
Military Service and American Democracy
From World War II to the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars
William A. Taylor(Author)
University Press of Kansas
Will be published approx. on 30. November 2016
Book
Hardback
336 pages
978-0-7006-2320-4 (ISBN)
Description
When I became secretary of defense,"" Ashton B. Carter said when announcing that the Pentagon would open all combat jobs to women, ""I made a commitment to building America's force of the future. In the twenty-first century, that requires drawing strength from the broadest possible pool of talent.""
That ""pool of talent""-and how our nation's civilian and military leaders have tried to fill it-is what Military Service and American Democracy is all about. William Taylor chronicles and analyzes the long and ever-changing history of that often contentious and controversial effort, from the initiation of America's first peacetime draft just before our entry into World War II up to present-day conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. A history that runs from the selective service era of 1940-1973 through the era of the All-Volunteer Force of 1973 to the present, his book details the many personnel policies that have shaped, controlled, and defined American military service over the last eight decades. Exploring the individual and group identities excluded from official personnel policy over time-African Americans, women, and gays among others-Taylor shows how military service has been an arena of contested citizenship, one in which American values have been tested, questioned, and ultimately redefined. Yet, we see how this process has resulted in greater inclusiveness and expanded opportunities in military service while encouraging and shaping similar changes in broader society.
In the distinction between compulsory and voluntary military service, Taylor also examines the dichotomy between national security and individual liberty-two competing ideals that have existed in constant tension throughout the history of American democracy.
That ""pool of talent""-and how our nation's civilian and military leaders have tried to fill it-is what Military Service and American Democracy is all about. William Taylor chronicles and analyzes the long and ever-changing history of that often contentious and controversial effort, from the initiation of America's first peacetime draft just before our entry into World War II up to present-day conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. A history that runs from the selective service era of 1940-1973 through the era of the All-Volunteer Force of 1973 to the present, his book details the many personnel policies that have shaped, controlled, and defined American military service over the last eight decades. Exploring the individual and group identities excluded from official personnel policy over time-African Americans, women, and gays among others-Taylor shows how military service has been an arena of contested citizenship, one in which American values have been tested, questioned, and ultimately redefined. Yet, we see how this process has resulted in greater inclusiveness and expanded opportunities in military service while encouraging and shaping similar changes in broader society.
In the distinction between compulsory and voluntary military service, Taylor also examines the dichotomy between national security and individual liberty-two competing ideals that have existed in constant tension throughout the history of American democracy.
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Kansas
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Illustrations
26 photographs
Dimensions
Height: 235 mm
Width: 165 mm
Thickness: 27 mm
Weight
638 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-7006-2320-4 (9780700623204)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

William A. Taylor
Military Service and American Democracy
From World War II to the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars
E-Book
11/2016
1st Edition
University Press of Kansas
from
€56.99
Available for download
Person
William A. Taylor, assistant professor in the Department of Security Studies at Angelo State University, USA, is a former Marine Corps officer who held posts in III Marine Expeditionary Force, Expeditionary Force Development Center, and Marine Corps Combat Development Command. He is the author of Every Citizen a Soldier: The Campaign for Universal Military Training after World War II, which won a 2015 Crader Family Book Prize Honorable Mention.