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ONE PAGE MINI ESSAY- MLA FORMAT/CITATION

Mandatory Two Year Service

The American population that serves in the military has fallen by more than half since 1980. Active duty numbers are down from more than 3 million in 1966, when there was a draft for the Vietnam War, to 1.3 million today (Dastagir). President Trump, Barack Obama, and Bill Clinton never served.

An interesting aside: Per Pentagon data, 71% of current Americans ages 17-24 are ineligible to serve in the military based on obesity, lack of education, and criminal records. 

Service advocates, military veterans, and political commentators have argued that a large-scale national service program — to either encourage or mandate that young Americans spend time in military or civilian service — could help unite the country. Young people, with diverse backgrounds, could work together with a common goal. 

Journal Prompt: Should a two-year national public service — military or civilian — be expected of all young Americans?

(Journal response is based on your views, assertions, and critical thoughts and should be a minimum of a full-page,  Please post directly into the dialogue box. If an outside source is used, please cite using an in-text citation and a Works Cited entry.)MLA FORMAT

Keep in mind, the two-year service would not just be military-driven; young Americans could spend their two years working in a humanitarian role for our country--perhaps Habitat for Humanity or working to repair and assist towns where natural disasters occurred. (Think Peace Corps or National Guard.)