Today on the news, I saw George W. Bush saying over and over that he will never allow a new military draft. I usually think Bush believes what he says even when I think he's dead wrong. In this case, he didn't convince me he wasn't thinking, in the back of his mind, "If and when we need more soldiers, we'll find some way to draft them without calling it a 'draft.'"
Actually, I would have believed him if he'd said, "No one running for president can swear to you that a draft will never be necessary because no one can anticipate what battles America may have to fight." I think that would have been an honest statement. I also would have believed Bush if he'd come out with some explanation of how, apart from a draft, this country can increase the size of its army. The most likely answer, however, is something Bush probably wouldn't want to say because it's what Conservatives always accuse Liberals of doing: Throwing money at a problem.
I don't think it would be a bad idea to make military service more financially attractive. We say we love our soldiers but we don't seem to pay them very well. Earlier this year, I wrote this post all about this.
I also heard Bush say that Kerry will say anything to be elected. This was just before he said, "If you vote for me, I'll buy you a pony."