Letter: Bless Their Hearts

In their 8-27 opinion piece Tom Suozzi & Scott Galloway discuss requiring mandatory public service along one of three paths for every young person in the country. Apparently, this idea will reduce “depression” and foster “national identity” for this group. They don’t define “young person” but let’s say 18 year olds. A quick google check shows almost 4.5 million 18-ers in the US. What the authors failed to discuss are practical logistics. In the military (one of their 3 options) new soldiers are fed & housed and afforded health care and paid $2,400 / month. So let's calculate the 4.5 million kids X $2400/ month = almost $11 BILLION PER MONTH in wages alone not including extra housing, uniforms, support staff etc. for this group. Of course this is ridiculous. I can think of 1000 better ways to spend my tax dollars.