- cross-posted to:
- europe@lemmy.dbzer0.com
- cross-posted to:
- europe@lemmy.dbzer0.com
Students returning to Russian schools this week will discover a change to their civics courses that puts military training at the heart of the lessons, as Bloomberg reports (paywalled).
The mandatory classes for teenagers include learning about the main types of armaments including machine guns, anti-tank weapons and hand grenades, as well as emergency field medicine and general military discipline. While some of the skills were previously taught in limited high school modules, the new version escalates this training for children as young as 13.
…
Although some of these skills were previously taught as part of limited modules in upper grades, the new version of the program expands this training to children aged 13 and older.
“The updated curriculum, approved by the Ministry of Education, requires half of the weekly classes within the course “Fundamentals of the Security and Defense of the Homeland” to be devoted to basic military training,” Bloomberg says.
“This is part of the gradual militarization of Russian schools, aimed at shaping a new generation of conscripts, while the Kremlin continues its war in Ukraine, which has already been ongoing for the fifth year.”
…
In addition to training in weapons handling and combat tactics, basic military training includes lessons on Russia’s national security doctrine and the structure of the armed forces. Students will also study mines and explosive hazards, first aid for combat injuries, chemical and radiation exposure and acute stress, as well as survival skills and procedures for operating in conflict zones.
The education reform effectively contributes to creating a flow of potential conscripts from schools into the army. This is reinforced by the involvement of combat veterans from the war in Ukraine in schools and kindergartens, where they speak with children, urging them to support Putin’s decision to launch the full-scale invasion in 2022.
…
“The romanticization of war and violence, combined with a constant fear of external enemies, instills in young people the idea that human life holds no value and that dying for the regime and the president is normal,” says Pavel Talankin, an exiled Russian teacher who co-directed the Oscar-winning documentary Mr. Nobody Against Putin that focused on rising war propaganda in his school, according to Bloomberg.“If necessary, one must die for the motherland, taking up the flag and marching into the line of fire without asking questions.”
…
Russia [also] continues to scale up practices of militarizing children in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, turning teenagers into a mobilization resource for future wars.
…
You must log in or # to comment.
This is bleak. Is there something we can do to help at least some of them realise that their life has value and dying for the regime is not normal? Some sort of outreach program?
Yes, let’s explain to then that vodka is bad for you while we’re at it.
Why not all? They’re not coming back anyway.
they will get to it when they reach 18, and only if you are not a moscowvite, or st petersberg citizen.
“Class, topic for today is how to fill out next-of-kin benefit form.”
Thats so fucking dire
holy shit holy fucking cow you all have no idea how bad this is.
Holy fuck that’s bleak. I feel so bad for the kids. One tiny silver lining I can see, y’all giving military training to the entire next generation which they could possibly use to lead a revolution to topple Putin.
You mean in the same way as the Hitler youth that famously revolted against the Nazi state?
Oooof good point. Almost certainly wishful thinking
Yeah. It could backfire spectacularly for Putin.
But I’m afraid of the leader such a radicalized population would bring to power. There ARE scarier political figures than Putin in Russia.
Yeah. It could backfire spectacularly for Putin.
The same thing did backfire during the revolts in several Warsaw Pact countries, especially in Hungary. Turns out, it’s not a good idea to teach every citizen how to disable a tank with household items if you later try to suppress urban riots with tanks.
Which is why we need real organization so for once we can put in a proper government after overthrowing our current corrupt ones. The US is pretty set already, we’ve a decent framework we just don’t follow it. It could be improved obviously, but we just need better leaders and equal justice.
If your system depends on good leaders and doesn’t have equal justice then it’s not a good system.
Putin don’t need or want you to be smart, he wants you to be meat in the grinder…
if the alcoholism/HIV/KROOKIDIL in the country doesnt kill the men first.
frankly surprised they’re putting this much investment in the meat to be ground up… it’s not like 60hrs on DShK M1938 101 is going to stop the drones from turning them into sunflower fertilizer.
If I was a Russian parent of a teen boy I’d be desperately trying to find a cousin Kazakhstan or Armenia to send them to “visit”. They’ll be drafting 16year olds soon, just like 1945
I have a Russian friend with teenage kids. I offered to host them for a while and they weren’t interested. I guess sending your kids off to be strangers in a strange land without you is not an easy decision to make.
I guess not, but do they not think conscription is coming ? Or are they just not thinking about the war at all ?
🤷 I dunno what they’re thinking in detail. I get plenty of discussion on how the family’s doing and grandma’s health problems etc but if they have any opinions on war and desertion they’re not putting it in writing on WhatsApp
My understanding is that those in the cities still feel mostly untouched by the war. Perhaps they are urbanites.
With warehouse and oil infrastructure strikes - as well as fuel and goods shortages - the war is also present in cities. Recruitment posters and aggressive military propaganda are everywhere even in St. Petersburg and Moscow - and signup bonuses are much higher the wealthier a city is in order for this incentive to be effective everywhere. Universities, schools and workplaces are aggressively recruiting people of all ages and genders based on ever increasing recruitment quotas, often pressuring members of vulnerable groups into signing up - or by simply signing them up without their knowledge. Students can’t even retake university exams without “volunteering” for the military anymore.
Urbanites are not safe anymore.
Naturally, military contracts are a scam: People are being promised positions in the rear, extensive training and limited contracts, but even university graduates are being sent to meatwave squadrons instead of the promised headquarters or drone units and contracts are routinely extended by the military every year. Meanwhile, unit commanders force fresh recruits to hand over their signup bonuses in order to not be tortured, killed or sent on suicide missions. As soon as they run out of money, they’ve lost their usefulness and are sent out to die. Ukrainian drone kill cams are showing just as many young, fit Slavic men (and even increasingly women) as the older men and minorities that used to make up a much larger part of the cannon fodder. That’s on top of the abhorrent institutionalized hazing (involving often deadly abuse and rape) the Russian military has been notorious for for centuries.
First kidnappings of men off the street. Now this. They’re going to ruin their demographics, birth rates, and alter the fundamental family and economic structure I believe. As well as traumatize the younger generations for life. There’s going to be no men left in a few years at this rate.
Actually, this was first: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_abductions_in_the_Russo-Ukrainian_war
Mind you: all this in a country that is remarkably blessed with loads of natural resources that could be turned into economic wealth for the whole population. All this is the fever dream of power of an elderly man who thinks Russia is still not enough - and who’ll destroy Russia in this attempt, achieving the opposite he envisioned. Yet another chapter in the vast tragedy that is Rulers of Russia.
Is there any period in time where Russia wasn’t totally fucked by their rulers? You have to go back 1,000 years I bet. I forget when they spread from the forest up there.
Catherine the Great (late 18th century), maybe? Of course, I doubt she did much for the peasantry (can’t say my familiarity with her is that great). Of course, she had to kill* her husband to become ruler.
*Not known for certain, and I love that she told everyone he died of hemorrhoids.
The Rus spread out of the frozen north woods like way back. There was a muslim sheikdom or whatever in crimea from the mongols actually, that didn’t get toppled until like, 1700, or 1800’s or something.
I forget the other players, I am too fucked up to check now, trying to work out, but I want to look into this in the morning.
Edit: Ha ha, I didn’t know that about catherine the great. To be honest I don’t have a good all around view of history, just pictures into specific periods of time. As such, to share a random fact, Ivan the great, of Russia, idk the year, went around in plain clothes in St. Petersburg and cut peoples’ beads off. Which was not good to have you beard short then.
If we’re going all the way back to Kyivan Rus (I wouldn’t, but I’m of Ukrainian heritage on the one side, so I may be biased), then we’ve got to mention Olga. I don’t know that she helped many peasants, but she sure was badass.
There’s a really interesting video on this by Kurgesagt ( on YouTube).
What Oligarchy does to a country…
technically its only PUTIN, he has fall men(his inner circle)
They run impressment gangs? Grabbing guys off the street to force into the military.
They must not want to use their youth for public relations reasons as they have compulsory military service as I recall. They probably see it as thinning out whom they consider undesirables.
But anyway, I wonder if it’s like a bounty system of free enterprise running an impressment gang, kidnapping men for military service.
Britain used to do that all the time for it’s navy. Outside taverns and such. Royal Navy service was said to be worse than their prisons.
They must not want to use their youth for public relations reasons as they have compulsory military service as I recall.
Current losses are so high, that if they did that more then half of the 18year old men would be casualties(dead or wounded) of the war in Ukraine. Add to that parents sending their boys abroad, so they do not have to fight in the first place. It is a pretty good way to kill the country in the long term.
They run impressment gangs?
From what I understand it’s mainly the cops. If you have a confrontation with the police, you can count on ending up on the front. There have been reports of people claiming they left them the choice of being framed on drug charges or volunteer for service
That is the natural progression of any large country without Jury Trials.
I don’t see what this has to do with jury trials. A jury will eat up planted evidence as well as a judge or lay judges. It comes down to tight control of policework, which is a fantasy anyway.
This is like that pandemic southpark episode where to find teachers they hired the laid off cops that ran the school like a police state. Or I guess we just call that a state in america now.
Does this make schools legit military targets?
Possibly. They are a teaching ground of the army now and child soldiers are valid targets even if they were forced. Though I doubt Ukraine would target them.
