Bored Druid ThreadFollow

Seriously... I know I'm just a big worry wart, but I'm starting to get concerned. =/ Kali, can you call him or something so we at least know he's not dead? Yeah... worry wart. >.>

Okay okay, I'll get the AC1 first then.. when I have the money.

Bon Jovi tomorrow! Too bad their guitarist is in rehab, again.

Staff Sergeant (E6).

Highest rank would be a five star General.

About 50% are declared fit for service, but there's not enough money to take in everyone (and no reason).

Once you turn 18, you get called in for the tests. If you're permanently disabled for some reason, either mentally or physically (requires a diagnose), you're put through a number of tests, including an IQ test (hurrr, we ain't got no dumasses shootin dem gunz). If you pass those tests, you get to draw a number from a tombola, or something like that. If you draw a number within a certain range, you get signed up, if you don't, you walk away.

Of course, some people decide to not do military service if they get signed up. They get to spend some time collecting trash, directing traffic, gathering oil spills and the likes. Some people also choose to postpone their service due to school (age 18 is about the time you finish our high school equivalent here), family or whatever. And then there are the volunteers like me.

I originally drew a number in the buffer zone, meaning I was allowed to choose whether I'd sign up or not. I chose not to at the time, because I wanted to get on with my education, but I later signed up as a volunteer when I took a sabbatical year from school.

Unless you choose to serve in the Royal Guard, you only spend four months in the service. Royal Guards spend a year because they have to learn how to tie their shoelaces and polish their shoes so they look real nice.

I'm glad I decided to sign up. Easily one of the best experiences I've ever had, even if physically and mentally exhausting at times.



You're a nub.

I was barely a private and I just called you a nub.

Nub.

There, I did it again.

Sucks how rank doesn't matter in real life, huh?



Edited, Jun 16th 2011 5:59pm by Mazra

Here national service is manadatory to all males over 18 years old.
I spent 6 weeks in the military and then decided that it was of no use.


So I choose that, but instead of doing none of the above, I spent 11 months working in a library instead, which was awesome. I really liked it.
Not that military would've been tough, it was just rather useless.

Yay!


To contribute something to the other conversation, I'm temporarily of the opinion some sort of compulsory public/military service would do our country good.

Ew, f*ck that.

Me and the military would NOT mix well. I have way too many issues with the way ours is run for us to be compatible.

I do, however, think that it wouldn't be so bad if everyone was required to spend a year working in some kind of service oriented job. And I mean jobs that will make them work with people, so they can understand how much other humans can suck on a day to day basis (and learn how their own habits can be incredibly annoying to others).

Seriously, everyone spending just one year working in a restaurant, a Dunkin Donuts, a clothing store, etc. would probably be hugely beneficial to our society.

I'd love to work in a library. And it would give me ample opportunity to figure out how to make "shh" sound so threatening. :D

And seriously, people need to learn how incredibly annoying they can be. Requiring them to take jobs in a service position to others would be hugely beneficial there. Especially rich ******* from NYC. >:(

I've largely worked in service jobs in a NJ beach town, so I see a lot of them.

I'd want to punch them in the face, but I'm way too much of a pushover to actually do it, lol.

Also, with this post I am officially in the top 100 posters. :D TAKE THAT GALKAMAN.

Yeah... and that's the kind of **** I have an issue with. It works great for sure, but it's messed up. Plus I consider myself to be a free spirit, I really don't think I'd fit in to the culture of the military. They don't exactly encourage free thinking there.

Don't get me wrong, I do respect people who are in the military and all that, it's just not for me.

Lol, lately I've been reading a ton of articles about how military practices actually helped foster the emergence of gay identity in the US. Many reasons:

1. During WWII, gay sexual activities in the military were actually widespread. The US couldn't afford to send ****** home, so rumors of gays were basically ignored (especially in the women's units, which are estimated to have been at least 90% lesbian). The nature of the military meant that large numbers of men and women were forced into close quarters (and often in intimate situations). Furthermore, when on leave in allied towns/villages, locals often showed "support" for the local forces in any way they could.

And that's interesting, because the information we have about it suggests that there wasn't a strong correlation between those giving the soldiers sexual favors and their own sexuality--the straight men were just as likely to give the soldier a helping hand as the ******.

Add in the fact that most soldiers got practically black-out drunk whenever they were able to, and you have the perfect situation for men to experiment. :P

2. Fast forward to the draft. By this point, knowledge of homosexuality was still incredibly subdued in the US. It wasn't something people talked about and many, many people had never even known that it existed. The draft forced people to classify themselves as gay or straight, which was often the first time someone with same-sex desire ever engaged with that identity. Even if they checked straight, they'd then end up in the same kind of homoerotic situation as in WWII. It was more than enough to cause a huge number of peoples to begin to classify as gay.

3. McCarthyism drew the line between same-sex sexual practices and identity. Before then, most "homosexual" men actually largely lived heterosexual lives. The big exception being that they'd go to gay bars and cruise for sex in parks. But the FBI investigations led to those being caught in same-sex situations being classified, officially, as a homosexual. Which, in turn, led to those individuals acknowledging that identity.

Plus, once you were outed, it became impossible to live a normal life. You were barred from all civil jobs, would likely lose your family/friends, and would have difficulty continuing to live in your community. So massive numbers of these individuals (including those falsely accused) moved to gay communities in urban districts. Most had to resort to living on the fringes of legality as well, becoming gay prostitutes and such. Which, of course, just made it easier for others to engage in same-sex interactions, leading to an increase in the population that identified as gay.

I really find it hilarious that it was homophobia (in the latter two situations) that actually encouraged people to identify as gay. Especially when they were doing exactly what conservative america now wishes they would (hide it and live a "normal" life).

Collective punishment isn't allowed here. As a rule, punishment does not exist in the Danish military, unless the wrongdoing was bad enough to warrant building a case over (i.e. illegality). To quote our Draft Service wiki article:



Basically it says that the superior isn't allowed to give out punishment (collective or individual), like push-ups, unless relevant to the education, for instance during a physical exercise course. The rule was made to prevent this **** from happening.

Our military is mostly for show and they want the military service to be a positive experience. Sergeants still hand out rewards, though, and you can't really refuse a reward, right? Mostly they're push-ups, or redoing something annoying (chemical self-cleaning during ABC drill - brrr). It's all done with a smile, because in the end, you did something wrong and the guilt outweighs the annoyance. Besides, the sergeants maintain a pretty good social relationship with the privates. They know that mutual respect makes the course run smoother than if they played tough guys. Especially when some of the people they'd be bossing around are bigger and older than them.

Those at the sergeant and constable academies are allegedly drilled pretty hard, but once they join the "firm" it stops. The military is a company like any other. Can't bully around your employees or they'd just quit. Or file a lawsuit. Or do both.