'Special skills draft' on drawing board - Computer experts, foreign language specialists lead list of military's needs

[InfoSec News <isn () c4i org>]

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/03/13/MNG905K1BC1.DTL

Eric Rosenberg, 
Hearst Newspapers
March 13, 2004 

Washington -- The government is taking the first steps toward a 
targeted military draft of Americans with special skills in computers 
and foreign languages. 

The Selective Service System has begun the process of creating the 
procedures and policies to conduct such a targeted draft in case 
military officials ask Congress to authorize it and the lawmakers 
agree to such a request. 

Richard Flahavan, a spokesman for the Selective Service System, said 
planning for a possible draft of linguists and computer experts had 
begun last fall after Pentagon personnel officials said the military 
needed more people with skills in those areas. 

"Talking to the manpower folks at the Department of Defense and 
others, what came up was that nobody foresees a need for a large 
conventional draft such as we had in Vietnam," Flahavan said. "But 
they thought that if we have any kind of a draft, it will probably be 
a special skills draft." 

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has said he would not ask Congress 
to authorize a draft, and officials at the Selective Service System, 
the independent federal agency that would organize any conscription, 
stress that the possibility of a so-called "special skills draft" is 
likely far off. 

A targeted registration and draft is "is strictly in the planning 
stage," said Flahavan, adding that "the whole thing is driven by what 
appears to be the more pressing and relevant need today" -- the 
deficit in language and computer experts. 

"We want to gear up and make sure we are capable of providing (those 
types of draftees) since that's the more likely need," the spokesman 
said, adding that it could take about two years to "to have all the 
kinks worked out. " 

The agency already has in place a special system to register and draft 
health care personnel ages 20 to 44 in more than 60 specialties if 
necessary in a crisis. According to Flahavan, the agency will expand 
this system to be able to rapidly register and draft computer 
specialists and linguists, should the need ever arise. But he stressed 
that the agency had received no request from the Pentagon to do so. 

The issue of a renewed draft has gained attention because of concerns 
that U.S. military forces are over-extended. Since the Sept. 11, 2001, 
terrorist strikes, U.S. forces have fought two wars, established a 
major military presence in Afghanistan and Iraq and are now taking on 
peacekeeping duties in Haiti. But Congress, which would have to 
authorize a draft, has so far shown no interest in renewing the draft. 

Legislation to reinstitute the draft, introduced by Rep. Charles 
Rangel, D-N.Y., has minimal support with only 13 House lawmakers 
signing on as co- sponsors. A corresponding bill in the Senate 
introduced by Sen. Fritz Hollings, D-S.C., has no co-sponsors. 

The military draft ended in 1973 as the American commitment in Vietnam 
waned, beginning the era of the all-volunteer force. Mandatory 
registration for the draft was suspended in 1975 but resumed in 1980 
by President Jimmy Carter after the Soviets invaded Afghanistan. About 
13.5 million men, ages 18 to 25, are registered with the Selective 
Service. 

But the military has had particular difficulty attracting and 
retaining language experts, especially people knowledgeable about 
Arabic and various Afghan dialects. 

To address this need, the Army has a new pilot program underway to 
recruit Arabic speakers into the service's Ready Reserves. The service 
has signed up about 150 people into the training program. 

A Pentagon official familiar with personnel issues stressed that the 
armed forces were against any form of conscription but acknowledged 
the groundwork already underway at the Selective Service System. 

"We understand that Selective Service has been reviewing existing 
organizational mission statements to confirm their relevance for the 
future," the official said. "Some form of 'special skills' 
registration, not draft, has been a part of its review." 



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