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Age Requirement For War Zone Service.
Topic Started: Oct 26 2004, 11:32 PM (544 Views)
jackd
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Member
17 years old kids sent to war to "jolt them into reality", :dunno:
when schools and parents of other 17 years old kids make a big fuss about letting their kids go on a spring break trip to Montreal for 2 days.
Quote:
 
Newton High School urging parents to keep their high school seniors from going on the "dangerous," "unsanctioned" and "unsupervised" sex and booze trip to Canada, planned for March.
"Basically you have a lot of teenagers running loose."
'...it is potentially dangerous and it's in a foreign country."

FULL STORY HERE
This has been the subject of one of the most satiric and hilarious review in our local paper last week-end.
JackD


Walk in front of me, you lead me,
Walk behind me, I lead you
Walk beside me, you are a friend.
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karmasasha
Unregistered

How many have watched the horror of a 17 year old die crying for his mother. A look of terror on his face and knowing he was truly alone in this last adventure. I have seen more than I can count in a hospital bed.

I find it hard to imagine a young person going through that in a strange land.
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sylley2000
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Sylvia, Grand Bend ON
Yeah well Jack, that Montreal, is a foreign country. It's going to take well-adjusted, responsible teens and turn them into werewolves howling at the moon in their drunken stupor.

Ooops, nope come to think of it, I think that was from an earlier period when there was fear marijuana would do that do a young fella.

How did they miss the part about not being able to speak the language when they were here all by themselves with no chaperons! Did they not have access to those things you sew to mittens...bunch kids without mittens can do a 180 degree from their normal behaviour in such an evil place...it's well-known--there must be studies that document it. Wow...lost in Montreal--that evil, evil, evil place--it should be nuked to remove it from the face of the earth! :ham: :ham: :ham: :ham: :ham: :ham: :ham: :ham:

That's a hilarious article Jack.

Sylvia
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Sea Hound
Member
This is why we Canadians, try as we might, will never understand the American mindset.

To cheerfully send their kids off to a much debated war where they face a real risk of death or injury, and to throw up hands in horror where the worst thing they face is a massive hangover, is to me and I suspect most Canadians, simply irrational.

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cmoehle
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Chris - San Antonio TX
Sea Hound
Oct 27 2004, 02:43 PM
I look at my 17 year old son and think service might be the best thing for him at this point. Something to jolt him out of selfishness and into reality.


I cannot believe that any parent would consider sending a child to war to "jolt him into reality"
Some times my head just goes "Boggle"

Sea Hound, I understand your position, and can appreciate where you are coming from, but I believe if you have something you believe in you defend it, a citizen has a duty if called upon to serve his nation.

17, no, he cannot vote. 18, yes.
Politics is the art of achieving the maximum amount of freedom for individuals that is consistent with the maintenance of social order.
--Barry Goldwater
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MDPD6320
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Frank - Gainesville, Florida
I don't think that anyone said that they wished to see their child in battle. What they said was that they respected military training for young people. It has been a traditional method to teach young adults discipline, and afford many an education they could not obtain elsewhere.

Ladies, there are times when someone has to step up. It's not always nice, safe or pleasant. The cold hard fact is that if our youth didn't do the job of protecting us, we would not have the security, the comforts, the standard of living, the freedom and yes the families we treasure. Because some Hitler, Stalin, or Hussein would have us all mining salt, or shoveling sand in some desert camp for his glory.


Frank
" The government big enough to give you everything you want it is big enough to take everything you have."

"Extremism in the pursuit of liberty is no vice, and moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue"

All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.
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jackd
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MDPD.
I can not agree with your comment:
Quote:
 
It has been a traditional method to teach young adults discipline, and afford many an education they could not obtain elsewhere

There are dozens of totally normal ways for kids to learn dicipline, one of which is right at home.
Education: What type of education is not obtainable somewhere else?
JackD
Walk in front of me, you lead me,
Walk behind me, I lead you
Walk beside me, you are a friend.
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corky52
Member
jackd,

Leadership training, look what skipping real military service got us in our current administration.
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jackd
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Corky: I'm sure you can come up, as I can, with a long list of heads of states or other individuals occupying high level jobs,all with very strong leadership capabilities who have never been nowhere near an army uniform.
JackD
Walk in front of me, you lead me,
Walk behind me, I lead you
Walk beside me, you are a friend.
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corky52
Member
jackd,
Actually the list is not all that long, not career military but service as a young person.
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brewster
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Winemaker Extraordinaire
JackD;

I agree with Corky & Frank;

I think there should be some sort of Military or Quasi-military service as part of the "Growing Up" process. (Perhaps even helping out in the Inner Cities, fire rescue or whatever.)

It is amazing the lack of discipline and the lack of contact with reality the younger generation has. - One thing that I think was invaluable to me when I was in the Air Force was meeting people from across Canada - I was in a training squadron in which every other member was from Quebec... I learned much that was not normally available to someone from Winnipeg.

I have also heard from many Americans that nothing made them feel more united with their fellow Americans than the service.

And it's really irrelevant to say that these are things they should learn at home or school, the fact is, they don't.

BTW - I had hoped when I trained with all the Quebecers for a year that I would become totally fluent in French... I may have gained a bit, but mostly I just learned the swear words! :devil:
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Bow Valley Provincial Park, Kananaskis Country, Alberta
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cmoehle
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Chris - San Antonio TX
Yes, community service would do fine too.

My thinking his going into the service would be good is not necessarily for discipline, which is valuable, but for a sense of responsibility, a sense of place in community extending from family to nation.

I wouldn't wish to send my 17 year old to war, but if called upon I would wish for him to stand tall and not shirk that responsibility without some very good reasons.
Politics is the art of achieving the maximum amount of freedom for individuals that is consistent with the maintenance of social order.
--Barry Goldwater
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jackd
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Brewster:
Quote:
 
I just learned the swear words
:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: Don't repeat them here :laugh:
I was refering to the subject matter of this tread i.e: Age Requirement For War Zone Service
I have no problem with helping out in the Inner Cities, fire rescue or whatever and I fully agree that this is an invaluable opportunity to meet others...and learn a few punchy words ;)
jackD
Walk in front of me, you lead me,
Walk behind me, I lead you
Walk beside me, you are a friend.
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brewster
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Winemaker Extraordinaire
Yup, I learned how to swear like a trooper in French - maybe better than in English. :blush:

Unfortunately, I'm not sure it helps the case we're trying to make here - I haven't found it helps on a Resume... :nonono:
Posted Image My Favourite Campsite
Bow Valley Provincial Park, Kananaskis Country, Alberta
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tomdrobin
Member
Sea Hound
Oct 27 2004, 08:40 PM
This is why we Canadians, try as we might, will never understand the American mindset.

To cheerfully send their kids off to a much debated war where they face a real risk of death or injury, and to throw up hands in horror where the worst thing they face is a massive hangover, is to me and I suspect most Canadians, simply irrational.

I don't think anyone is cheerfully sending their children off to war. When you join the military you make a commitment, and part of that commitment is the possibility of combat. Wether the war is debated or not, is of little concern or consequences to the soldier. He/She is obligated to follow the commanders orders. You wouldn't have much of a military if soldiers got to decide which orders they wanted to obey.

Drunk driving kills far more than the war. It isn't the hangover that is a concern. It is the trips to the emergency room or morgue. And, totally innocent people killed by those driving while drunk.

My father was just 19 or 20 when he was drafted to fight in WWII. And, that was pretty typical, so this isn't some new policy of sending kids off to war. I was just 17 when I joined the Army. There wasn't any shooting going on at that time, but it was always a possibility, and they prepared us for it, with rigerous discipline, and combat training.
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