Poll: Compulsory Military Service

[UFriday]

So the parliament of my country (Slovakia) has recently been discussing whether or not to bring back national service. I feel sort of divided over this: on the one hand, I quietly support national service (because in my opnion it helps with breaking down class and race barriers and introduces a sense of discipline that doesn't go away easily), but on the other, Slovakia's government is legendarily adept at fucking things over, and the last time national service was introduced, there were several casualties, ranging from hazing induced suicide to just plain being hazed to death.

So, yeah. National service, yay or nay?

 

[Weaver]

The question in the poll is a bit extreme IMO.

Can it be a good thing? I'm sure there are cases where it can.

I largely don't support it as I generally don't see the military as a good thing.

 

[Kevlar Eater]

Get three people in one room and you'd have four opinions.

Of course, it would depend on the country. For countries with the size and population of the US or larger, compulsory military service is unnecessary because there's basically a limitless pool of volunteers and said militaries can afford to weed out any undesirables.

 

[Colour Scientist]

Compulsory? Nope.

We don't have a large military presence in our country, even though I live two minutes away from a barracks, and the idea of this being implemented here is laughable.

To be honest, I'm not a huge fan of compulsory terms of service in anything, especially not something to do with the military.
If people want to sign up, they will, I don't see the benefit of forcing people to do it.

 

[JoJo]

No thanks, I don't like the idea of forcing people into a job they don't want to do, especially for a country like here in the UK where an invasion isn't particularly likely in the near future. A small, professional army is good enough for our needs, I don't see the point in wasting money on sending a bunch of young adults to do drills in some muddy field and run around in circles while being barked at. If we were going to have a national service, we might as well give people options and make it something useful to society, like helping out the emergency services, giving extra support in schools, doing government paperwork etc.

 

[Zhukov]

Don't see the point of it.

Especially not here in Australia. I mean, in Israel or something, sure. I can see why they have national service. But down under where I am, on an island nation with generally chill neighbours, why bother?

The 'sense of discipline' thing is bullshit. If you're a barely functional human being then the regimental lifestyle may well do you some good, but your average person is not going to be affected all that much by a few years in the military.

Besides, I wouldn't want to be forced into the army, so I'm not about to call for others to be. It's not the most pleasant of environments, even in peacetime. And that's in army that generally doesn't haze people to death.

There will generally be a fair number of angry young men or would-be heroes with duty-boners in a given population. Let them do it.

 

[madwarper]

First, there is a disconnect between the thread title and the poll question. "Compulsory Military Service" =/= "Can National Service be a good thing?"

"Compulsory military service"? No. Military service should be voluntary.

"Can National Service be a good thing?" Yes, even if compulsory, since the military is not the only way one can serve their nation. After high school, send rural kids to work in urban areas, send urban kids to work in rural areas. Send kids from the south to the north, send kids from north to the south. Send kids from the east to the west, send kids from the west to the east. Just get them out of the environment they've grown up in.

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

Compulsory Military Service and Canadians do not get along well. In 1917-1918 it threatened to strangle what little enthusiasm for the Great War was left from those who didn't volunteer in prior years and produced a series of riots in Quebec. The issue in 1944 was smaller (the issue was carefully managed to prevent the wider public from exploding) but again it created divisions in the country at a time when the focus should have been on finishing the war.

Since that time we have not had conscription and were known as a haven for draft dodgers from the States. I have grown up around families who have military backgrounds and who have the highest respect for our armed services but more than one of them have told me that if they were told they HAD to serve instead of CHOOSING to serve, they would have much less respect for Canada. Canadians (in the West at least) seem to view our soldiers in the same light as volunteer firefighters; they are people who put their lives on the line for us because they want to and they deserve our respect and support. That said, not everyone should need to be trained as a firefighter and the same goes for soldiers.

I'm not against the existence of a military system for the purpose of defense. Most of the time now, when the army is called into action here, it is to help with flooding or with search and rescue on the coast. I am against taking the choice out of the matter because I don't like seeing the military being an easy option for any government to consider using. The hesitation to use the armed forces is built into Canadian politics because our army/navy/airforce is not that large and a very good justification for risking it must be presented to the public.

*takes a breath*

THAT SAID

Canada is not under threat from its immediate neighbors. When it comes to ensuring sovereignty, a large standing army is a powerful and unquestionably valuable tool in the realm of deterrence. Where I see the danger of compulsory service is in the balancing of national security against the preservation of state power. Is the conscription really for the threat on the border or is it more for keeping the populace under state control? Security is one thing, domestic politics is another. How to balance that is beyond me but that's always what I question when I consider the practice.

 

[Jamieson 90]

The military is one of those professions where you really need the people in it to want to be there, otherwise you end up with soldiers who have low morale and who will desert the first chance they get. We (the UK) have some of the best soldiers in the world because they're all professionals who choose to put their lives on the line to defend our country and its interests.

 

[UFriday]

Suppose I ought to change "Is National Service a good thing" to "Is Compulsory National Service a good thing". Sorry, I was slightly confused with the difference between the two.

 

[UFriday]

Erm, anyone know how to change a poll/thread title?

 

[shootthebandit]

Im mostly in the yes camp. National service ensures people leave school with some sort of career path, it instils discipline and lots of basic live skills that most young people (and certainly a lot of adults) dont have. I know its kinda cliche but you would start national service as a child (even if you are in your twenties) and finish an adult.

Im not saying they should do any tours or active combat. Just basic training would probably be enough for most people to learn how to look after themselves and have a valuable experience

It has its negatives. A lot of people simply dont want to be there and obviously they are going to ruin it for the professional soldier who want to be there. Also whats the point in even dealing with these people if they arent gonna try. They'd be better off on the dole wasting tax payers money than being on a basic training course that will waste more tax payers money

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

Erm, anyone know how to change a poll/thread title?

Hmm, I've never had to. My suggestion is to put an EDIT at the very top of the post to alert new people to the poll's new title.

 

[shootthebandit]

Erm, anyone know how to change a poll/thread title?

Hmm, I've never had to. My suggestion is to put an EDIT at the very top of the post to alert new people to the poll's new title.

You just edit the OP. Im not sure if you can change polls. Im not a big fan of polls so I tend not to use them and one of the reasons is that editing them is nigh on impossible

 

[w9496]

As a person who is currently in the military, I would say no to compulsory military service. The Army already has a problem with people fucking around and not wanting to be here, so adding a bunch of dumbasses straight out of high school wouldn't help in that regard.

Compulsory national service on the other hand is a much better option. The world always needs more people to file paperwork, work in clinics, and do other tasks that aid their nation. They don't have to fight and die for their country to give it a helping hand.

 

[DementedSheep]

I wouldn't be against some mandatory service. Maybe not for deployment overseas because you are probably going to get issues with that especially if we are involved in something that not everyone thinks we should be (though on plus side it might end that pretty quick if a lot of people don't agree with it) but for defence and the benefits of the training sure. I live in New Zealand and where a pretty small country anyway. I don't know whether it would be worth it for the military to do actually do this though. Sounds like it would be resource drain.

 

[Zontar]

No, the quality of soldiers who are conscripted is far lower then those of a volunteer army. The only reasons countries still use them these days is because they are surrounded by all sides (Israel, South Korea, Iran) or they they just can't afford a professional army (Russia and pretty much everyone else with it). I'm not joking, Russia's foreign minister admits they can't afford a professional army. Poland would win in a non-nuclear fight against them.

 

[AnarchistFish]

the idea that I have some kind of duty to give my life to a state because I was born within its borders is fucking stupid

 

[loc978]

Compulsory service of some kind... yes. I think it would do a world of good for our disconnected culture (US) ...however, I don't think that service should necessarily be military. That should be one of many options.

Barring disability, it should have to involve communal living outside of your birth state, but any sort of humanitarian aid organization could fill that requirement nicely (Red Cross, church missions to impoverished regions, et cetera), and it would result in better-rounded people, in my opinion.

Also, it would be a universal job opportunity for impoverished people.