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submitted 8 months ago by NightOwl@lemmy.ca to c/worldnews@lemmy.ml
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[-] stoy@lemmy.zip 19 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

I believe it is a good idea, not only will it foster a closer feeling of unity and understanding between citizens, it will also be something all citizens have in common, and something you can talk about with anyone.

I am a bit sad that I never got to do it, I did muster, but failed the hearing test, at the time I was relieved, but now, I miss it sort of.

[-] Devi@beehaw.org 30 points 8 months ago

Being forced to risk your life for something you don't believe in won't create a feeling of unity.

[-] stoy@lemmy.zip 7 points 8 months ago

So you don't believe in fighting against invasion by a foregin power?

[-] gnuhaut@lemmy.ml 12 points 8 months ago

In what reality would Germany ever get invaded and not deserve it?

[-] stoy@lemmy.zip 3 points 8 months ago

Why do you think they deserve it now?

[-] gnuhaut@lemmy.ml 16 points 8 months ago

They're sending weapons to Saudi Arabia and Israel. They put sanctions on Afghanistan that are causing a famine. They're funding Frontex, which kills migrants in the Mediterranean and those who make it get put into concentration camps. And that's just some of it. The German government are war criminals and serial human rights abusers. Anyone who takes up arms to defend these people is complicit.

[-] Omega_Haxors@lemmy.ml 11 points 8 months ago

And don't forget Germany never underwent denazification

[-] stoy@lemmy.zip 5 points 8 months ago

While I don't know how accurate this statement is, I do wonder how you would go about doing it now, so far after the war.

Where would you even start?

What criteria would you use to determine the nazi index of every person, what index value would be the threashhold, who would decide on who is nazi and who is nice.

[-] Omega_Haxors@lemmy.ml 2 points 8 months ago

It would be very easy just take people who use to be in the party and kick them out like they should have at the get-go. Not that it matters because they have very little animus to do so.

[-] stoy@lemmy.zip 2 points 8 months ago

Do the Nazi party still exist in germany?

[-] Omega_Haxors@lemmy.ml 3 points 8 months ago

I believe there's a party with a lot of the same values fighting to be allowed onto the ballots.

[-] novibe@lemmy.ml 1 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

That’s not the point. Nazi officials, generals and party members were integrated into the nascent west German state and NATO right after WW2. Explicitly by the US to help “fight communism”. Cause you know, the best anti-communists are the Nazis…

[-] stoy@lemmy.zip 1 points 8 months ago

Oh, I know that parts of Germany didn't go through denazification, but my question was more about how to solve that problem today.

[-] stoy@lemmy.zip 3 points 8 months ago

Ok, I agree with ypu on some of the points, and I can see why you disagree with the actions of the military

[-] citizen@normalcity.life 7 points 8 months ago

So you don't believe in freedom? Being forced by anyone to give your life for something is slavery.

[-] stoy@lemmy.zip 1 points 8 months ago

I absolutely believe in freedom, but I see mandatory military service as a way of supporting the freedom for the rest of the population.

You do your service and hand it off to the next guy, you get skills and training, the country gets huge number of people who know the basics in a real situation.

There are also plenty of tasks in the military that does not require weapons or killing, in a disaster the services are used to support the civilian society, clearing roads, fighting fires, building temporary bridges, distributing water/food/shelter, providing emergency healthcare, setting up communications.

BTW, you use a very narrow definition of slavery.

[-] citizen@normalcity.life 2 points 8 months ago

There are also plenty of tasks in the military that does not require weapons or killing

I'm sure someone in the military is tasked with cooking food for the whole army but in order to teach someone to prepare a meal you don't put them through mandatory military service which main goal is to bake soldiers capable of shooting on command.

If you believe in forcing everyone with jail as a penalty to learn how to kill people and to obey superior orders you have a narrow definition of freedom.

Freedom is perpetuated through liberty not through constraints

[-] stoy@lemmy.zip 1 points 8 months ago

You mention freedom a lot in comparison to military service, but in no society are you completely free, you have laws to follow and you have taxes to pay, so the freedom argument falls a bit flat when you use it so often.

I see military service similar to a tax bill, since if no one wants to do it, the need doesn't go away, it is still needed, and mandatory military service is s good way to solve it.

[-] citizen@normalcity.life 1 points 8 months ago

You have taxes to pay because someone say so and is forcing everyone with force to pay. If you don't pay taxes you get labelled as a criminal and the guards come pick you and escort you to jail, even if the tax you don't want to pay is unjust. If no one wanted to join the military you would have no wars to begin with, russia and israel which are two countries waging war and currently invading another country both have mandatory military service which you get punish if you don't attend.

People can fight for freedom without being forced through a course that aims at taking away their individuality and self-will to turn them into checkers at rulers commands.

[-] stoy@lemmy.zip 1 points 8 months ago

If you think that individual freedom fighters are as effective as an army with a command structure, then you are just plain wrong, removing individuallity during fighting is a feature not a bug, obviously individual soldier's talents are an asset and should be used by the military as far as practical, but in the end a soldier is a standardized tool that fit a specific criteria, else they would not be as effective.

[-] citizen@normalcity.life 1 points 8 months ago

If your goal is freedom an army of people who's individuallity has been removed won't get you an inch close to it. If you look around yourself no actual army brings up freedom but war around the globe.

[-] stoy@lemmy.zip 1 points 8 months ago

Mandatory military service does not strip the individuallity off of a person, sure while in the military you loose a bit of individuallity, but once you leave the military you get it back.

[-] citizen@normalcity.life 1 points 8 months ago

You are contradicting yourself

[-] Devi@beehaw.org 4 points 8 months ago
[-] stoy@lemmy.zip 2 points 8 months ago

Correct, I am glad you sre keeping up!

My question was hypothetical.

[-] Devi@beehaw.org 3 points 8 months ago

Your question was nonsensical

[-] stoy@lemmy.zip 2 points 8 months ago
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this post was submitted on 31 Dec 2023
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