A different view

A Mercenary Force

The newspapers and blogs are buzzing about the military contemplating the use of foreign nationals in service.

Philipinos have been doing this for decades, I served with several of them in California. Ironically, he had to leave the Air Force to prevent his family from being sent back to the Philipines.

We also exchange service personnel with friendly countries. In basic training I served under a British flight leftenant.

Some say this is a sure sign of the end of empire as the Romans and British had to hire mercenaries to fill out their forces as their power diminished.

I have long supported a required public service. My time in the military taught me a lot, both about myself and other cultures.

But since amnesty has become an important issue, maybe we can do both at once.

We'll require any illegal citizen (they're not all from Mexico) to server two years of federal service to gain US Citizenship. It could be military, peace corp, or conservation corp service, allowing for conscientious objectors.

Both male and female should serve.

Why should we look at this option? For one, this takes a large pool of workers paid under the minimum wage out of competition, requiring employers to offer fair wages.

For another, this allows for an acculturation of these groups. Living in ethnic areas of cities, often they don't learn English and mix with other groups in there area. Nor do they participate in local government or other community projects. Latinos are often a shadow group in their communities. Just as I learned how to shave in the Air Force, these groups would learn civics, English, and other important lessons.

We have an opportunity to improve our country. These people are hard workers, and they can target civil projects that will improve all of our lives.

And finally, we have a deterrent or at least way to slow down emigration. If the border crossers know they'll have to serve two years, rather than merely being bussed across the border to once again attempt a crossing, they might hesitate before deciding to come to the US.

Labels: military foreign national amnesty

posted by don1one @ 8:30 PM