Does Obama Want to Bring Back Slavery?

[cased]

I didn't believe it, but from his own website (http://change.gov/americaserves/):

The Obama Administration will call on Americans to serve in order to meet the nation’s challenges. President-Elect Obama will expand national service programs like AmeriCorps and Peace Corps and will create a new Classroom Corps to help teachers in underserved schools, as well as a new Health Corps, Clean Energy Corps, and Veterans Corps. 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, while at the same time promoting youth programs such as Youth Build and Head Start.

This is obviously unconstitutional:

Amendment XIII
Section 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

Section 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

For some Middle School kids, this is also illegal:

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) sets 14 as the minimum age for most non-agricultural work. However, at any age, youth may deliver newspapers; perform in radio, television, movie, or theatrical productions; work in businesses owned by their parents (except in mining, manufacturing or hazardous jobs); and perform babysitting or perform minor chores around a private home. Also, at any age, youth may be employed as homeworkers to gather evergreens and make evergreen wreaths.

Note: I don't believe any of these exceptions would qualify as community service.


What will he do if we refuse? Fine us? Throw us in jail? Not let our kids graduate? It is the worst for college students. These students often need to work to provide for themselves while they are attending school. When they are not working, attending class, or sleeping, they should be studying. This is absurd and I feel this is just the beginning. Why didn't people hear about this before the election?

[Spartan Erik]

Good grief. I'm sure its unconstitutional if he tries to make it official, but my high school did require us to do 100 hours of community service otherwise we couldn't graduate.

Interesting.. the page updated and now says:
"...high school students do 50 hours of community service a year and by developing a plan so that all college students who conduct 100 hours of community service receive a universal and fully refundable tax credit ensuring that the first $4,000 of their college education is completely free"

Such a plan would cut my tuition in half.. but where would that money come from? That's what I would like to know first.

[port5900]

Before you even go all out there. What do you think he is going to have you do work the cotton field? I doubt that very much. In Israel(not sure if its current) you must take part in the military that's a lot of experience I would think. If any thing Obamas plan would teach kids about that evil word.."WORK" but more importantly you will be helping to clean up the environment/neighborhood an probably learn something from it. The reason Obama won is cause he is trying to unite a nation, if you look around now-a-days everyone talk about what they got and how they are better then everyone else and most people just care about them self's no one cares about what they can do for each other. So why are you so worryed? do you only care about your self doing work? -=)

[rlodge]

I didn't believe it, but from his own website (http://change.gov/americaserves/)

I really can't comment on this fully because when I went to the site listed, I got a "Page Unavailable" error. This is what I would think most Americans would have problems with.

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, while at the same time promoting youth programs such as Youth Build and Head Start.

How is requiring community service going to improve our education system and by the time you reach retirement age, haven't you done enough? Especially since you may never reach retirement age because they keep raising it in an attempt to take some of the burden off the Social Security system.

This is obviously unconstitutional:

Amendment XIII
Section 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

Section 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

For some Middle School kids, this is also illegal:

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) sets 14 as the minimum age for most non-agricultural work. However, at any age, youth may deliver newspapers; perform in radio, television, movie, or theatrical productions; work in businesses owned by their parents (except in mining, manufacturing or hazardous jobs); and perform babysitting or perform minor chores around a private home. Also, at any age, youth may be employed as homeworkers to gather evergreens and make evergreen wreaths.

Note: I don't believe any of these exceptions would qualify as community service.


What will he do if we refuse? Fine us? Throw us in jail? Not let our kids graduate? It is the worst for college students. These students often need to work to provide for themselves while they are attending school. When they are not working, attending class, or sleeping, they should be studying. This is absurd and I feel this is just the beginning. Why didn't people hear about this before the election?

Since when (in the last two to three decades) have you seen an elected official concerned with what is and isn't constitutional? It definitely wasn't the last two administrations. It's just that the last administration was more blatant in their work.

Before you even go all out there. What do you think he is going to have you do work the cotton field? I doubt that very much. In Israel(not sure if its current) you must take part in the military that's a lot of experience I would think. If any thing Obamas plan would teach kids about that evil word.."WORK" but more importantly you will be helping to clean up the environment/neighborhood an probably learn something from it. The reason Obama won is cause he is trying to unite a nation, if you look around now-a-days everyone talk about what they got and how they are better then everyone else and most people just care about them self's no one cares about what they can do for each other. So why are you so worryed? do you only care about your self doing work? -=)

1. We have the quality armed forces that we have because they are voluntary and not conscripted. As far as Israel, their size and the situation / location in which they live requires them to take these drastic measures for the survival of their nation.

2. People are looking at what they have. Not so much to show they are better than everyone else but worrying whether they'll keep it or not. People are more worried about repossession and foreclosure these days. These are very disturbing times in our nation's history.

3. Working for the "collective good of the state" has been tried a couple of times in history and it didn't work. One nation that did this was defeated in 1945 and another lost the cold war.

It's one thing to work to help your fellow man but it's a completely different story being pressed into service in order to help them. If they really want to help, why not create jobs to do these things instead of pressing people into service? Our country's unemployment rate is at a 14 year high and it's looking like it'll only be getting worse.

[Spartan Erik]

PS the link doesn't work, make sure to remove the parenthesis in the URL that got snagged

[rlodge]

PS the link doesn't work, make sure to remove the parenthesis in the URL that got snagged

Thanks. Now I got to read it.

It looks like the title of this thread may be a little "Sensationalist". Not trying to be nasty but nowhere in the article did I read about any of this being mandatory.

The only part that was unclear was the "50 hours" of community service for middle school and high school students. It never mentioned voluntary or not.

The 100 hours of community service for college students would give them incentives in the way of a tax credit to pay for their first $4,000 of tuition. It also says that college students who conduct 100 hours of community service would receive this incentive, not that they have to do so.

As for the other services mentioned, he's "calling" on Americans to get involved from what I can read.

[Spartan Erik]

The 100 hours of community service for college students would give them incentives in the way of a tax credit to pay for their first $4,000 of tuition. It also says that college students who conduct 100 hours of community service would receive this incentive, not that they have to do so.

Well when I first read the article, it did not mention anything about a tuition break.. once it appeared on Digg and I refreshed the page, the sentence regarding the tuition break was added

[rlodge]

I see. Maybe they changed more of the article, also.

Perhaps President Elect Obama needs to hire a "Proof Reader" for his site? It would definitely help keep him from getting into trouble over a misunderstanding.

We'll see how this all pans out. I do believe that people need to become more involved in their neighborhood and community but not by forcing them to do so. A tax break for college students couldn't hurt, either.

I am still curious how they intend to get 50 hours of community service from middle school and high school students. I don't necessarily think it's a bad idea getting them involved in the community but it needs to be handled correctly.

[fempower]

Many Americans could use a little discipline and to learn how to help others. Some schools already make the requirement so there's no problem there. Many kids today have it too easy and have everything handed to them on a silver platter. Even a few years ago, kids had to go to school in 2 feet of snow here; nowadays, school's cancelled at the mere mention of possible snow. For many, it's all about them.

Also, we could use the tuition help. Also, many retirees are looking for something to do; if it's something for the good, why not?

[rlodge]

Many kids today have it too easy and have everything handed to them on a silver platter.

The problem I have with this is that we're now saying we want the government to raise our children through laws instead of becoming a better parent.

Even a few years ago, kids had to go to school in 2 feet of snow here; nowadays, school's cancelled at the mere mention of possible snow. For many, it's all about them.

I'm not sure this is so much "about them" as it is school districts worried about insurance and litigation costs. When I rode a bus to school "a few years ago" in Wisconsin, we needed near white-out conditions to close school. Now, just see what happens if a school bus has an accident in a half inch of snow. "Get rich quick" parents will be suing the districts for endangering their children. Those settlement payments have to come from somewhere.

Also, we could use the tuition help. Also, many retirees are looking for something to do; if it's something for the good, why not?

I totally agree as long as it's voluntary.