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There are plenty of health conditions which could disqualify someone from military service. No doubt there would be an epidemic of them in the unlikely event conscription was introduced.
I accept that the reality is that we do need a military because everyone else has one (well, almost everyone). But they need to be full time professionals. If anyone thinks that knocking on the door of a four-eyed, six foot, ten stone, pacifist like me is the answer then we are all doomed.
What does war solve? Those who die are overwhelmingly men under 30 taking orders from men twice their age sat in their ivory towers miles away from danger. All rather sad really isn’t it?
It’s massively sad, Richard.
I remember as a 19yo Warwick university student during the Falklands conflict in 1982 being in a William Hill betting shop in Coventry and a middle-aged fella saying to me: “You young lads better brace yourself for being called up” to which I replied: “You better brace yourself for paying more taxes to build more prisons because that’s where you’ll find most of us would rather go as ‘Conchies’ before we fight for that right-wing bitch Thatcher.”
Little changes.
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"The only winners here would be solicitors. There’d be court cases, appeals flying about all over the place.
Well, I’d suggest anyone who didn’t consequently go to War and didn’t get maimed or killed, would be a winner too tbf.
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"“What does war solve?”
I remember reading this book a few years ago. I wanted to completely disagree with it but it is provocative and thought provoking:
https://www.waterstones.com/book/war-what-is-it-good-for/ian-morris/9781846684180
“It is thanks to war that we live longer and more comfortable lives than ever before.”
“We” being those who don’t actually go to War and get killed or maimed, presumably.
The world is full of academics (many of them childless, very right wing and all of them making sure they never personally go anywhere near a battle zone) explaining why things like Wars are a net benefit to mankind.
Well, F them and F mankind – kindly show this “Conchie” to his jail cell and let me know when the War is over and who won: cheers.
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"‘Without war, we would never have built the huge nation-states which now keep us relatively safe from random acts of violence’
I think they missed the words ‘in the West’. There are literally dozens of armed conflicts going on around the world on various scales at present and little to none of it is happening on Western soil.
I have not read the book but it is important that varying points of view are published and I am sure the author raises good points. As with anything though it’s not black and white and like Ian I do struggle with the argument about how we are living longer lives than ever due to war. As a species on average it may be true but literally hundreds of millions of lives in human history have been shortened by war. I’m not sure it’s much consolation to them and their families.
Peace and love to you all
The scaremongering continues, although it looks to me like a campaign to get defence expenditure up to 3%.
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/whole-uk-must-prepare-conscription-31978009
Don’t get me wrong, like Richard I’m not so dogmatic that I don’t appreciate CAS bringing this to our attention – I won’t be reading the book (not a book reader tbh) but I enjoyed reading the synopsis.
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"I did not agree with all of the book either (especially the author’s thoughts about the future) but it is challenging and thought provoking.
It is a long time since I read the book, so I don’t remember everything about it. But I think Morris is arguing that the industrial economies which have ushered in an age of greater wealth and life expectancy were largely created by war.
He also draws a distinction between productive and unproductive war. I am sure he would put current conflicts in the latter category.
Here are two reviews from either end of the political spectrum:
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/apr/20/war-what-is-it-good-for-ian-morris
None of it alters my original point that the suggestion of mass conscription is a crazy idea and will almost certainly be met with huge resistance.
I would identify most with Walker (not pictured) – the draft-dodging wide boy.
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"If I recall correctly, Walker was not a draft dodger. He did go into the army but was discharged due to being allergic to corned beef.
The original episode is unfortunately lost but it was recreated by the Gold channel a few years ago with Matthew Horne as Walker.
I posted on the wrong thread there – was meant to be for the Memes thread.
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"There’s no chance of sending the younger generation to war , anyway the next world war will be fought from behind a computer screen with a coffee not a gun in there hand
Pick 3 on Saturday champion 2025/2026
How government works:
Last week: We must think about introducing conscription and putting the country on a war footing.
The week before: We must close down our steel manufacturing industry and become the only country in the G20 which cannot make its own steel.
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