To Be Free or Not to Be Free

While looking at my previous high school website I found some interesting information that honestly was news to me. It made me think about my four year old son and what he was going to have to do when he turns 18. The selective service system registration is something that every male living in the United States between the ages of 18 and 25 must do or it is punishable by law.

On the high school website it reads that failure to register with the selective service system is punishable by law could lead up to a 250.000 dollar fine and 5 years in prison. This system is designed to provide the military with untrained manpower in the event of a draft. Evidently since I am a female I missed the memo that says my freedom can be taken away at the drop of a dime.

I was curious to know about this an decided to do some exploring on the website which is www.sss.gov and to my surprise not only do citizens of the United States have to register but they ask that illegal aliens do also. It makes you stop and think about the fact that we go about our daily lives without ever giving a thought to the fact that our children could just be "selected" to serve. They also say on the website that " Disabled men who live at home must register with Selective Service if they can reasonably leave their homes and move about independently. A friend or relative may help a disabled man fill out the registration form if he can't do it himself".

In my opinion which may not be agreed with by some this is utterly ridiculous. Since this practice isn't something you hear about on the nightly news it comes as a shock to me that things like this are happening. I do understand that in the event of an emergency the military will need extra people to support their efforts but I also think that in some way it just goes along with the statement "free but really not"

Just in case anyone would like to know and have their sons register with Selective Service System you can do it on their website, at the post office by mail, and at their high schools. So be prepared when your son comes home from school one day with a paper that reads Selective Service System registration. I know that when this day comes I will still be in shock and I am not trying to be unpatriotic because I absolutely would do anything for my country but things like this still come as a surprise to me.