Corvee -- "Labor, often unpaid, that is required of people of lower social standing and imposed on them by their superiors (often an aristocrat or noble). It differs from chattel slavery in that the worker is not owned outright – being free in various respects other than in the dispensation of his or her labour – and the work is usually intermittent; typically only a certain number of days' or months' work is required each year. It is a form of unfree labour when the worker is not compensated. It is not a tax as there is no actual obligation to pay cash, nor is it technically a tribute as there is no actual obligation to pay a physical good such as wheat, but – particularly with a commutation option – it operates very much like a tax for all intents and purposes."
Keep this definition in mind as you read the latest bill submitted by good ol' Charlie Rangel (D-state of Delusion): HR 5741 -- ."To require all persons in the United States between the ages of 18 and 42 to perform national service, either as a member of the uniformed services or in civilian service in furtherance of the national defense and homeland security, to authorize the induction of persons in the uniformed services during wartime to meet end-strength requirements of the uniformed services, and for other purposes."
The economy is in the shitter, the unemployment rates are sky-high...let's create another Federally-funded program that recalls Medieval feudalism!
To be fair, Rangel has been flogging "let's reinstate the Draft!" for a very long time; he's too stupid to quit thumping on dead horseflesh. He proposed such a bill in 2003, and again in 2006. Hell, even the military has resisted the idea of a new draft; an all-volunteer military is preferable and more efficient. No one has ever accused Rangel of being a brain-trust.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again: Washington DC has become the new Augean Stables. When are we cleaning the shit out of the Halls of Power?
I sincerely hope the start of the cleanup is this November 2nd - unfortunately there is such a rime of crusty old shit* built up in DC that one election cycle won't fix it. We have to stay mad and remain as activists.
ReplyDelete*As one who has mucked out his fair share of horse and calf stalls, I realize that when you let the shit pile up it takes longer to clean it up. Additionally, the older it gets it's really better to just put it out in the pasture. I'm just sayin'...
It would be nice to clean up the stall in Nov, but the bigger cleanup will be removing all the agencies that operate telling us how to live, and not being accountable to the voters. Clipping off the head of this snake is a good start, but the remainder of it can still bite - removal is the only true remedy - and what politician is going to run on *that* platform? "There is nothing so permanent as a temporary program."
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