[metesky]

Agree on the schools/civic virtue issue, disagree on military/civilian service as franchise qualification, simply because we've had so many good citizens who served in neither a military nor civic capacity.

[CatoRenasci]

The fact that good citizens have not served in either a military or civic capacity under a system that did not make such service a requirement for the franchise says nothing about whether, ceterus paribus, such service being required for the franchise after some date certain, is a good idea or not. Surely, the choice would be up to the individual. I suspect those who have the civic virtue we both think desireable would choose to serve in some capacity.