stop the back-door draft

first off, fuck the south.

second, sorry everybody.

third, with all his talk about the sanctity of marriage, who knew bush was a back-door man?

all jokes aside though, the back-door draft is for real. and unjust. and it should be resisted as one of the major fronts against the bush administration's immoral warmongering and reckless deployment of this country's brave men and women in the armed forces.

a major battle on this front was won today when david miyasato, who happens to be jeff chang's cousin (don't mess with hip-hop activists, yo), received a two-line order from the army revoking his call-up. the details follow:

GULF WAR VET CALLED UP 13 YEARS AFTER DISCHARGE RELEASED FROM DUTY:
Back-Door Draft Lawsuit Against The Army And Intense Media Interest Cause Army To Rescind Orders

Honolulu, Hawai’i—Today, Kauai, Hawai’i, resident and Gulf War veteran David M. Miyasato, who was called up by the Army 13 years after an honorable discharge, was released from his active duty orders by the Army. He had filed a lawsuit against the Army on November 5 in the United States District Court after receiving no response to his inquiries.

David expressed satisfaction with the revocation order. "Now I can move on with my life," he said. He said he will return to his small auto window-tinting business on the Island of Kauai. He is married and has a new infant child. His attorney, Eric A. Seitz, said, “This is a rare victory, not just for David, but for the thousands of others who may be in his situation as well."

He added, "The back-door draft must be stopped. We don't know how many others may have been called up illegally or may now be serving even though they have done their time. Many may be suffering severe financial hardships, just as David has for the last two months in his state of uncertainty."

On the 5th, after being ignored by the Army for weeks, the Army responded within hours after Miyasato filed his suit, granting him an “administrative delay” for up to 30 days, and notifying Mr. Miyasato he would soon be receiving a “new report date”. Today, Senator Daniel Inouye's office received a 2-line order stating that David's call-up order had been "rescinded or revoked".

Mr. Miyasato enlisted in the Army in 1987 for a term of eight years. His enlistment contract specified that he would serve on active duty for three years and then be enrolled in the inactive reserves for five additional years. Mr. Miyasato reported for active duty on August 16, 1988. He served as a specialist E-4, driving a heavy equipment mobility tactical truck, delivering fuel, ammunition and other materials. He served in Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait during the Gulf War. He was honorably discharged on August 15, 1991. He then returned to Kauai while he remained in the inactive reserves. His enlistment obligations expired on August 15, 1996. Suddenly, in late September 2004, the Army issued orders directing Mr. Miyasato to report to a military facility in South Carolina on November 9, 2004, “for no more than 24 months active duty.”
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congratulations to jeff, and especially to david and his family.