5 Young people today: I say bring back national service

Yes, that’s exactly what I think the government will do. If I were laying a bet on what will be the surprise idea of the Brown government, I’d put money on a ‘new’ national service for young people. It won’t be in the military, they have no need for mass cannon fodder these days, despite the revived fashion for invading countries. It will be a community service organisation. It will be a copy of the sort of organisations that are already in place in the USA. Remember, Gordon Brown is a more integrated Americophile than Blair ever was. There are a variety of American models to choose from, for example http://www.americorps.gov/for_individuals/ready/programs_vista.asp This program is aimed at post-college students, while my guess is that any UK variant would be aimed at 18 year-olds, as a sort of gap year exercise. Note the way that service is counted as a financial credit against college debts in the USA.
These American origins will not feature strongly in the UK launch, as the aim will be to build on the Brown vision of Britishness. The movement will strongly feature the union flag and it will be projected as a force building national unity through community development. There will be an emphasis on the way that it unites individuals from all classes and ethnicities in a common endeavour. Politically, the quasi-military style will play well in middle England where it will be spun as instilling discipline into our feckless youth. It will also be presented as a practical way to mend the broken bits of society rather than just moaning about it (Cameron).
Still, a significant question remains, should this movement take its name from its inspirational founder and be called the Brownies, or maybe the brown shirts, oh no, I guess all forms of brown trousering is out; so the brown socks it is. Forward the brown socks, always loyal to our movements historic pledge, ‘a little community DIY or death’.