ROTC In Cross Hairs

Military Readiness: Against the backdrop of military recruiting shortfalls, San Francisco's move to cut its JROTC program looks even more reckless. Are Bay Area officials itching for a draft?

Unless supporters can reverse the decision, San Francisco will become the first and only school district in the country to give JROTC the boot on political grounds.

Officials torpedoed the program despite the teary protests of students and parents. More than 1,600 kids at seven Bay Area high schools -- about 10% of the district's students -- participate in JROTC.

Board members cut the program in part to protest the Iraq War, siding with organized protesters who waved signs at meetings with slogans such as "Teach Peace, Not War! Show JROTC the Door!"

Officials condemned the program as an unwanted symbol of militarism that had no place on public campuses. And they deliberately cut off a vehicle for national recruitment. "JROTC's primary reason for existence is to be a national vehicle for military recruitment," they complained.

But they just cut off their nose to spite their face. If San Francisco is attacked by terrorists, they'll rue the day they made it harder for the Pentagon to recruit warriors to protect them. And if the war widens and we have to go to a draft, they'll only have themselves to blame.

The Pentagon is already facing serious recruiting shortfalls.Even with 65,000 new GIs by 2012, the entire U.S. Army will number only 547,000. But it "should approach 700,000," Ret. Army Chief of Staff Gordon Sullivan recently testified.

As a result, Pentagon brass have had to lower standards to meet enlistment goals, taking on more dropouts and even convicted felons. Just 81% of new Army recruits had high school diplomas last year, down sharply from 94% in 2003.

To further boost its numbers, the Army has granted recruits nearly twice as many waivers for felonies, medical problems and poor aptitude scores in 2006 as it did in 2003. Waivers soared to 8,129 last year from 4,918 three years earlier, according to Pentagon data.

Not surprisingly, the Army is also having a hard time recruiting officers. The branch will be short about 3,000 midlevel officers for the next few years, data show, while facing critical gaps in such key areas as military intelligence.

JROTC programs help the Pentagon groom such officers. Nationwide, nearly half a million kids are enrolled in JROTC, which serves as an alternative to P.E. classes during the first two years of high school. After that, it becomes an elective program.

It is a fully funded Pentagon program run by each service. For more than 90 years it's been acting as a military farm system. Shame on San Francisco for meddling in that relationship to make a political statement.

JROTC enrollment is also down in other liberal cities, including Los Angeles and Boston. But so far San Francisco is the only one that has canceled the program outright. Let's hope others don't follow its lead.