Yuyutsu,

I care for all innocent victims of the war in the Middle
East. Children and adults. Thank you for recognizing that
fact.

We should be thankful for all the "difficult
people" on this forum. They show us who we don't want to
be.

Nemaste.

I prefer Reagan's quotes - to those of Lenin:

Reagan put it so well:

"How do you tell a communist?
Well, it's someone who reads Marx and Lenin.
And how do you tell an anti-communist?
It's someone who understands Marx and Lenin."

Hi Foxy,

There is a misconception that in some way, a universal form of conscription/national service will enhance the future of young people, it wont, many in favour see it as a punishment rather than an opportunity. When pressed Indy admitted his idea of NS involved 18 years old's, all 300,000 of them, picking up rubbish from the side of the road, just his way of inflicting punishment on those he believes don't come up to his standard.. What I like to see is the 360,000 TAFE places for young folk, giving opportunities for a worthwhile career though meaningful employment with tertiary education. Despite what some think, educated people contribute far more to the betterment of society through productivity, than any uneducated person doing menial labour can ever do.

"Albert Einstein", put man on the Moon, is responsible for modern day transport, skyscrapers, super tankers, huge dams, electrical systems, water supply, etc etc, not some old fart tinkering in his back shed as Indy puts it

Reagan wasn't perfect but he's better than 99% of "leaders". I enjoyed the quote. Das Kapital looks like a pretty boring read- but have tried to read summaries- I generally try to read original sources- I read "The Communist Manifesto" and "Rules for radicals". I think that Kapital is designed as boring in order to be inscrutable to the uncommitted. Marx seems similar to a Rasputin like figure leading the naive down the garden path. Lenin, Stalin, Trotsky, Mao are an order of magnitude of greater evil. Though surely Marx knew of the horror of the French Revolution- and despite this known horror led people towards it. Perhaps Napoleon I, II, III acted as a pressure valve to the excesses of proto-communist nihilism throughout the 1800's through figures such as . It's interesting that The Paris Commune lasted only 2-3 months (similar or less than the US Portland riots) but is heralded as an enormous event. It's said that Marx and Engels participated in The Paris Commune.

Robespierre let loose extreme forces within France creating a disaster on Spanish Inquisition level from hundreds of years before. Can you really claim that he didn't know what he was doing? Can you really blame the Aristo's for Robespierre's actions. Can the woke do the same now in the so called enlightened era?

If we are having these nihilistic blood baths every hundred years or so are we due for another?

Dear Paul,

«Despite what some think, educated people contribute far more to the betterment of society through productivity, than any uneducated person doing menial labour can ever do.»

I actually on the whole appreciate and respect menial labourers more,
I especially bow down to them when they do the jobs that I am not willing to do.
I knew people who got a university degree or two, but conscientiously decided to work as cleaners or tile-layers instead.
And I despise those who just for a good salary are happy to work in jobs which serve to make human life more complicated.

On the whole, menial workers have no misgivings and sleep better after a day of work.

If I had to choose between living in a world without menial workers or in a world without intellectuals, then I would choose the latter.

But well, this new discussion has nothing to do with conscription:
I think we can agree between us that conscription, be it military or otherwise, is a despicable atrocity, irrespective of what its victims are made to do or learn. Even if by some rare chance conscription contributed to society materially, it would render that society evil and undeserving to continue to exist.

I case anybody missed it some have compared "conscription for youth" vs "education for youth"- for society.