Army Sued Over Stop-Loss

I have a number of friends who are current or former military people. Some signed on for a tour of duty, some signed on for a career. But all of them signed up because they believed they were serving their country and helping their fellow man. I was surprised to hear from them to learn about a new order that had been put out for them called "stop-loss." A "stop-loss" order effectively says that no soldier can leave the military (army, navy, air force, etc.) even when their normal term of employment is up unless specifically okayed by their local commander. It turns out that working for the military is not like working for anyone else. When your contract runs out, they have the option to extend it without apology for as long as they need, so long as someone in power thinks we are in some kind of crisis. I understand the need for such an order (what would WW2 have been like if unit lost soldiers every few weeks?) but in my opinion it cuts against the grain.

Well, now some soldiers are challenging the order in Federal Court. Lawsuits will be filed today, asking a judge to release soldiers from their contracts, when the contracts themselves were supposed to expire. I'll be shocked if they are victorious. But I think that have a valid bone to pick.