U.S. Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.), a veteran of the Korean War, recently announced his intentions to reintroduce conscripted military service - an effort supported by Rep. John Conyers (D-Detroit.).

"If our great country becomes involved in an all-out war, the sacrifice must be shared. In that regard, I am preparing legislation to authorize reinstatement of the universal draft and other forms of mandatory national service," Rangel said in a written statement.

Though Conyers openly opposes the war effort, he said he still supports the draft proposal out of necessity.

"I'm doing this as one against the war, but it is evident that the president wants to go to war," Conyers said. "There aren't enough volunteers to sustain the number of military personnel required to police Iraq after the war."

But other legislators disagree that the military is lacking a sufficient number of volunteers.

"Our Armed Forces are currently attracting both the quality and the quantity of young men and women volunteers they need to meet their recruiting goals," Sen. Carl Levin (D-Detroit.) said. "The senior military and civilian leadership of the Department of Defense have indicated that there is no military reason to reinstitute conscription and I agree with them."

Rangel stresses that the issue is not only a practical one, but a moral one as well.

"I think, if we went home and found out that there were more families concerned about their kids going off to war, there would be more cautiousness and more willingness to work with the international community, instead of just saying that it's my way or the highway," he added.

If successful, his proposal would put into force the unbiased, two-year conscription of both men and women from the ages of 18 to 26, the only exception being for those completing a high school diploma.

"It is apparent ... that service in the armed forces is not a common experience and that disproportionate numbers of the poor and members of minority groups compose the enlisted ranks of the military," Rangel said. "We must be certain that the sacrifices that we will be asking our armed forces to make are shared by the rest of us."

But some feel that a new, revised draft is not the answer.

"If there was a threat to the country, if it was for protecting what we had now, I'd support a draft, but if it's for attacking another nation's ideals, that's not threatening this country," said LSA senior Benson Varghese. "I don't think the solution is drafting people for political reasons."

Others feel Rangel's point about the composition of the armed services is valid, but that his efforts to promote a draft are too drastic.

LSA senior Patrick Mills said although he is adamantly opposed to a draft, he thinks "the upper classes do not fight because they can make the lower classes fight for them. ... The upper classes are educated people that are excused from military service because of their positions of power."