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To: unclewest who wrote (105517)	3/23/2005 5:47:41 AM
From: LindyBill	Respond to of 793801

That is nearly 7.5 times the DOD budget the year before the draft ended. What really makes it expensive is we have the entire Military on a war footing, with half the NG and Reserves called up. The year the draft ended we were running a peacetime Military. Plus you add the enormous cost of the weapon systems we are using. Much more expensive and effective than what we had. Look at the "A Teams with CAS against four Iraqi Divisions," you mentioned. Even Central Command would have never believed the results before the war started. We need to take the committed money to the F-22 and the F-35 and spend it on trash haulers and A-10 types. They are planning to have the F-16 take over the A-10 role. Just won't work. It is too fragile for CAS. And too shortlegged.

To: unclewest who wrote (105517)	3/23/2005 5:18:43 PM
From: TimF	Respond to of 793801

The FY 2005 military budget is already over $511 billion. I forgot to include the $81.5 billion supplemental approved last week. That is nearly 7.5 times the DOD budget the year before the draft ended. Nearly 7.5 in nominal dollars but pries are about 4 times as high so its a little less then twice in inflation adjusted dollars. And we are getting something for that extra money its not all higher salaries. A draft wouldn't help reduce the cost of a new tank or submarine and it wouldn't reduce R&D costs. And the operations costs of Iraq, other than pay, would not be lower. Edit - Also a draft doesn't as much reduce costs as it transfers them. It transfers them from the country as a whole to the draftee who has the non economic cost of being force in to the army (yes some of them might have volunteered anyway or at least don't mind being drafted but many do) and the economic cost of lower income than he would be likely to have as either a civilian or as a soldier in an all volunteer force. Tim