• 666dollarfootlong@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    My friend who did the civil service spent a few weeks at a camp learning about first aid, fire safety among other emergency skills. Then the rest of the year they just worked at an art school (because they was allowed to choose where they work at) updating computers and hanging around with youths. Yea, the pay wasn’t amazing but it was experience none the less, and I am really glad to live in a country where regular people have at least some readiness to help and keep the society running during wartime or any other massive crisis. This system isn’t due to authoritarian governmental malevolence, its to prepare us all for a war that is unfortunately a possibility due to our neighbour.

    • kossa@feddit.org
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      2 days ago

      I know a guy for whom it was A-OK, that’s why forced labor for everyone is a good thing

      Ok. I was a conscript, I’d say it was Ok for me as well, doesn’t make it right.

      Reminds me of the one heir of Germany’s Balsen dynasty. She made some headlines some time ago saying something like “Forced labor during WW2 in our company was not too bad. We paid the workers and, as far as I know, treated them well.”

      • 666dollarfootlong@lemmy.world
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        2 days ago

        I mean of course we wouldn’t have this system in a better world, but that is just what living next to russia demands. For me the trade off of 0.5 - 1 year of service in exchange for societal safety is worth the temporary lack of freedom.