[Opinion. Anyone who reads me knows that I think voting is quite useless to create the kind of radical change we need. So why am I posting this article?

Because roughly two million of these 18-year olds will be registered— registered for military conscription.

Everybody thinks there's no more draft in the USA. They think wrong!

What a sad pass the US has come to.]

Four million Americans will turn 18 this year. Why aren’t we registering them to vote?

Less than a third are likely to be registered in November. We must work to ensure they have a voice

Laura W Brill

The Guardian: 21 Jun 2026

About 4 million Americans will turn 18 in 2026, but if past trends continue, under a third of them will be registered to vote in the November elections.

Automatically registering every American when they come of age would be the fairest, most effective way to protect US democracy, yet we have built an electoral system that does the opposite.

Every year, millions of 18-year-old Americans go unregistered and excluded from the electoral process. In a typical midterm year, US census data shows fewer than 30% are registered to vote, compared with nearly 75% of those aged 45 and up. Because they are outside of state voter files, candidates, campaigns and pollsters ignore them. Their voices and energy go untapped; their policy and programmatic needs go unfunded.

There is no draft.

FYI: Registration for selective service is not automatic.

https://www.sss.gov/register/men-26-and-older/

And why should the good citizens of the United States care about a left wing globalist news rag located in the once great UK and its left wing author's opinion?

20 minutes ago, Screaming said:

And why should the good citizens of the United States care about a left wing globalist news rag located in the once great UK and its left wing author's opinion?

It obviously bothers you.

Better than 3+ million US citizens dying as they did in 2025. That's more people dying than the population of the least populated 60 countries

... "According to preliminary data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 3.05 million people died in the United States in 2025." ...

Yea, I'm bored. Time to finish up "I will find you' series.

Edited June 26Jun 26 by KhunLA

56 minutes ago, Screaming said:

And why should the good citizens of the United States care about a left wing globalist news rag located in the once great UK and its left wing author's opinion?

promoted by america haters here

37 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

It obviously bothers you.

fleas cause itch

7 minutes ago, Yagoda said:

promoted by america haters here

fleas cause itch

Just how wide is your vocabulary? Hate must be your favorite word, along with a few other degenerated words. You are kind of stuck in the same reaction pattern to every thread around here.

The more the better!

Get to work youngins -- somebody's gotta pay for our social security.

16 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

The more the better!

Get to work youngins -- somebody's gotta pay for our social security.

The younger generations are getting screwed by social security. It’s a wealth transfer from the young to the old.

1 hour ago, Hummin said:

Just how wide is your vocabulary? Hate must be your favorite word, along with a few other degenerated words. You are kind of stuck in the same reaction pattern to every thread around here.

because its the same stupid america, trump or jew hating spewed by the same droolers.

how wide are the intellectual horizons of those who spew the same nonsense daily.

9 minutes ago, Yagoda said:

because its the same stupid america, trump or jew hating spewed by the same droolers.

how wide are the intellectual horizons of those who spew the same nonsense daily.

I have to give right about this one,,,

5 hours ago, Mr Awesome said:

There is no draft.

Ho hum. I would not have written it were it not true.

A major administrative update to the Selective Service System begins on December 18, 2026. Under a provision in the Fiscal Year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act, eligible men will be automatically enrolled in the system using federal databases, removing the requirement to self-registe

6 minutes ago, unblocktheplanet said:

Ho hum. I would not have written it were it not true.

A major administrative update to the Selective Service System begins on December 18, 2026. Under a provision in the Fiscal Year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act, eligible men will be automatically enrolled in the system using federal databases, removing the requirement to self-registe

There is no draft in the USA. It ended more than 50 years ago.

2 hours ago, TedG said:

The younger generations are getting screwed by social security. It’s a wealth transfer from the young to the old.

2 hours ago, TedG said:

The younger generations are getting screwed by social security. It’s a wealth transfer from the young to the old.

@unblocktheplanet Why do you disagree? It's the math.

1 hour ago, Smokin Joe said:

There is no draft in the USA. It ended more than 50 years ago.

BS. I literally wrote a book on the draft. Registration is required by law. Failure to register: 5 years and a $250k fine. Now boys won't have to register. It will be done automatically so they have no choice, even if conscientious objectors to war.

1 hour ago, TedG said:

@unblocktheplanet Why do you disagree? It's the math.

I don't know any employed young person, say, 25-50, who rebels at paying SS. Do most of them know SS will be gone by the time they reach retirement age? Dunno.

However, the fact is, SS was established by Congress and all those of retirement age have paid into it their whole lives. So are you say, don't give them back their own money from a productive life of contribution to society? Do we want old people to live in poverty is the real question.

If govt didn't spend our money on uselessness by printing money (where else can these trillions be coming from?), there'd be plenty for ordinary Americans.

The math is right. But it's a question of solving society's problems with equality.

10 minutes ago, unblocktheplanet said:

I don't know any employed young person, say, 25-50, who rebels at paying SS. Do most of them know SS will be gone by the time they reach retirement age? Dunno.

However, the fact is, SS was established by Congress and all those of retirement age have paid into it their whole lives. So are you say, don't give them back their own money from a productive life of contribution to society? Do we want old people to live in poverty is the real question.

If govt didn't spend our money on uselessness by printing money (where else can these trillions be coming from?), there'd be plenty for ordinary Americans.

The math is right. But it's a question of solving society's problems with equality.

I wrote this a while back. This is the major issue with social programs. The ratio of people paying into the system vs receiving benefits. The math is broken.

The largest driver of the growing debt is the social programs. The issue with SS/Medicare is the ratio of people paying into the system vs receiving benefits. In 1960, the ratio was 5:1; now it's 2.7:1. The average SS payout is $24,852/year. Which means the people paying into SS are paying $9,024/year to support retirees. Then add in Medicare, which is about $15,000 per person per year. $15,000/2.7 =$5,555.56. Which means the taxpayer is paying a significant amount to support retirees. In reality, these programs are cash flow negative. 

If you look at the long-term projections of Social Security, the program will eat the entire federal budget. It's not looking good.

https://www.crfb.org/papers/analysis-2026-social-security-trustees-report

8 hours ago, unblocktheplanet said:

Everybody thinks there's no more draft in the USA

what a foolish statement.!!

1 hour ago, unblocktheplanet said:

If govt didn't spend our money on uselessness by printing money (where else can these trillions be coming from?),

Very little of the money supply is printed money.

pa gets tired of hearing this drivel.

Most fiat money is electronic entries in accounts.

11 hours ago, Screaming said:

And why should the good citizens of the United States care about a left wing globalist news rag located in the once great UK and its left wing author's opinion?

I don't much like the Guardian's political stance on many political issues, less it's tiresome "bien pensant" banging of a drum on many issues; but it is something of an International newspaper, with worldwide resources. The good citizens of the United States should care, because it is here calling out the inherent reluctance of many of it's political establishment to enable the voting rights of citizens who they suspect may not support their political stance.

Their is, it does seem, within the US a deep mistrust of the democratic process, (perhaps a fear?) and a desire to further practices which will further weaken it. It stems from the corrosive and corrupt involvement of "big money" perhaps?

That is a process which, if it continues down the route it has chosen will do great harm to American democracy, it's Republic and possibly end up dramatically, messily and even bloodily.

35 minutes ago, JAG said:

The good citizens of the United States should care, because it is here calling out the inherent reluctance of many of it's political establishment to enable the voting rights of citizens who they suspect may not support their political stance.

Who is lacking voting rights?

39 minutes ago, Mr Awesome said:

Who is lacking voting rights?

I'm not suggesting that the generation "coming of age" lack voting rights. I am discussing the report that they are finding it rather difficult to claim, "switch on" if you like, their voting rights.

That is what the OP reports on.

It is, like all such reports, perhaps not "Black and White" - although the more cynical observers of some practices in certain jurisdictions may consider that may be in the mix somewhere along the line!

Edited June 27Jun 27 by JAG

13 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

It obviously bothers you.

I was going to ask what kind of idiots even bother to read that apology for a newspaper , I'll not bother

Edited June 27Jun 27 by Bday Prang

National service , Now there's a good idea, Just widen the scope , it does not have include military service , not for everybody. THere are plenty of other tasks that require sorting out, litter picking and graffiti removal for a start, All those attempting illegal immigration should be forced to do a few years of this kind of work , unpaid of course , prior to their subsequent deportation

What a brilliant deterrent that would be to the foriegners taking the pi$$ out of the UK

12 hours ago, TedG said:

The younger generations are getting screwed by social security. It’s a wealth transfer from the young to the old.

@Chomper Higgot I see you disagree with my post. Why?

Um, so all of the back 'n forth above was about 18-year-olds being unable to register to vote? because they're too stupid, ignorant or lazy to register themselves?

2 minutes ago, mfd101 said:

Um, so all of the back 'n forth above was about 18-year-olds being unable to register to vote? because they're too stupid, ignorant or lazy to register themselves?

I managed to figure it out when I was 18, and we didn't have Google on the Internet back then.

10 hours ago, TedG said:

I wrote this a while back. This is the major issue with social programs. The ratio of people paying into the system vs receiving benefits. The math is broken.

The largest driver of the growing debt is the social programs. The issue with SS/Medicare is the ratio of people paying into the system vs receiving benefits. In 1960, the ratio was 5:1; now it's 2.7:1. The average SS payout is $24,852/year. Which means the people paying into SS are paying $9,024/year to support retirees. Then add in Medicare, which is about $15,000 per person per year. $15,000/2.7 =$5,555.56. Which means the taxpayer is paying a significant amount to support retirees. In reality, these programs are cash flow negative. 

If you look at the long-term projections of Social Security, the program will eat the entire federal budget. It's not looking good.

https://www.crfb.org/papers/analysis-2026-social-security-trustees-report

You're obviously more accomplished at this than I am. When I Googled what is the greatest proportion of US debt, I couldn't understand it.

There is $38 trillion in US debt. The US has never had that much money nor can it expect to in the future. That means they're using Monopoly money.

$1T of that is spent on the military, about 15%. What is not calculated into military spending is our interest on debts from America's past wars. We're still paying interest on WWII despite the prosperity of the 50s.

Even this chart is not really accurate because of the current NDAA.

Social Security is greater, roughly 22%, or $1.5T. SS past debt is ~$8T!

If either of these were to change that would be by act of Congress. Defunding SS would bring a major rebellion.

Medicare, Medicaid and Affordable Care are a bigger part of US debt. In fact, all those cost $5.7T by year.

In fact, from these figures, it looks like the US kills people at home and abroad.

What's scary is that at least 25% of US debt is held by foreign countries with China's being the biggest slice. It's lucky the US is also China's biggest market otherwise they'd cut us off at the knees by calling in their share. The US would have to default. No bankruptcy for govts. Well, except moral bankruptcy.

Social services are, and should be, the biggest "driver" of US spending. There are a limited number of Yanqs and they deserve our care. If the military were drawn down, if the rich were taxed proportionately, we'd have enough for everybody.

I should point out that greed alone runs current US healthcare & pharma. Many, many poorer countries than ours boast universal healthcare. With States' rights, this would have to be done state-by-state as in Canada. But with 50 states, it would get complicated.

Some might say there would be doctor flight. But honestly where would they go? Everywhere else has universal healthcare!

10 hours ago, papa al said:

what a foolish statement.!!

Okay, thank you, you're the first one! They're doing their damndest to keep plans for Selective Service one big secret.