Have you served your country? Why not? Hate wars or military industrial estate? A Chicken Hawk? Never been advertised into benefits of service? Too few opportunities? Does Pope need much more than an apostolic band of 12 to deal with the world his God created and man polluted? Yes? How do we build such a band?

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In 2015 a congressional staffer asked, "Doesn't the Serve America Act fulfill the aims of the American World Service Corps Congressional Proposal?" The following was included in People's Lobby's (PLI) answer to her.

History

In August of 2007 People's Lobby met with 23 bipartisan staffs to discuss introducing and implementing the American World Service Corps (AWSC) Congressional Proposal, which would ramp up over 7 years so that by the 7^th year 1 million would annually serve in the independent do-good organizations under its national and internationally perceived AWSC umbrella. For the ensuing 20 years, a million a year would "voluntarily" serve before it could be considered for sun-setting.

Senator Kennedy's staff was among those who were very interested and noted the provisions the AWSC pushed. During this period I was talking often and regularly with Senator Feinstein's staffer, Olyvia Rodriguez, who had called People's Lobby's (PLI) about the proposal.

In 2009 Senator Kennedy died. In his honor, Congress passed the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act. It legislated something close to a few of the proposals inherent in the AWSC congressional proposal, such as a Senior Corps, FEMA Corps. Unfortunately, it was not nearly as robust as the Kennedy brothers wanted the Peace Corps, Vista, and peaceful national service programs to be 50+ years ago when Kennedy's charisma thrust peaceful national service into the public's imagination.

Marginalize Serve America Act in the budget.

On May 7, 2009, President Barack Obama released his fiscal year 2010 budget request. It requested $1.149 billion for the Corporation for National and Community Service that essentially funds the Serve America Act and AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, the Social Innovation Fund. This was a $260 million increase over the FY 2009 enacted level.

In 2015 $1.054 billion was budgeted for the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) and its programs, a $5 million increase over 2014.

Since 2009 that budget allocated to the Serve America Act has been reduced by about $95 million.

With limited research request responses from AmeriCorps, there's seems to have been about 75,000 AmeriCorps volunteers serving in 2009. There may be 90,000 serving in 2015, according to some difficult to find AmeriCorps figures. The Serve America Act, H.R. 1388, called for AmeriCorps to be at 210,000 by 2015.

The Ted Kennedy Serve America Act called for an expansion of service opportunities for Americans of all ages (as does the AWSC proposal), setting a path for increasing the number of AmeriCorps members to 250,000 by 2017. It looks like America will again NOT come close to even the modest AmeriCorps number that was set while Kennedy's passing was fresh in Congress and the nation's mind.

Ted Kennedy was a giant, as were his brothers Robert and John. They believed in robust national service programs. John Kennedy wanted the Peace Corps to grow to a 100,000 and then a million very quickly. This year it has about 7,000 PCVs serving, less than half the size of what it was when I served in the late 60's, yet applications are surging perhaps because Americans are beginning to sense that today's problems need different armies.

Need bigger, different army

Because many millions have NOT completed peaceful national service since the JFK years, we now suffer from budget breaking wars abroad, climate changing ignorance, swelling masses of refugees, growing antipathy toward America, logic and empathy lacking public policies, and increased inequality at home.

A supporter of the AWSC idea, President Obama said the Kennedy Serve America Act is about "connecting deeds to needs." The needs are much greater than the underfunded budgets that places only 75 -- 90,000 AmeriCorps and 7 -- 8,000 Peace Corps in the field -- a long way from the annual 100,000 PCVs Kennedy called for quickly fielding in 1961.

We need to send many, many more fulltime volunteers into hospitals, community health centers, physical therapy wards, homes for the elderly, school and after school programs, state conservation corps, small local non-profits, needy communities; as well as in established and successful NGOs peace-producing platoons such as Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, Habitat, Doctors Without Borders, Head Start, Red Cross, International Rescue Committee, Oxfam, Mercy Corps, etc.

Present generations face climate and terror wars. Both stem from public policy ignorance. To win climate, terror, and ignorance wars, a stumbling American empire must field more and larger constructive, peaceful, and knowledge building platoons and inspire other nations to do the same. America's voting and funding attitudes must rapidly shift from armaments delivered by our PTSD-prone soldiers to development spurred by grassroots developers.

A robust American World Service Corps, fielding 21 million AWSC volunteers over 27 years through already well established do-good organizations, could inspire other nations to do the same; which is a healthy way to shift from our overreliance on a military industrial estate to doing more of what Pope Francis urges us to do. Serve, build empathy, think, and vote appropriately.

Service works" and the admired White Knight pushes it

The Greatest Generation was great because such a high percentage of their generation served their fellow Americans and world citizens through national service. Shouldn't Americans take the following numbers and ask, "In today's conflicted and complicated world of eight billion, shouldn't a similar percentage of Americans be working to be great?"

Between 1941-1946, when our population was about 137 million, 16.1 million Americans served in our military, about 12% of our population.

Between 1935-1943, when our population was about 127 million, the Workers Progress Administration (WPA) provided 8 million jobs, about 6.3% of our population. The Public Works Administration (PWA) provided more jobs with its 1.7 billion man hours of work, which I won't even include here.

Between 1935-1943, when our population was about 127 million, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) provided 3 million jobs, about 2.35% of our population.

Between 1941-1946, the female half of our population did national service as nurses as well as ship and tank builders, etc. Forty six percent of all women between 14 and 59, and 90% of all able-bodied single women between 18 and 40 were engaged in some form of work or National Service by September 1943, guesstimated at 12% of our population.

Crudely interpreting these rough statistics, about 32.65%+ of the Greatest Generation performed some form of national service. Does that stat accounts for much of their greatness?

Between 2000 - 2015, with our population at 320 million, 1.4 million Americans do active national service in our military, about 0.44% of our population. Does that stat accounts for much of our public policy ignorance and shallowness?

Most military leaders support establishing robust peaceful national service. Former Commander in Chief of the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), Anthony Zinni, when asked by Freedom Forums' Bob Aucone about the AWSC Proposal replied:

"Well, I think a national volunteer program would be fantastic. When I teach my college course, I see so many students that want to put something back, what to do something for the world. I think a national volunteer program should have everything in it. It should include the option of military service. It should include the option of other governmental service, serving internships with our state department or maybe the USA AID, which provides assistance out there, the Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance and with non-governmental organizations, where there can be placement and recognition for time spent there.

To me, all those provide service not only internationally but domestically. I could see where this sort of volunteerism would have been effective for Hurricane Katrina, or elsewhere. So we could have international and domestic. I would like to see our government capture all the options, build the program, "and then put it in our high schools and colleges as an option. So on career day you can look at these steps and these options and this would be explained as to where you feel you can best serve.

"Some people feel best that they can serve in uniform. Others in doing some sort of humanitarian work. Others in maybe working in government to help better create institutions, like rule of law institutions, or working with others in the area of diplomacy, or in other things that can support our effort.

"So I would like to see a broad based program that allows for all this."

Former head of the US Joint Special Operations Command and top commander of US and international forces in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, speaking to enlarging national service in general, said:

"The goal is to create 1 million civilian national service opportunities every year for Americans between the ages of 18 and 28 to get outside their comfort zones while serving side by side with people from different backgrounds."

Climate change will get worse before it may start to get better. Terrorism will get worse before its hatreds and ignorances are reversed. Advances along these two fronts will require more peaceful, development oriented platoons in the field at home and abroad.

And these bigger platoons, from nations other than just our own, must be funded to work over at least a generation, as the AWSC Proposal proposes, since true and lasting development usually takes several generations. Military machines cannot implant cultural changes and democracy over a handful of years.

Investing in these full-time national service volunteers, working through existing organizations but under the public relations enhancing American World Service Corps banner, comes at a small fraction of what it costs to field a warring soldier, about $1+ million per year vs. $35k.

Can there be any more cost effective development and public relations investment to reverse our costly war prone habits?

Just because the country has saddled itself with a do-nothing Congress is not reason enough to not have the AWSC Congressional Proposal introduced and debated by visionary congressional reps. Let Americans see and hear who in Congress has vision. Such debate and observation should enlighten and hasten the making of smart and meaningful legislation.

Authors Website: http://peopleslobby.us/

Authors Bio:

Dwayne served in the Peace Corps in the slums of Mumbai, India, worked several Habitat Projects, and was on the start-up team of the California Conservation Corps. He has a Ph.D. from Claremont Graduate University, has been a builder, teacher, political organizer, small businessman, affordable housing developer, and a rock-piler at Rubel's Castle. Some pics and stories at http://peopleslobby.us/more-projects/rubelia.

Some story tidbits about his recent well-regarded book about Rubel's Castle are available at http://peopleslobby.us/more-projects/rubelia.

In 2013 Rubelia was designated a National Historic Monument, right up there with Hearst Castle. CBS clip: Rubel's Castle is on verge of listing on National Registry http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2013/08/07/rubel-castle-in-glendora-on-the-verge-of-getting-national-historic-recognition/

Dwayne is presently Executive Director of People's Lobby Inc (PLI, 501c4)and People's Lobby's Education Foundation (PLEF, 501c3). You can read PLI's American World Service Corps Congressional Proposal (AWSC) at
http://peopleslobby.us/awsc-congressional-proposal

Rebuilding People'Lobby web site is available at http://peopleslobby.us/

Congresswoman Woolsey (D, CA) offered to introduce it in the 111th Congress, then retracted. Please contact your Congressional reps and ask them to become an original sponsor or cosponsor. The AWSC citizen-initiated congressional proposals could be, with you pushing your representatives, among the most significant legislation passed and implemented in decades. Imagine having 21 million Americans cost effectively doing good at home or abroad over the next 27 years.

In December 2009 Ralph Nader choose People's Lobby's book, "Ordinary People Doing the Extraordinary, The Story of Ed & Joyce Koupal's People's Lobby" as one of the Ten Best Books to Read for 2009. You can purchase the book from PeoplesLobby.us or learn more at http://peopleslobby.us/more-projects/books.

"This country runs on laws. If you want to change the country, write its laws," People's Lobby's founders Ed and Joyce Koupal used to say. If you want to enlighten public policy, involve millions of Americans in addressing public needs, prepare for climate weirding, etc., help make it happen. The AWSC addresses with people action many of our most pressing and costly needs. To sign the reopened American World Service Corps petition/letter, which contacts Congress for you: Paste http://www.change.org/petitions/view/field_21_million_american_world_service_corps_volunteers_over_the_next_27_years
Please help make the AWSC happen. To learn more about People's Lobby, visit the web site at www.Peopleslobby.us.

Recent books both available on line and from publishers: Every Town Needs a Castle (Prelude to next book, Every Country Needs a World Service Corps)
http://peopleslobby.us/more-projects/rubelia


Ordinary People Doing the Extraordinary (Nader's 2009 TopTen Books to Read List)
http://peopleslobby.us/archives/736
Library: http://peopleslobby.us/organizations/peoples-lobby/library