem. Parents and teachers must share their responsibility and stop passing the buck.
The overwhelming majority of young people in the U.K. are intelligent, dress well and courteous and should not be tarred by a few yobs. Bringing back national service because of these yobs should be a none starter.
Is there a similar outcry in the USA or how do they address the problem.
Click to expand...

I'm not Sgt. Peralta. He was a Marine KIA in Iraq thats my sig line honoring him.

No I don't believe we need a draft, more malcontents is the last thing we need.
 
Alan P said:
Thanks for your reply Sgt. Peralta.

It is over fifty years since national service was abolished in the U.K. Since then, now and again we get the do gooders and some politicians who have never been in the forces, saying bring back national service. They say this because of a small majority of youths who have not much respect for elders neighbours and the law. These youths who disrupt should be sorted out for that there is no doubt.
It all starts in the home then in the schools and in my opinion certainly should not be the forces problem. Parents and teachers must share their responsibility and stop passing the buck.
The overwhelming majority of young people in the U.K. are intelligent, dress well and courteous and should not be tarred by a few yobs. Bringing back national service because of these yobs should be a none starter.
Is there a similar outcry in the USA or how do they address the problem.
Click to expand...


As far as UK is concerned, I agree. Why should our professional army lower its standards. Secondly, as I remember from close experience, National Service added to such yob behaviour, certainly in garrison town regions.

Certain also it is that responsibility should stay where it belongs, in the homes and schools.
 
I do a lot of work with the Ex Military Groups and when ever some one brings up about bringing back National Service I will ask them if they would be happy for their children or grandchildren called up and shipped of the Afghanistan with just ten weeks training. After that they would spend the next twenty one months in the firing line, well the answer is normally a very quick NO and the end of that idea.
 
The old question, Le, of other people's children. I'm with you on this one, although I vounteered from Mercantile Marine to get duty done and dusted as soon as I was old enough.
 
We are certainly on the same wave length regarding bringing back national service. There are a few points of difference. Del boy wrote national service added to yob behaviour.in garrison towns. The national servicemen did not dare to get themselves locked up, because they would have had their sentence added on to their two years service. Don't get me wrong there were one a two who did serve time in the army nick but they were few and far between.
I can only speak about my personal experiences and say the national serviceman were at the fore of everything appertaining to the army, be it sport,drilling,smartness and soldiering in general.
At the time we lived in a different era with World War two and the very unsettling times of post war Britain and its then called British Empire. When all this ended with independence to many countries,national service was abolished
I have my own experiences on www.getingetoutandgetaway.co.uk
Best wishes to everyone

Alan P.
 
Alan - we all have our own experiences of course, and as you are the one with a book to offer on the subject, I will not rain on your parade in any way, but leave the field to you.

I look forward to reading your book.
 
Last edited:
Even the much maligned VN era draftees did much better overall than many give them credit for.
A large % of my friends and associates over the years are those guys.
I have stayed active in vets affairs and issues.

The majority of those guys have a positive view of their time in service and believe it made better men or citizens out of them.

Some of us enlisted knowing th draft was close behind us. We got somewhat more choice of MOS.
 
I was drafted in 1966 (actually into the USMC but another guy wanted the Corps so I went into the Army). We were all concerned about being sent into Combat Arms and going to VN. When assignments came out I remember all of us (other then the few who had enlisted for these MOSs) going into service and support jobs.

The Army determined that since I had swept a newspaper floor for a while when I was in High School, I had “civilian acquired skill”- I was a “printer”.

I got out after my 2 years but after a while I got bored with College and went back into the Army and stayed in for most of my life (not as a printer).

I did go to VN but I had to actually re-enlist for that option (VN was a big “ticket punch” for a careerist).

I have read that relatively few draftees were sent into combat in VN (although if you ask almost VN vet at an American Legion or VFW they were all “in the ****”.) I’ve also read that as many as 1 out of every 3 guys who claim to have been in VN - were not, but that is another thread.

I do remember during my first two years (as a draftee) most of us were not very good soldiers (a huge understatement).

Later, when I was a “lifer”, I had draftees working for me. Some were good - some weren’t.

I do know that after the draft ended the US Army was not a good Army for several years.

In 1979 I was sent into recruiting duty - when I went back into fatigues (1983) I was amazed at the change. The Army had regained its pride and mostly gotten over VN and the turmoil of the ‘60’s and early ‘70’s.

Most of us “lifers” were glad to see the draft go and did not want it back. You really don’t want to have to rely on a guy who doesn’t want to be there.
 
I was called up for National Service and wound up in the thick of it and saw my fair share of action. On the plus side I made a lot of new friends yet on the down side I have to give up the course I was on for electrical engineering as some one in government had not processed my apprenticeship papers.
I am very active locally for ex military and below is a link to a service I arranged for the Commonwealth War Dead buried locally

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEoeSyc4q3Y"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEoeSyc4q3Y[/ame]



.
 
LeEnfield said:
I was called up for National Service and wound up in the thick of it and saw my fair share of action. On the plus side I made a lot of new friends yet on the down side I have to give up the course I was on for electrical engineering as some one in government had not processed my apprenticeship papers.
I am very active locally for ex military and below is a link to a service I arranged for the Commonwealth War Dead buried locally

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEoeSyc4q3Y



.
Click to expand...
I have to applaud the work you do in remembering our fallen comrades. Well done
 
A very interesting post Musgogeemike.
I am sure LeEnfield will agree with me in saying. The camaraderie was strong between the regulars and the national servicemen all those years ago. As I am sure it was in the American Forces
 
Alan P - If I said that in Blighty and abroad I solely dealt with the Commanding Officer's Part 2 Orders at Battalion HQ, you would know what I mean; I had high security clearance and early promotion and worked closely with our Bn. ORQMS and Adjutant. And then three and a half years reserve with the London Scottish.

However, many many years later a visit to the Regimental Museum in Glasgow, revealed that the official records on show bear no mention of any National Service guys at all; it is as though we never existed, reading those. The Bn. HQ's senior Corporal (1953/55), who voluntarily left the Merchant Navy at 18 specifically to join the HLI for National Service , was obviously a ghost. Not a trace of me and the other National Service guys.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top