Should the U.S. Have Mandatory National Service?

There is a Democratic presidential candidate who is pitching this idea. John Delaney proposes that “all Americans would be required to serve their country for at least one year, with an option to serve for two. This requirement would apply to everyone upon turning 18, no exceptions.” 

Obviously, this idea has no traction—but it has long historical roots, some of which suggest that we should think seriously about this idea.

To begin, imagine how different Donald Trump would be if this were a requirement when he was a young adult. He’d get no deferment for bone spurs. He’d be spending his time on a public works project with a diverse group of Americans, perhaps in a forest creating a hiking path, or in a slum cleaning trash, or in a school with poor kids.

I have found that the practice dates to ancient times.

In the Third Dynasty of Ur (today, roughly Iraq) workers were required to perform “corvée duty” on public works (length of time not known)—but they were freed to care for their elderly (and probably ailing) mothers and fathers. That idea—time-off work to care for elderly parents—is itself worthy and underutilized in America.

In Egypt, there were awful and good uses of corvee labor—awful for building pyramids, good for creating irrigation systems that built Egypt’s agriculture and economy.

Ancient Israel also had corvee labor, some of which was overdone and created rebellion.

Rome and ancient England and France had compulsory labor.

China might have had it ("Conditions in early China are more obscure because only two texts from the Han period explicitly mention slave labor on farms, .... ")

Okay, you’re thinking, this is very un-American.

Nope. We’ve had it, from the early 1600s through the early 1900s.

Able-bodied men, ages 16-60, were required by counties or cities to devote 4 or 5 days each year of free labor to build bridges, roads, and other public infrastructure.

By the early 1900s, we substituted taxes for labor.

So, how is this even a possible discussion point for 2020 and beyond? Take the idea of “free” college tuition, a popular idea for Democrats. 

College is not free— taxpayers will pay for someone's “free” education. How fair is that? If John Delaney’s idea of mandatory national service were tied to “free” college, a person would earn that education—and receive a real-world education, too.