A 40-Year Memory: The Draft Lottery

December 1 – Vietnam War: The first draft lottery in the United States is held since World War II

Oh do I remember that night. The night that made so many things change for so many people. People hung by the radio to hear what their birthday would be in the number list. Number 190 was the cutoff for 1970. Lower than that,you were drafted. You were in the army and perhaps headed to Vietnam. Higher and you were not. The deferments were disappearing. It was supposed to get more fair. So simple. So nerve-wracking.

Of course it never went that high again. The volunteer army became the norm.

I am surprised that anyone of my generation even plays a lottery today.