Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Compulsory Volunteer Service

Apparently all the regular volunteering that Americans do is not good enough. More volunteering is in the future for US citizens, and this time, its not optional.

Obama will call on citizens of all ages to serve America, by developing a plan to require 50 hours of community service in middle school and high school and 100 hours of community service in college every year. Obama will encourage retiring Americans to serve by improving programs available for individuals over age 55



Generally speaking, I'm in favor of the nice being nice to the nice. I agree that community service is a good thing. I've even read that being nice to other people makes you happier yourself. What I don't understand is why the federal government is requiring it.

At what point will we say "enough" to legislated morality and government interference in our daily lives?

(If you run a bank, a car company, or are expecting Uncle Sam to help you pay the mortgage on your McMansion, (you greedy son of a bitch) your threshhold for government intervention is probably a little more generous than mine.)

UPDATE: Ive been informed that the Obama team has updated their website and no longer calls for mandatory community service, but does mention a $4,000 refundable tax credit for college students who serve 100 hours. $40 dollars an hour for community service seems like a pretty good wage...

2 comments:

Trey said...

Nice, so they're willing to pay Americans to be nice, huh? When will they be handing out ice cream vouchers for cleaning our rooms?

MeatAxe said...

Here's a volunteer program for you: I've got some dust balls under the bed and a gallon of chocolate praline chunk. You do the math.

Post a Comment