Alexis de Tocqueville, a well- known critic of democratic participation in government
institutions, stated in his book, Democracy in America, that volunteerism “prompts [Americans]
to assist one another and inclines them willingly to sacrifice a portion of their time and property
to the welfare of the state” (Tocqueville 507). Although many members of American society still
subscribe to the idea that sacrificing a part of their lives ameliorates “the welfare of the state,”
many critics of volunteerism insist that the responsibility of “the welfare of the state” lies within
the United States government, and not individual members of American society. Critics of
volunteerism insist that the federal and state taxes that they pay each year should be sufficient to
ensure the social welfare needs of the less fortunate members of U.S. society; therefore they
should not be required, nor asked to volunteer. In contrast, proponents of volunteerism argue that
federal and state taxes do not produce enough money to financially assist all members of U.S.
society that need aid; therefore it is society’s responsibility to make-up for what the government
cannot provide. This cycle of transferring social welfare responsibility from the government to
its citizens is becoming increasingly contentious 1.
1 As society grows in numbers, many Americans are left without basic survival needs. This is why transferring
responsibility is becoming contentious. As society’s population increases, the more people are in need of
government assistance.
2
While the United States government continues to encourage members of American
society to volunteer by creating agencies such as the Corporation for National and Community
Service (CNCS), many Americans2 oppose the government’s solicitations for free labor. The
CNCS is one of the government’s solutions that encourage Americans to volunteer so that the
government does not have to provide paid employees to do similar work. By creating the CNCS,
the government is attempting to solicit free labor to provide non-monetary support for social
welfare programs that the government implicitly declines responsibility for. The CNCS uses
political support of the U.S. government to persuade Americans to volunteer in their
communities to argue that volunteering is a vital characteristic of Unite...
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Alexis de Tocqueville’s observation of the American prison system brought out several interesting facts about America and how it governs itself. He talks of the danger of greed for money, the importance of forming associations, and the power of influence in town government. Although many of his observations have since changed, many of them bring about legitimate points about American government and society.
O?Beirne, Kate. ?The State of Welfare: An old and tricky question resurfaces.? National Review 54.2 (February 11, 2002): 1--2. Online. Information Access Expanded
It is widely believed that charity is voluntary, a supererogatory action, while a duty is an obligatory action. Singer shares this view, but there are reason to think that he should not. Singer’s principle seems to imply that it should not be considered a voluntary action to create change and help those in need. And, not only does it only suggest that we should change the way we think, but it indicates that we should do everything that we can to minimize the suffering because it is our moral
The objection says that Singer’s analyses of moral duty conflicts with society’s current outlook on charity, which views it as not an obligation but a personal choice, where those who choose to give are praised for their philanthropy but those who choose not to give are not condemned (236). Singer retorts this objection by saying that we as a society need to essentially change our perspective of charity (236). What Singer means by this is that we need to drastically revise our ideas of what a moral duty is because, in agreement with Singer’s premise that we are morally obligated to help those who are suffering if it is within our power to do so without causing something equally as bad as the suffering to happen (231), charity should be considered as our moral responsibility and a mandatory duty for society
because the employers do not have to provide health insurance or pension plans for these
When applying it to our daily lives we see that we are more likely to deem a person ‘good’ or ‘generous’ if they spared their time to go and work with displaced people from war struck regions of the world out of compassion and the need to give back to the society, as oppose to those who go only because they feel it is their duty.
“Welfare Can Not End Cycle Of Poverty In U.S.” UWIRE Text 13 Nov. 2014: 1. General Onefile. Web. 25 Sept.
“The traditional professing of duty states an intention to serve the community rather than merely to seek income.” (Macionis, Page 384)
volunteering is important in the public sector because it helps the public services save money other than the military as the military reservists get paid but it is still voluntary. I got all my information from the websites which are for the organisation. the benefits of volunteering are:
Vantilborgh, T.; Bidee, J.; Pepermans, R.; Willems, J.; Huybrechts, G.; Jegers, M. (2012) Volunteers’ Psychological Contracts: Extending Traditional Views, Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 41(6), 1072–1091
Volunteering increases a person’s physical health. A person who volunteers is found to live a longer life. Even more so, volunteers found themselves with lower mortality rates (Dietz et al.). Volunteerism has been helpful in increasing health and consequently lowers mortality rates. Furthermore, people experience less chronic pain when volunteering. Specifically, people experiencing chronic pain found it to decrease when volunteering and serve the public (Dietz et al.). Volunteers experience better health overall, but also specific enhancements such as reducing chronic pain like stated above. Additionally, volunteering can be physically demanding, increasing strength and stamina. Notably, Volunteers for Experience Corps found themselves with
Volunteering enables a person to develop new skills that he or she would otherwise not have been able to develop. Unlike most other organizations, a charitable organization is happy to give positions to passionate, though inexperienced, individuals who desire to help others and benefit the community. Therefore, an individual with little experience in a field of work can gain meaningful skills that he or she can use in the future. For example, while I volunteered at the hospital this summer, I learned about the daily work lives and professional duties of doctors and nurses. Had I not volunteered, I would not have learned about these things. I was always interested in the medical field, but volunteering at the hospital let me explore my interests and en...
Still some people move away from the thought of volunteering at all. They think that it is beneath them, they find it demeaning. Think giving up your valuable time to help someone out. "I don’t get paid I don’t work", they say. My time is precious, I barely have enough time for me and my family, I
Anderson, M. B. (1999). Do no harm: How aid can support peace—or war. London, England: Lynne Rienner Publishers