Reconciliation of drinking age and age to join military

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Robert Lee <robertslee () verizon net>
Date: June 1, 2005 4:04:10 PM EDT
To: dave () farber net
Subject: Reconciliation of drinking age and age to join military
Reply-To: robertslee () verizon net


Dear Dave,


In reading the myriad articles and now federal proposal that states  
should be forced to lower the drinking age to the minimum age for  
entry into the military---all on the grounds that is someone is old  
enough to defend their country (shoot people legally) they should be  
old enough to drink---it seems to me that the discrepancy should be  
reconciled by going the other way, to wit:  the minimum age to be  
able to defend your country (shoot people legally) should be  
increased to the drinking age.  In most cases that would be 21.   
Having served in the military as a medic in the USAF during Vietnam I  
can tell you unequivocally that war depends on a healthy supply of  
mature hormones and immature brains (teenagers) and that the older  
one becomes the less likely he is to serve himself up for cannon  
fodder.  The only person in the White House calling this war’s shots  
that ever served in a war was ostracized and was forced to quit.  The  
rest of them wheedled out of combat service.  Someone should do some  
research to find out if this is the only war in our history declared  
by and managed by people who never fought in a war.


I will never forget a scene in the movie, Nicholas and Alexandra.  I  
don’t know if it was a book.  A Bolshevik sergeant is escorting the  
Csar’s family to Siberia, aboard a train.  He goes to a platform  
between the cars to smoke a cigarette.  The Csar follows him out,  
also to smoke. The sergeant and Csar smoke, together, mute.  Finally  
the sergeant says to the Csar, “All my life I thought you were an  
evil man.  These last few days I have spent with you have shown me  
that you are not evil at all.  You are simply a man utterly without  
imagination.”


Robert Lee




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