National Service was chosen with 20 of the 36 votes cast for the topic. Following is a breakdown of how the states voted, as well as NCFL and NFL.
| National Service | Assistance to Africa | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | Arkansas | Colorado | Arizona | California | Florida |
| Idaho | Illinois | Louisiana | Georgia | Hawaii | Indiana |
| Minnesota | Montana | New Jersey | Iowa | Kansas | Michigan |
| North Dakota | Ohio | Oklahoma | Mississippi | Missouri | Nebraska |
| Oregon | Pennsylvania | Rhode Island | New York | Washington | Wyoming |
| South Dakota | Texas | Utah | NFL | ||
| Virginia | NCFL | ||||
The 2006 Topic Selection Meeting will be held in Little Rock, Arkansas, August 4-6. Specific information regarding lodging, travel arrangements and daily schedules will be sent to your office at a later date. You may also check our Web site at: http://www.nfhs.org/sdta.htm .
National Service
Resolved: The United States federal government should establish a comprehensive program of mandatory national service by United States citizens.The mention of the word "service" automatically brings to mind John F. Kennedy's challenge to "Ask not what your country can do for you . . ." The concept of national service is one of the few issues on which our last two presidents agreed. The United States h as a number of voluntary national service programs, such as AmeriCorps, Senior Corps and VISTA to name a few. Mandatory national service, it is argued, creates a bridge between socio-economic groups that have little normal contact, fosters civic and political participation and balances burdens among the more and less powerful or wealthy. Underlying the debate is the question of whether service is necessary or even something government should be doing. Affirmatives could specify the type of national service to be performed (major areas being conscription, education, health, public safety, environment); who would participate (18-24 year olds, students, retirees, welfare recipients); compensation (tax credits, educational benefits, stipends, housing); as well as specifying whether service is to be full- or part-time. The primary focus of the topic is the clash between libertarians and communitarians. Negatives may argue that national service should not replace the responsibilities o f government, that it undermines existing charitable or private enterprises and the benefits of "volunteerism" do not accrue either to the nation or the individual when it is not voluntary. Disadvantages include cost, diversion from further education and unemployment effects on displaced workers. The debate over national service concerns what we owe to our country and to each other.