The all-volunteer force costs more than conscription ever did. Higher pay, longer training cycles, better retention incentives—it all adds up. But the architects of this system in 1973 argued these costs would produce a fighting force that conscription never could: professional, skilled, and genuinely committed to military service. What does it cost to build a military where people choose to serve, and choose to stay? Watch The True Cost of Defense at our YouTube channel to explore how this tran