John Edwards Calls for Mandatory National Service

A few days ago, John Edwards called for mandatory national service, or at least significant national dialogue about such a plan. He said “One of the things we ought to be thinking about is some level of mandatory service to our country, so that everybody in America not just the poor kids who get sent to war are serving this country.” Right-wing blogs have been all over this as some sort of horrible plan, some sort of trampling of our rights as Americans. However, I agree with Mr. Edwards. Most of our parents, grandparents or great-grandparents served in the military through the draft, and most believed it was a formative experience for them. (And in typical older-folks fashion, they think that is why my generation is so horrible… heh… O Mores! O Tempora!)

This doesn’t seem like a horrible idea, which would cause some serious maturation in our countries youth. However, since I believe the current conflict in Iraq to be horribly unjust and dangerous to our nation, a military draft is not the way to go. Our government should offer significant incentives (although probably not require, at least not just yet) for young people, say, between 17 and 21, to embark on some sort of service learning journey – Peace Corps, Americorps, or just volunteering in one’s home community for a bit. For example, those young people who travel to an underdeveloped country show significant leadership ability, commitment and maturity. Just as servicemen and women can legally drink at age 18, I believe that those who embark on this kind of significant journey should be legally able to drink upon completion of this journey. This incentive would cause more youth to commit to community service, as well as a reduction in irresponsible drinking (I believe that once the rebellion factor is eliminated, fewer teenagers would drink irresponsibly.) and be entirely free to the government. A pro-rata reduced schedule of benefits (including college scholarships, maybe even cars) could be offered for those making fewer sacrifices for the sake of their country and the world. Obviously, the military is a significant and important part of our nation. Therefore, we should also offer significantly increased benefits for those who volunteer for the military, besides repairing our Veteran’s Affairs system, which embarrassed our nation with the Walter Reed scandal a few months back. The psychological effects of encouraging youth to do service and to continue this service after governmental incentives end would be immeasurable. My loyal readers, all like 3 of you (and you, Mom!), and the new ones linked to here from the NCATD site (shout-out and thanks to Jenna W!) what do you think about this?

By the way, as an NCSSM student, I am required to complete 60 hours of community service to the state this summer – I am interning with Rep. Paul Luebke’s office.