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Originally Posted by Telluride
I actually am considering homeschooling my children (I would feel this way regardless of any community service requirements at local schools, though).
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I was also considering this until I found a Montessori school near by. If you're thinking about home-schooling, but you're worried about work and such, it seems an excellent option. It's a fascinating program.
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Originally Posted by Telluride
I disagree. A little later in your post you say, "They're not being forced at all. No one said that you have to graduate from high school. No where is it written that it's illegal not to have a diploma. Jeez. They can flunk until they turn 18, and then mow lawns for the rest of their lives."
Not everyone is able to homeschool or send their children to a private school. So if these people live in a school district that requires community service to graduate high school they are stuck with two options:
1) Allow the school to force their children into involuntary servitude.
2) Defend their childrens' rights at the cost of them being able to graduate.
That seems like a damned cruel situation to me.
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Well, I can tell you it's an easy choice considering that even though I've been searching news articles about this for days, I've yet to see any parent complain. 'Involuntary servitude', in the way you're using the term, can be applied to many facets of not just school but all of childhood. How many children are required by their parents to go to church? How many children are required to do chores by their parents? How many kids are treated poorly by their peers, and have to behave in a way that they don't want to in order to fit in? The school requires kids to do many things: exercise, learn about things they'll never need (I've not used calculus since I graduated from college), listen to teachers whether they're right or wrong, and they can't leave campus without being pursued by a truancy officer. That would make a school prison for children, by your reaction. And yet I don't hear anyone complaining about that at all. No not one bit. As I stated before, children are taxed without government representation. That's the reason the 13 Colonies revolted from the UK. It's a situation that can spark insurrection and rebellion. But if you ask a kid to do a ride along with a police officer, and it's slavery? You're overreacting.
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Originally Posted by Telluride
Interesting. You called my argument a strawman before I said anything about the people in this thread. What was your original basis for that statement?
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It's not a strawman against us, it's a strawman against the school administrators. You presume there is some 'political agenda' (your words). I see no evidence of that. So rushing to judge their intent is clearly premature, and representing their intent as fact despite no evidence, and having that representation be malicious, is a strawman.
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Originally Posted by Telluride
Anyway...it's not a strawman because what I said is true. It's pretty obvious to me that the motivation behind community service requirements are political in nature. The public school employees who would implement such policy are government employees.
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Maybe you'd like to speak to these administrators before you put words in their mouths.
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Originally Posted by Telluride
Someone who resists a violation of his or her rights isn't being a baby.
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Kids don't have rights like adults. While I disagree with the laws, that's how they are. It's not illegal or unconstitutional for a school to require community service from persons under the age of 18.
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Originally Posted by Telluride
National Guard isn't non-combat. I'm talking about a non-combat job, such as a cook or office worker.
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Tell you what, sign up for the military right now and try to get a non-combat job.
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Originally Posted by Telluride
It's not a volunteer program if people are forced to volunteer. That's forced labor where the laborers get to pick where they work.
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The volunteer label is a loose one, I'll admit, but the fact that they can pick and choose any service to the community brings a voluntary decision to the mix. They aren't volunteering to work, but they're volunteering to take one option.