“The Organizing principle of this paper is one of ascending radicalism from reform through volunteerism and privatization of services to the outright abolition of public ownership and transfer of the parks to private parties.”

-- James P. Beckwith, Jr., 1981
 

Since economist James Beckwith published his strategy for privatizing parks, the privatization juggernaut has moved quickly to permeate the culture. The justification to privatize all aspects of society has been advanced since the Reagan Era by a stepwise and systematic reduction in governmental funding of social services and of agencies that oversee public lands, this in the name of "trimming governmental spending." As part of this grand strategy, citizens are urged to take up the slack by becoming volunteers.

The subtle and not-so-subtle messages for volunteerism are absolutely everywhere. A TV ad asks citizens to drive the elderly, themselves unable to drive, to wherever they need to go. The US Park Service offers "free" admission to those who will volunteer enough hours. Conservative Democrat John Edwards begins a run for President in New Orleans by applauding volunteerism while not mentioning that it was made necessary in that devastated city by a grossly inadequate governmental social services network (so that those seeking a privatized nation can point to "the failure of government"?). His words could have come from the mouth of George W. Bush. And why not? As part of the Democratic Leadership Council (a.k.a. "Republican lite"), Edwards serves similar moneyed interests.

Privatized alternatives to governmental intervention are being advanced unrelentingly by elements that seek to undermine government so that, as Republican strategist Grover Norquist put it, government can be "drowned in a bathtub." Shortcomings and imperfections of government are emphasized while, simultaneously, volunteer efforts and private alternatives in education, philanthropy, social services and the like are applauded and showcased in the most positive light.

If one bears in mind that governmental funding of the public domain and of social services consumes tax money that could otherwise be directed toward the defense industry, corporate interests and tax cuts for the rich, the arrangement becomes transparent for anyone who looks closely. But one must indeed pay attention, because the package comes to us with friendly face and spun so as to pass "under our radar", so to speak. The connection between volunteerism and the privatization of all aspects of society is not made clear to the public, because the corporate owners of the nation's media stand to be big-league beneficiaries in a privatized world where citizens provide social services for free.

What is so insidious about this setup is that it exploits those most humanitarian impulses that lead to volunteer activities. To the extent that volunteers can fill voids left by the defunding of governmental programs, the corporate and political forces wishing to drown government in their bathtub can use the work of volunteers to justify further shrinking of government. What results is a procedure that forces government "of, by and for the people" into an ever downward spiral.

All of this puts volunteers who operate from altruistic motives into an ethical dilemma, because in the face of slashed budgets, they know that much charitable work won't get done if they don't do it themselves. At the same time though, the savvy understand that the success of their volunteer work is being exploited by those intent on the overthrow of traditional society.

Volunteerism, where appropriate, will remain a part of life in America, and that is certainly as it should be. But it should not be manipulated into a system for dismantling a democratic society by undermining legitimate governmental functions, as is presently the case. 

Bill Willers is an emeritus professor of biology, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, now living in Madison, Wisconsin. He is editor of Learning to Listen to the Land and Unmanaged Landscapes, both from Island Press. He can be reached at: willers@charter.net.

Other Articles by Bill Willers

* In Whose Times?
* Lieberman’s Loss and the Future of the Internet
* The One and Only Answer: Two Cappuccinos Please
* McCarthyism at the U