In my day a 6 year military obligation was just part of the social contract we were born into.
The lottery came after 1969. I graduated HS in 1965 and the draft was run somewhat unfairly. Too many deferments for too many reasons.
The lottery smoothed that out.
Generally a draftee did 2 years if called and got whatever MOS and duty that was assigned to him. In the 50s, guys did a couple years, had some adventures in Germany and Japan and all were proud to do it.
VN took a lot more guys and of course bad things happened to some.
Overall, most guys have a positive attitude about having served and feel that it matured them. Some say different. Studies indicate that guys who had problems would likely have had them anyway.

I absolutely believe in mandatory service. We can see the damage being done to our society without it. Too many punks and freeloaders who feel they are owed something for nothing.
It will get worse, no doubt.
It is a chief source of the "thankyouforyourservice" BS. Somehow some people feel if they spew this, they are relieved from any personal responsibility of their own.
Ever notice on these boards how many serious enthusiasts have never served for 5 minutes?
A military has to be developed and maintained-not just some sporadic activity to meet the random necessity.

As brinktk pointed out, it is not the military's job to make respectable men and women out of the "punks" roaming the streets. That's someone else's job. The military teaches discipline and respect of course, but it is not out job to make functioning members of society.

One can easily see that the young men of today are going to be a burden on the taxpayer one way or the other by placing them in the Military it will do one of two things they will either take flight to Canada and be that Country's problem or Be taught respect and values by a good DI .

With discipline and respect come maturity and responsibility-inevitable part of the process.

I have know hundreds of vets over the years and discussed this subject a lot.
Most agree.

Fleeing to Canada during VN was against the law if you ignored your call.
Sadly, Jimmy Carter pardoned those criminals and rubbed our noses in it.

The draft has been gone so long that naturally youngsters cannot fathom the practice.

Overall the military had good experience with draftees-not all.
Many guys enlisted just ahead if the draft in order to get a better choice.
I was about next from my hometown in 1966.
This always gets left out.
Lucky for me there were lots of open Airborne Infantry slots.

Don't get me wrong, serving your country is great. But I just don't agree with the practice. Trying to teach someone drill, combat navigation, and other essential skills is like pulling g teeth when they don't want to learn.

I served in the U.S. Army at a time when the draft provided the majority of the personnel. The standards for everything were much lower than they are now with an all-volunteer force.
I used to subscribe to an Army professional publication on armored warfare. The tactics, techniques even the terminology today are so complex, I simply did not renew my subscription when it ran out. I didn't know what they were talking about. In the conscription days, everything had to be 'dumbed down" because there was no point in teaching a lot of complex methods to short service personnel and because the level of motivation was much lower. I don't like the idea of a military force manned by only a small percentage of the population, but it appears to be a necessary evil.
If the Iraq and Afghanistan wars had been fought by conscripted soldiers, they would have ended long ago. The public would not have stood for combat of that duration. Therein lies the problem. The kind of actions being fought now will go on for decades because you are not fighting a state. There is no center-of-gravity to attack. So for protracted conflict, a professional force is needed.