May 14, 1964-exactly 56 years ago today I, along with many other men, boarded a train in Bridgeport, CT bound for Fort Dix, New Jersey. It was the first day of our 2 year commitment in the U.S. Army. We had been drafted.
Talk to kids today and they haven't a clue what the draft meant to young men in those days but to people my age it was almost a rite of passage. When you turn 18 you must register for the draft (that still exists). Then in a couple of years, if you're healthy and not married or a student, you can expect to be drafted. The requirement is 2 years active duty, 2 years reserve and 2 years inactive reserve-a six year commitment.
When I was in I didn't have to do the 2 years reserve duty because there were so many men joining the reserve thinking it would get them out of Viet Nam so they let me off the hook since I did 2 years active.
As I think back to that day, I recall we were pretty glum because we were leaving home to an unknown adventure but no one really complained or felt victimized. It was simply something we had to do. We certainly weren't heroes. It was just something everyone did-unless of course you're a cowardly little rich boy who went whining to your daddy to get out of it but off hand I can only think of one person who did that. The rest of us just went. Personally it did me a lot of good.
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