Another one of those “tough choices”– paying out $5.7 billion of your money to increase “vounteerism.” Hmm, volunteering for money? Where I come from, they call that “working:”
Yep, that’s a lot like working, but isn’t it nice that the Left gets to use taxpayer money to fund the moral superiority of its youth army? That kind of smugness don’t come free, people! Sure Americorps kids are getting paid to do work, just like the rest of their 20-something brethren who are holding down private-sector jobs, actually contributing to the economy, and actually volunteering in their spare time (like, the free, selfless kind of volunteering). But now, thanks to the Obama administration, far more 20-somethings can avoid actually contributing to the economy or actually volunteering, all with the imprimatur of Obama’s new national service program, at the low, low price of $6 billion. The bill also stipulates that “service learning” will be mandatory in secondary schools, and that the youth corps may get keen uniforms to wear! One wonders why the Obama administration feels the need to subsidize an activity Americans engage in freely and enthusiastically every day? Perhaps because it knows $6 billion is worth it to subsidize any number of left-leaning non-profits and political pursuits posing as public service? These two areas sound particularly promising for malfeasance:
There’s precedent for such abuse, of course:
For a little perspective on the “new era of responsibility:”
For more perspective, a friend in Fairfax County, Va. sends word that the local school system will be adjusting its bell schedule to save money in a tough budget year. Projected savings? $4.6 million, in one county, in just one school system. You’d think Obama and the Democrats could wring a little more than $100 million from the entire federal budget, huh? But hey, volunteers don’t come cheap these days. Update: Hey, for all those grandparents out at the tea parties last week, protesting the fact that your children and grandchildrens’ futures are being spent away, take heart. Look what’s in the national service bill!
$1,000 bucks? Sweet! Future, redeemed.
