The Military Draft Is No Longer Necessary It has been over forty years since the United States drafted the last inductee through the Selective Service system. The Selective Service System is an independent agency of the United States, which gives the President the right or power to draft men for military service. Since 1917, several laws have been passed by congress requiring men of various ages to register for service. Although the name of each law and the age requirements of the records changed, the laws were all similar in nature. They all gave the president the right to call men to war when he deemed it necessary. In January 1973, Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird announced the creation of the all-volunteer service, retiring the need for the draft (GAO.gov). Under current law, all men between the ages of 18 and 25 must register within 30 days of their 18th birthday, however this information is primarily used for recruitment purposes and in case of future crises. There has been a lot of controversy over this topic since the Vietnam War, when people began to realize that the draft was unfair due to loopholes and exemptions to the draft that made it unfair to workers. At one point the military draft may have been necessary, but today the all-volunteer military has eliminated the need for the draft. Simply put, the United States does not need the draft. According to the Department of Defense, as of December 31, 2013, the United States has the second largest military in the world. The largest army in the world is the Chinese People's Liberation Army, which is also volunteer. The People's Liberation Army has approximately 2,300,000 members. As of late 2013, the United States Army consisted of approximately... half of the paper... 012. 558-563. Print.Induction statistics. Selective Service System 2007. sss.gov. No. page April 1, 2014.Laird, Melvin. “We don't need a military draft.” My opinions. washingtonpost.com. 21 February 2013. n. page Network. April 2, 2014. Paul, Ron MD “Drafts and Slavery.” Weekend edition. March 23-25, 2002. counterpunch.org. No. page Network. April 5, 2014. Rhem, Kathleen. “Rumsfield: No need for draft; Significant disadvantages.” United States Department of Defense. defense.gov. 7 January 2003. n. page Network. March 29, 2014. “Military Conscription: Potential Impacts and Other Issues.” U.S. Government Accountability Office. GAO.gov. 10 March 1988, n. page Network. April 1, 2014.USLegal.com n. page Network. April 2, 2014. “40th Anniversary of the All-Volunteer Force (ARMY).” Stand-To: The Official Focus of the US Army. Stand-To! Edition. July 1, 2013. army.mil. No. page Network. April 1 2014.