Gratitude

Should young people be conscripted by the government to perform one year of nonmilitary service in environmental projects, in teaching, drug education, snow removal, community outreach and the like? A national-service bill now before Congress would mandate such a program. Conservative pundit Buckley strongly favors a voluntary national-service system supported by incentives (e.g., tax credits for participants). In a blueprint that raises more questions than it answers, he argues that such a program would enable volunteers to fulfill the debt they owe to past generations while molding their character and binding them to civilization. (Oct.)