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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: gamesmistress who wrote (78871)	10/19/2004 10:34:14 AM
From: Rambi	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793845

that's some oxymoron - "mandatory volunteer". We thought so, too~! There is an approved list of volunteer organizations. Our older son had totalled about 1000 hours working with the Metroplex Elementary United Nations program over his four years in high school, serving as Sec Gen. and presiding over a yearlong program that has elementary students learning to write and present resolutions and position papers, and culminates in a three day conference where they present, debate and vote on their resolutions. Groups come from other states and even other countries. He also designed and implemented a UN online for students. We got a note right before graduation saying he hadn't met his hours because this wasn't on the approved list. (Believe me, it soon was.) It isn't a difficult requirement, but I think you nailed what's wrong with it. The minute you require service, it ceases to be volitional. It sounds, too, as if Kerry is going to "pay" for it, further weakening the volunteer aspect. (both my boys worked every summer of high school saving toward college, and saved a lot more than 500 per summer-- so I think that could be a problem for some.) Isn't this another way of government taking responsibility for values that should come from the family? We instilled from the early years the concept of volunteering-- through our church, our school, the neighborhood. I don't believe it's something you can impose for one summer and expect it to take, like an inoculation. Plus I just really hate to see ANOTHER government program.