Change.gov Is Up and Running

Change.gov Is Up and Running

voices.washingtonpost.com

It took a little while, but the Obama transition team Web site is up and running.

(visit the link for the full news article)


Related News Links:
www.change.gov

I apologize ahead of time if this is the wrong place for this discussion.

Now, the article itself is not what concerns me, but something I found on the new website it is about.

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.

While I have no issue with teaching our children to help others through community service, (Mine do every month) I do take issue with it being required by our government.
I'm really upset at the notion that our kids will be forced to work the equivalent of 3 or so work weeks for free.

What about the college kids who work full time while going to school? How will these kids, who are already struggling, find all this free time?

And what will be the punishment be if you don't fullfill your required service?

voices.washingtonpost.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

I remember (JFK?) "volunteers in service to America", or VISTA. This will similar, only Mandatory Servitude To America.

The truancy rate in Tucson is such that they can't make the students go to school, how in 7734 are they going to get them to perform mandatory community service? Leg irons?

Let's wait and hear what the actual details are of these programs. These may be tuition-free programs that will require service. We won't know, until we read the actual details.

Sorry to disagree with you, but I think that's a fantastic idea.

Kids have it way too easy, I don't know of a single kid who works a paper round, or volunteers, or does things for charity like I did as a child.

It taught me to work for my living, made me more respectful of how hard my parents worked for our family.

Kids these days scream and yell enough and they get what they want.

We have ASBO's in the UK (Anti-Social Behavior Order) for kids who act up, break the law and so on. It basically just requires them to behave or face further prosecution (really it just means another ASBO!) what we should be doing is forcing them to do service in our country, cleaning up the graffiti, working in social responsibility and developing another community.

Hard work forces kids to face responsibility and teaches them that don't just deserve everything they want without having to work.

It's another great idea by Obama as far as I am concerned. I wish we could elect someone as modern, intelligent and sensible as him in the UK!

So long as it is completely voluntary I won't have a problem with it. But as a college student, mother of two, and someone who is heading back into the work-force I will not agree to being required to do 100 hours of community service on top of everything else I already have on my plate. I went to the site and apparently it is in exchange for a $4000 tax credit each year for college students, which sounds good on the surface but only if it is completely voluntary.

I'm pretty sure I remember hearing that this would be in order to have your college education paid for. Perhaps they left the details out in that description? Community service is great, but requiring it of every person from middle school to college is pretty far out.

If it remains voluntary, fine. If it is to gain a $4000 credit than great, but the minute the word required was used I was upset. I know children need to be taught the value of hard work, but it should fall on the parents, not the government to teach that lesson.

Originally posted by pyrytyes



I remember (JFK?) "volunteers in service to America", or VISTA. This will similar, only Mandatory Servitude To America.

The truancy rate in Tucson is such that they can't make the students go to school, how in 7734 are they going to get them to perform mandatory community service? Leg irons?

That is what went through my mind as well. How in the world would they keep track of such a thing & what would happen if a student were to fail in meeting his/her yearly requirement?

reply to post by pyrytyes


Not that I am a fan of Obama or anything, for I am not...

100 hours of "community service" of some type over 4 years (high school or college) is barely any time at all.

Its not like they are asking you to cram it all in within a 6 month time frame.

Even with a job, if you devoted 2 hours a saturday (or whenever your days off are) you would have accomplished this in a year...

Have we really grown that lazy?

The focus on being voluntary or not... are we really asked to do alot now with our free time?

reply to post by TwiTcHomatic


Two hours a saturday if you are working your way through college can add up. Especially if you have other things in your life, such as a child(ren).

Originally posted by TwiTcHomatic
100 hours of "community service" of some type over 4 years (high school or college) is barely any time at all.

It's 100 hours per year, not 100 hours over four years. And there are many college students who have children to take care of as well as a job, not all college students are fresh from high school with no kids, spouse, or job. Many of us are hard pressed to get everything done each day that we need to.

On the surface it is a good idea, but if he tries to make it a requirement then it is no better than the draft and many people will fight against it for that alone. According to the website it is supposed to be in exchange for a $4000 tax credit for college students, but the word "required" makes me wary.

The biggest issue I have with this is nothing like it should be mandatory. The tax ensintive is one thing, I could see that. If some politician wants to make something like it mandatory, it should be made so for the people who are soaking up the free money from the government and not contributing any thing back.

From the 10 planks of communism.

Free education for all children in public schools. Abolition of children's factory labor in its present form. Combination of education with industrial production.


And that is the question that I have how are they going to get these kids that don't go to school now to do more stuff they don't want to do?

I understand that they have to learn to work for a living and learn that they have to do stuff they don't want to do, but still how do you make an already bad, in most cases, educational environment better. I don't think making them do 50 hours of community service a year is valid way of doing it.

reply to post by TwiTcHomatic


According to Forbes.com, it's actually a 100 hours per year & for college-aged kids it will get them $4000 (if their family makes less than 100k)

But, IMO, the wording on this site does not sound all that thrilling. I keep getting stuck on the word required, not encouraged, not "we'll help you with college if you help your community", nope, they used the word required.

Obama mentioned in a July 2008 speech about a "Civilian National Security Force." Perhaps adults would be encouraged/required to participate in this program.

Michelle Obama was quoted on an Illinois conservative blog site as saying," "Barack Obama will require you to work. He is going to demand that you shed your cynicism. That you put down your divisions. That you come out of your isolation. That you move out of your comfort zones. That you push yourselves to be better. And that you engage. Barack will never allow you to go back to your lives as usual, uninvolved, uninformed."
illinoisreview.typepad.com...

Since this is predominately a conspiracy theory website, I throw this idea out for others to conspire about.

Also, someone should maybe point out to him that middle school starts at the age of 10 for most. (Kind of young IMO)

Sorry, but I see a problem with telling my 11 year old she has to go to work when she should be at the park.

reply to post by lynn112


$4000 in tuition money for 100 hours of helping your fellow man..

Thats about $40 an hour, for something you can choose when to do.

Still failing to see whats the problem with the concept. Not saying I endorse it, just looking at it from a practical point of view.

God forbid our younger generation getting a taste of things beyond their own scope of life.

_edit- too comment on the 11 year old part.. I think this would be more seriously focused in high school and beyond. It may say "middle school" but ideas always start big and scale back.

I don't think you would have to worry about your 11 year old being sent out to pick up trash off the side of the highway. Thats a bit rash.


[edit on 6-11-2008 by TwiTcHomatic]

Originally posted by TwiTcHomatic
reply to post by lynn112

 

$4000 in tuition money for 100 hours of helping your fellow man..

Thats about $40 an hour, for something you can choose when to do.

Still failing to see whats the problem with the concept. Not saying I endorse it, just looking at it from a practical point of view.

God forbid our younger generation getting a taste of things beyond their own scope of life.

My problem is that this no longer sounds voluntary at all. If it is, as I said before, that's great, but what about the middle & high school students? They are not yet in college so that $4000 would not apply to them.

reply to post by lynn112


I would think there would end up being "tiers" of service.

You are talking like everybody will be lumped into a single category of service of some type. Nowhere does it hint at that.

And to be real honest, even if it did come about to say, I want every American from 11 and up to perform 50 hours of community service a year to help build social skills and break barriers.. would you object? really?

How many hours do you waste in a week in front of the machine you are typing on, or the tv that is playing in the background?

I know this is all out there.. and will prob never happen for we are a lazy country.. but what harm comes out of it other than maybe getting up a little earlier one day?