An indentured servant is someone who works without pay in exchange for a special favor.  During colonial times many indentured servants gave over their services in exchange for passage to America.  During modern times, Barack Obama would like to create indentured servants who give over their services in exchange for college tuition money.

It’s the dream of the teacher who works at Dunkin Donuts after school just to make ends meet. She needs better pay, and more support, and the freedom to do more than just teach to the test. And if her students want to go on to college, they shouldn’t fear decades of debt. That’s why I’ll make college affordable with an annual $4,000 tax credit if you’re willing to do community service, or national service. We will invest in you, but we’ll ask you to invest in your country.

Seems to me that a better solution to the problem is not to create entire generations of college-bound indentured servants (what would the government do with all those new workers anyway?) but rather to empower individuals so that they can pay their own way.  Put simply, we should seek to make individuals more independent as opposed to dependent on the government.

(via OTB)