Back-up bill poll
Recently Congressional Representative Charlie Rangel (NY-D) called for instituting a random, no exclusions draft. His proposal was defeated about 420-3.
His reason for calling for a military draft? If the sons and daughters of Presidents and Senators, as well as those of truck drivers and struggling single moms had to serve equally, would we pursue wars differently?
Rangel has also never been one to hide his belief that all Americans should, in some way, serve their country. In his mind, all Americans owe their country a great deal, which prompts these questions.
1) What if Congress introduced a bill that, upon completion of service, invested $15,000 - $20,000 in each of those one million Americans who volunteered to serve in organizations such as the Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, Habitat for Humanity, Head Start, Doctors Without Borders, Red Cross, International Rescue Committee, OxFam, State Conservation Corps, thereby increasing America’s ability to good at home and abroad? (Details at: www.worldservicecorps.us) Would you support the introduction and passage of such legislation?
Along with doing good and building better lives, the intent of having one million more Americans annually serving is to rebuild our public image via people driven public diplomacy. Showing the world that one million Americans are serving would both rebuild our image, build better lives in pockets of need, and raise our public policy making IQ. Choosing to serve would be voluntary, but having one million more Americans a year serving at home or abroad would be legislated by the World Service Corps Congressional law. Keeping a million Americans serving would rely on the legislation’s cost effective financial incentives and upon national leaders inspiring the less than .6th of 1% of Americans aged 18-60+ to serve.
Do you agree that even with minimal public leadership, finding one million more Americans than are today serving would be doable? More specifically:
2) Do you believe that after ramping up over a six-year start-up cycle that one million Americans would annually choose to remain working as volunteers through the organizations tied to the World Service Corps?
The proposed WSC legislation provides a back-up or kicker bill to insure that an additional one million Americans would join the ranks of the already existing governmental and non-governmental agencies listed in the proposal. The back-up bill works like this.
Imagine that if after six years of gradually ramping up to
having one million WSC volunteers serving, only 900,000 had volunteered. Then a randomized selection process would
kick-in. It would draw from those aged
18-26, calling on them to spend a year peacefully and productively serving in
their choice of the agencies under the WSC umbrella. That means that 100,000 young Americans, or .03% of
3) Would you support the kicker or back-up bill as outlined here? http://www.worldservicecorps.us/world%20service%20one%20year%20resolution%20bill.htm
Family hardship exemptions are the only means accepted excuses from service under this back-up bill, which would only be implement if one million additional Americans had not volunteered from the year when the WSC proposals were first enacted.
4) Do you believe exemptions, other than hardship care for family members, should be added to the kicker bill?
Thanks for helping People's Lobby gauge sentiments on what could be among the most significant legislation passed in decades.
An online poll related to this is at