In the latest and perhaps decisive battle over the role of women in the military, Congress is embroiled in an increasingly intense debate over whether they should have to register for the draft when they turn 18.They want equality, give it to them until they scream for mercy as their society crumbles around their ears. Then restore a sensible nationalist patriarchy and never let them vote or attend higher education again.
On Tuesday, the Senate approved an expansive military policy bill that would for the first time require young women to register for the draft. The shift, while fiercely opposed by some conservative lawmakers and interest groups, had surprisingly broad support among Republican leaders and women in both parties.
The United States has not used the draft since 1973 during the Vietnam War. But the impact of such a shift, reflecting the evolving role of women in the armed services, would likely be profound.
Under the Senate bill passed on Tuesday, women turning 18 on or after Jan. 1, 2018, would be forced to register for Selective Service, as men must do now. Failure to register could result in the loss of various forms of federal aid, including Pell grants, a penalty that men already face.
No society needs women soldiers, women doctors, women scientists, or women programmers. They are needed, desperately, as wives and mothers. Anything that stands in the way of that will ultimately need to go or the society will collapse within a few generations.