The American Soldier : An Autobiography

I think I know what it is to rough it now and if it is my lot well here goes I am itching to get a dig at a few Germans… we have all got the war fever… it’s not bad money here 5/- a day and clothes and food that’s nearly as good as Cabinet Making and not half so hard. You may think it funny mee turning up such a good job but it was like this Philpott had only about 3 days work left for us and things are so bad out here for there is a drought on we haven’t had any rain for months so I thorrt I would join the army.”

President Franklin Roosevelt signed the Selective Training and Service Act of 1940 which established the Selective Service System as an independent Federal agency within the Department of Defense (Smith, par. 3). Young men were only drafted in America's greatest conflicts- the Civil War, Vietnam War, World War I, and the lead-up to World War II (Bandow, par. 3). Nearly 2.2 million men were drafted during 1961 to 1973 (South, par. 25). This practice continued during the Cold War as the U.S. sought to protect friendly war-ravaged states (Bandow, par. 3). From 1948 until 1973, young men were drafted to fill open spots in the armed forces which could not be filled through voluntary means (Smith, par. 4). The registration requirement was suspended in 1975 but it was resumed again in 1980, registration continues today as a hedge against underestimating the number of servicemen needed in a future crisis (Smith, par. 10). In 1973, the United States military went to full volunteer service that marked the end of the draft. Since the all-volunteer military has been active, there have been 144 executed operations compared to 19 operations prior to 1973 (South, par. 56). Currently, there have been talks of reinstating

When a soldier's name was called he was to report to his local draft board. The local draft board was made up of many community members. He was to report as soon as possible so they could evaluate his status. The only way to avoid the draft was to either have mental issues, were married, had children, attending college, or they were needed at home to help support their families.

Starting with the First World War and ending with the Korean War, there were 16,307,243 American’s inducted into wars by the Selective Service (Induction Statistics). These men were inducted into the wars by the draft method. A draft is an imperative recruitment for the military services. Drafts were very helpful with gathering men for the wars that America fought in. Many people did not want to be apart of the drafts, but there were many ways to get out of one as well. Drafts were a necessary action in order to get the men of the United States to fight for their country, and protect the freedoms of others.

Nowadays, cross-cultural communication is one of the keys to survive in this society. It plays an important role in our society. The book, A long way gone: Memoirs of a boy soldier, describes several cross cultural issues. This book is based on the true story of Ishamel Beah, who was solder in Republic of Sierra Leone. During his life time, he face a number of cultural shocks and tried to adapt each situation. Through story of his life, we can recognize some cultural differences and similarities between his central culture, Sierra Leon, and other individuals/groups. Thus, in this essay, I would like to discuss how are cultural differences and similarities between Ishamel’s culture and other cultures revealed. There are three main points; cultural differences shows cultural conflict and cultural integration, and cultural similarities reflects the Americanization.

The requirements to join the program would easily qualify most young men of different races. An enrollee had to be an American citizen man that is 18 to 25 years of age who was unemployed and willing to work a dollar a day for a span of six months (Hammond 9). Then, after six-month they could re-enlist, which gave them confidence that they could survive through the

It is the said that by the end of World War II 50 million men between the age of nineteen and forty-five had registered for the draft . 10 million were inducted into the draft of that 50 million. By the end of the second world war over 24 million men where

Freedom is defined as the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint. The soldiers in the American revolution demonstrated this at the Battle of Valley Forge when facing starvation, disease, and hypothermic temperatures.

In 1917 the act decided that there could not be any replacements for anyone who was supposed to fight.Therefore the wealthy men couldn't buy themselves out of serving the military under any circumstance,Aliens also had to take part of the war as well. This was to make sure that every american man served in the war . Only a small percent of the men that registered would of been chosen to fight in the war. In 1918 World War 1 came to an end and the draft was put to rest.

I don’t know what i’m thinking. What I want to do is very dangerous and could get me killed. I’m a three month pregnant girl who wants to keep my child but jewish children are being round up by the nazis and sent to “children camps” to be trained and re-educated, I have no idea what to do so I tell my best friend, Lena, she tells me to tell Siegfried. The only thing about that is that i'm scared for his reaction, he is a nazi soldier who is by law not supposed to be fraternizing with me, however I promised myself that when he comes back from his delivery detail I will tell him. Siegfried then comes back and I tell him that I am pregnant, he tells me that everything will be ok and that we will take things day by day. I believe him when he tells

A kid separated from his family and put into a war front at the age of 12 change this kids life forever. In A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Solider, Ishmael Beah was put through a lot during the cold war in Sierra Leone, and he was given drugs and pills to keep his energy to fight in the war and he was turned into a killer. There where lots of people killed and torture and Beah was just a kid and he was ver frightened and confused about everything. Also Beah and his friends travel around the country for years trying to survive the war and figure out ways to find there way to safety. The theme of the book is no matter what don't give up on yourself because if you give up on yourself your already bound for failure and the during the hole story Beah used resilience to keep on going and not give up.

By the summer of 1940, Germany had conquered France, and in September that year The Selective Training and Service Act of 1940 – the first peacetime conscription in United States history – was enacted requiring all men between the ages of 21 and 35 to register for the draft. My father registered for the draft and as an engineering student was given a deferment from active duty until after graduation.

Themes and symbols are key components to writing a novel. In the novel A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah, Beah utilizes a variety of themes and symbols throughout the book some more dominant than others. Instead of using words Beah uses symbols to underscore his central theme of freedom because words just cannot explain the freedom he experienced in his life. Three symbols that he uses effectively include the guns when he realizes that even though guns are bad they can be used for good reasons, his cassettes when he realized that music means much more than just entertainment to him and lastly the moon when he realizes that the smallest things in life always guides you in the right direction.

A poem which I have read recently is “Soldier” by Rupert Brooke. The main point in question throughout this poem is appreciation for ones country. I will prove that this is the main point in question during the course of my essay.

The New York Times Bestseller We Were Soldiers Once... And Young was authored by Lt. General Harold G. Moore and Joseph L. Galloway. In November 1965, Lt. Colonel Harold Moore commanded the 1st Battalion, 7th cavalry at the Ia Drang Valley-one of the bloodiest battles of Vietnam. He eventually retired from the Army in 1977 after thirty-two years of service. After his military career, Lieutenant General Moore resided as executive vice president for four years at a Colorado ski resort before founding a computer software company. Harold Moore currently lives in Auburn, Alabama and Crested Butte, Colorado.