In light of this USA Today report — “With women in combat roles, a federal court rules the male-only draft unconstitutional” — a reminder of the three competing positions.
Traditional-conservatives: Governments can force anyone to engage in military service for the good of the community. Hence, a compulsory draft is justified.
Liberal-libertarians: Governments should protect individuals’ liberty, not force anyone to engage in any kind of service. Hence, a compulsory draft is unjustified and military service should be voluntary.
Egalitarian-communitarians: A compulsory draft is fine as long as it’s applied to everyone equally, without regard to ethnicity, race, sex, etc.
Recalling a sharp exchange between General Westmoreland and Milton Friedman, at the height of the Vietnam War, over whether the military should be compulsory or voluntary:
Staunchly opposed to an all-volunteer military, which must pay its soldiers market wages, Gen. Westmoreland proclaimed that he did not want to command “an army of mercenaries.” One of the commission members immediately shot back with a question: “General, would you rather command an army of slaves?” That penetrating query was posed by Milton Friedman.
So: Should we have (a) slavery applied to men only, (b) slavery applied equally, or (c) liberty?