This reminds me very little of the apocryphal neoclassical macroeconomic concept, the MERU (rhymes with NAIRU), i.e., the Military Equilibrium Rate of Unemployment. Without a draft, it is difficult for the Pentagon to recruit grist for the military mill. So all else constant, a certain positive unemployment rate -- the MERU -- must be maintained in order to coordinate the Pentagon's recruitment requirements with the voluntary supply of soldiers. If the military is willing and able to pay soldiers more, the MERU can be lower, but budget restrictions and the need for gold-plated toilet seats and wrenches prevents this from going far. If the private-sector alternatives to unemployment are worse (as currently), the MERU can also be lower. This can also happen if military standards for their recruits are low and the average quality of potential recruits is high. Rising patriotic fervor also reduces the MERU, as does a peaceful foreign policy. Don't count on this last one.
The existence of a positive MERU substitutes for forced conscription. It's often called the "economic draft." michael perelman wrote: > In the last week, 3 of my best students told me that they were joining > the military. One came for a letter of recommendation and another > whom I knew when he was in high school only told me today when I asked > about his plans. Another bright young guy from basketball is dropping > out to join. Again, financial considerations are dominant. I assume > they are the tip of the iceberg among students with whom I am close. > They see no decent job prospects in the civilian sector. What is > going on when our economy creates such a double waste: not providing > decent opportunities and then drawing them into a killing machine. -- Jim Devine / "Segui il tuo corso, e lascia dir le genti." (Go your own way and let people talk.) -- Karl, paraphrasing Dante. _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l
