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This was brought up in another thread, and didn't want to de-rail it, but I bet a bunch of us sweated out the draft lottery. In my case I was born in 1951 and was in the 2nd lottery in 1970. My birthday came up #276.
My buddies and I were all middle class, suburban guys that ranged from pretty straight (me) to semi-hippies. Ironically all the avowed ant-military, anti-Vietnam guys got low numbers and the guys like me got good numbers.
None of them actually got drafted or went to Canada, so I guess their student deferments let them delay things long enough so that the draft ended before they got called (July 1, 1973).
In Year one, the highest number drafted was 195. In subsequent years it went as high as 215.
Before the lottery, the Navy, and especially the Air Force had long waiting lists to get in as they were considered safer.
After the draft with half the population safe from being drafted, the waiting lists disappeared.
In the end... for me......a buddy of mine joined the Air Force. I came home from an out of city college to live at home and go to local school. Living at home after being on my own now drove me crazy. So when summer came, and my buddy told me how easy the Air Force was.... I decided to join the Air Force on Aug 21st 1971 after one last summer of youth.....
But.... it was just to get out of the house, get married and figure out what I want to do with my life. But it's 4 years.... 4 long years.. I figured I could do that 4 years and by then I'll be ready for my actual life to begin. If I could just get through 4 years...........
Tom Mills
USAF retired
"Before the lottery,the Navy , and especially the Air Force had long waiting lists to get in as they were considered safer"
Really?
I got drafted .........before the lottery......( October 1965) and the Navy was not reaching its recruiting goal. Thus , 5 of us out of 90 guys leaving that day, got drafted into the Navy ( 2 years )
It was interesting working next to 4 year enlisted men out on the flightline of the air station .........doing the same job as them ( plane captain) and hearing how they evaded the Army draft of 2 years by enlisting for 4.
They didn't believe I was a draftee and only in for 2 years.
Since this is the retirement forum, very small percent.
True.
Just answering the question about the draft, particularly for those that didn't know that there were three years worth of guys who never had to register.
Just answering the question about the draft, particularly for those that didn't know that there were three years worth of guys who never had to register.
I wonder why that was,
A false feeling that there never would be another war ?
A false feeling that there never would be another war ?
I don't know. I'm just glad I didn't have to deal with it.
My brother was the luckiest draftee of the Viet Nam era. His assignment out of basic was the Pentagon. That would be great duty for somebody from ANY part of the country, but if you're from a town in central Maryland that's just about an hour's drive away, it's particularly great.
I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have been that fortunate.
A false feeling that there never would be another war ?
Quote:
Originally Posted by P47P47
I don't know. I'm just glad I didn't have to deal with it.
It's because the registration requirement was suspended in April 1975 and wasn't reinstated until 1980. When it was reinstated (in response to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan), it was only reinstated for those who were born in 1960 or later. The people born between March 29, 1957 and the end of 1959 never needed to register because the requirement had been suspended when they had turned 18 and they were not included in the 1980 reauthorization.
#88 4f =Polio. 6 buddies from high school were there the same day of y physical. One was a POW for 6 months and they shot his knee caps off while a pow. He said that he didn't think he would make it back. His wife divorced him while he was a pow. When he made it back he owed back child support.
#112, was in college that year, found out my roommate and I had the same birthday when we looked at each other and realized we had the same number.
Graduated in 1972, was sweating it out (and my mother) as numbers went up, that year, whether to get drafted and go to Vietnam in the Army (2 years) or volunteer and go into Navy or Coast Guard (4 years) and go to Vietnam in those services. Canada was also considered.
I missed it
Got a full time job in Sept 1972
If I was a year older, would have made a completely different story to my life
I was in that March 29, 1957 and the end of 1959 Group, So I have no number...
Interesting my 18yo Son got his SSS card mailed to him, a month before his Birthday, He didn't do anything, So they must be pulling info from DMV.
Make you wonder why the they go thru the cost/expense (Of our Tax Dollars) of sending out card now,
Just Mail out the cards if there is a draft again, Since they have it in there database already.
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