The column, "War in Iraq will affect America long after battle is finished," March 21, has brought to the surface a very important solution for the Iraq war: A draft.

I think a reinstitution of the draft would be beneficial for the United States. But not like the exemption inundated draft we had during the Vietnam War, which ensured that the prosperous and powerful would not fight. We need a draft that targets all Americans equally and will not give deferments to college students and will not have age limitations. We need a draft that targets the sons and daughters of U.S. politicians, especially war hawk neo-conservatives and Bush-lite Democrats that gave the president the power to invade Iraq.

When everyone is subject to conscription, I guarantee that U.S. policymakers would think long and hard before authorizing another questionable invasion.

I am also pretty certain that the war in Iraq, within months of a universal conscription act, would have a clearly defined exit strategy and our troops would immediately begin to come home. There are a lot of war hawks here at Penn State who will support questionable wars but will let others fight in their place. So while myriad politicians search for exit strategies, I believe that a universal conscription will end the Iraq war.