It would have been just as easy to forbid slavery. And, of course, a slave is not a servant. A slave is property. Do you consider beating another human being to the point where he takes two days to get up "proper treatment". Never mind that this may have been an improvement over previous standards. The discussion began with the assertion that the Bible, and specifically the Old Testament, did not contain obsolete or incorrect information. So are these rules for the treatment of other human beings correct for all time?
God Himself delivered them into bondage as slaves for their disobedience, and then delivered them from slavery after their broken repentence, a number of times.
In recorded periods of drought and famine in the ancient world, slaves were among that portion of the population who remained fed, clothed, and housed, while others (particularly the nomadic wanderers) starved and died.
During these times, the Israelites being slaves saved them from much harsher fates suffered by other free peoples whose nations and cultures no longer exist.
The biggest objection I have to js' tripe is his/her insitence on challenging God, and assuming that he/she has the intellectual wherewithal to suggest a better mousetrap than that which God (Who breathed life into his/her putrid know-nothing soul) is gloriously the author of.
When puffed-up snake farts like this poppinjay start spewing their phlegm on the internet, our indulging them in discourse only provides them with a bigger soapbox from which to bellow their flatulence in opposition to all that is right, just, and true.
But, at the same time, I do treasure the patience that many like you are blessed with.