Here’s your new (or renewed) driver’s licence–you’ve now signed up to be drafted. That could happen to any young man aged 18-26. A proposed California law (it could happen in your state, too) would send the name of any young man seeking a driver’s licence or renewal to Selective Service to be put onto the Draft list, and he may not even realize that he has just given his consent for that to happen. SB 2201 has made it through the Assembly and sent to the Senate Housing and Transportation Committee.
If it passes, a young man who opposes war on religious grounds or has a struggling business that will fail if he’s off in the military or has aging parents or a disabled child to care for or any of a dozen other situations–he had better not get or renew a driver’s license. Sure, some of them will ultimately be excused because of their situation, but Selective Service makes people go through a tough, nerve-wracking process first, especially if a person has “volunteered.”
If you’re a Californian and this bothers you, go to http://capwiz.com/fclca/issues/alert/?alertid=63257816 to email your concerns to the Committee and its chair, Mark DeSaulnier. If you’re not a Californian, keep an eye on this bill. If it passes, watch for it in your own state.