Write a staff sergeant in the Air Force: “I have made the argument to fellow AD military members that the enlisted force structure is nothing more than a form of intentured servitude and is therefore illegal and unconstitutional via the 13th Amendment:
“‘Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.’
“Unfortunately, the Supreme Court has TWICE upheld the right of the Federal Government to own slaves (conscripts): Arver v. United States, 245 U.S. 366 (1918); and United States v. Holmes, 387 F.2d 781 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 391 U.S. 936 (1968). Both cases only applied to conscripts, but at least in the latter the Court stated that the government’s right to consript Americans is questionable outside of a Declaration of War.“The indentured servitude theory doesn’t really apply to the Officer Corps, who can resign any time after they have completed their initial 4-year commitment. They have to give a notice of resignation, but that’s about it.
“The difference between the enlisted and officer contract structures has the added effect of bolstering the ranks of the enlisted. If an officer wishes
to separate from the military, he merely needs to submit his resignation when a prime job opportunity arises. On the enlisted side, however, one must coordinate their date of separation (DoS) with a new job. If you’re enlisted and married with kids, the risk of unemployment is often too great to bear when it’s so much easier to re-enlist.
“During the Revolutionary War, enlisted soldiers were relatively free to come and go as they please. In addition, it was a firmly held belief in the Continental Army that the troops should elect their own officers.”
10:57 am on March 23, 2007
