No Big Society

Reckon, I've been feeling a bit ticked-off lately with the wrongheadedness and creepiness here in the States.  This week, we had a dang fool from MSNBC telling us that our kids... are not our kids.

She, Melissa Harris-Perry, later claimed she was being attacked and that her words were purposefully misinterpreted.  So, when she said,

 "We have to break through our kind of private idea that kids belong to their parents or kids belong to their families, and recognize that kids belong to their communities…Once it’s everybody’s responsibility and not just the households, then we start making better investments.," 

 ...apparently that isn't what she meant.

To that, this Beverly Hillbilly would say: "Well, I'd try to get cured of that, if I was you."

 

We don't need no Big Society

Looking across the pond, I was interested to read this article concerning a "Big Society" initiative in England. 

‘Serco, a leading private contractor, is in line to win a multimillion-pound contract to run the National Citizen Service, proposed by the prime minister as a “big society”, non-military version of national service for youngsters aged over 16’.

The author of the article has hit the nail on the head with his observations about the privatization of efforts formerly provided by Charities.

So to be clear, the government has stripped the cash from charities that care passionately for the young in their community and have worked tirelessly and have strong trusted links with them built over decades. Instead, they have given millions to a company that will being trying to replicate that but in a way to make profit for it’s shareholders. This is absurd!!

The unbelievable creepiness that this "Big Society" initiative is being coordinated by Serco is..., well..., kind of unbelievably creepy.  Last month, Serco reported a 27% rise in profits, yet maintained its prison and healthcare outsourcing contracts from the UK government has not lined its coffers.

Boy's got a Big Plan for a Big Society

I see in the Serco initiative echoes of a 2006 interview with Rahm Emmanuel, Obama's former Chief of Staff, in which he discussed a book he'd co-authored with Bruce Reed, "The Plan: Big Ideas for America."  In this interview, Emmanuel said, "citizenship is not an entitlement program."  He then described... wait for it,....  "Mandatory National Service!"  Well doggies!

Everyone from the ages of 18 - 25 will serve three months of basic training in a kind of in civil defense.  That universal sense of service between the ages of 18 - 25 will give Americans fortunately a sense of what they are as Americans and a contribution to a country, and a common experience.

Emmanuel, get a hat on. A brain like that needs protectin'!  Golleee Boy! I'm gonnaa clean up all this mess and set you straight:

The common experience we Americans share is that we are FREE!!!!!

Emmanuel figures Americans need his particular brand of "Big Idea"  to help us all get "a sense of what we are as Americans."  I do reckon Mr. Emmanuel was out of town, he didn't get the dang memo—you know, with him being a dual citizen/Israeli-American and all.

Plum Crazy Talk

Seems Mr. Emmanuel's idea caught the interest of a doctor lady this Summer.  She writes, "From the sons and daughters of truck drivers and tycoons, all would serve. We would all benefit both personally and as a country."

I say, "Didn't we all git rid of slavery?  And, didn't that young McCarthy fellow git rid of those Communism folks?"

Now, Ms. Harris-Perry and Mr. Emmanuel, I reckon you done what you done because you didn't know we was who we was. And if we hadn't been who we was, we'd have still been much obliged for you to have done what you done. 

But, as my Grandpappy would say, you can stuff your BIG IDEA where the sun don't shine.

It should fit.