Military conscription

[Donotpanicoknowpanic]

There is lots of talk about if ww3 happens then military conscription will happen

This is basically people who sit in an office safely saying we need to either send ourselves or out children to fight and die in horrible conditions

Am I unreasonable to think that anyone who thinks this is a good idea

They should be the first ones to sign up and to lead by example

Any politicians who think this is a good idea, there children should be the first to go

Russia is literally sending troops in wheel chairs and crunches to the front line

So age, disability and gender will not be a problem for anyone who supports any conscription policy's, they can go first

Also the UK will not be invaded, we are not Ukrainian, If we were more like Ukraine I would be more in favour of this as the country itself is under threat

The UK has taken place in ceasefire operations many times in the past 50 years.

Admittedly it hasn't always been invited. But it's something that is part of regular training.

There’s no point in being there if you can’t back it up should the ceasefire fail.

One of the 3 you are referencing is already in the armed forces, so is already signed up to fight...

Well there's no point doing anything if it doesn't go as planned then. May as well give up.

It’s not a contentious point. If you listen to anyone on this speaking on behalf of the military they’ll say the same.

Ik you want others to go, I’m with the op those who seem keen as you do feel free. And no it doesn’t matter about age and ability, it’s all the same in the end.

Exactly. The argument seems to be we should only provide peace-keeping forces if there is a cast iron guarantee that a ceasefire will hold?

And before anyone starts, peace-keeping forces won't involve conscription. The forces who do the job will have already signed up for the job.

I wondered how you ended up on the other thread given your posts on this one.

Of course you can’t get a cast iron guarantee, that’s the issue.

Soldiering and policing are not really compatible. Ask anyone who served in Northern Ireland.

True.

Well if you want cast iron guarantees where war and conflicts are concerned you are bang out of luck! If only that were the case.

I’ve said the opposite of that. Ie that you and others need to be aware there is no guarantee so if troops are sent to Ukraine it could end in direct conflict with Russia.

Hopefully you will be briefing Parliament if it comes to a vote. The prospect of a peace deal is still pretty remote, sadly.

I don’t need to do anything. If you listen military heads have said the same. They can brief Starmer if he’ll listen.

He seems to me to be the most likely of PMs in the last 15 years or so to listen to expert advice.

In your view yes but you still think he’s doing a good job. On this the military speaker sounded frustrated the troops are billed to be sent without the necessary capability, so perhaps not. A few have said the same.

@EasternStandard you suggested he wouldn’t listen to experts. I simply said I think he would. Nothing to do with general performance. If you don’t think he would, why is that?

Because he’s already signed the agreement to send troops, and the frustration from military experts exists around that. So he hasn’t listened.

You are talking as if it is a done deal EasternStandard. We don't know what is going to happen. I actually generally err on the side of pacifism. But at the same time I think we should support the Ukranian people. It is a conundrum.

What I don't like is threads like this scaring people into thinking their children are about to be sent off to war. The same thing happened last year on here when the subject of peace-keeping in Ukraine came up. It is unkind and unnecessary.

It’s just a thread, and I find the yes let others go whilst they are immune far more terrifying tbf.

I think it’s good to point out that anyone who is keen for others to go should step up first. That’s the op’s main message and I agree with that. Old people relying on the young shouldn’t.

As for what will happen, nothing is guaranteed which was the spokesperson’s point. Don’t do it as a posturing gig, be aware that ceasefire could end and that means actual commitment. I hope if Starmer can’t see that some MPs do and ask him to clarify what direct conflict looks like.

No-one on this thread is "keen" to wave the young off to conflict as far as I can see, so all this talk of "stepping up first" is just unnecessary.

If people think conscription is a good idea then they should not wait to be conscripted they can sign up...why wait for good things to happen

If there is war and people then freely sign up.....then that's fine as that is them exercising their free will

What I object to is people thinking conscription is a good idea....but then do not sign up themselves and place themselves in harms way

A good example of this would be certain women of ww1 who gave men flowers as a sign of cowardice....but those same women would not put themselves in danger

Thinking conscription is a good idea in the event of a world war is completely different to wanting to be in the armed forces during peacetime. Infact I am almost certain the volume of personnel joining the military is organically higher in the lead up to & during conflict. Interestingly it seems like it becomes more appealing to a lot of people.

They weren't allowed to put themselves in danger. Women haven't been allowed on the front line (in combat roles) until 2016 although have obviously served in adjacent roles for decades

Ultimately there's unlikely to actually be conscription as the forces don't really, in the most part, struggle to recruit but do to retain. People will sign up for various reasons if there was a call out. There will be people who don't because they can't or just don't want to. It's really not that deep.

Overall the support from women - who had no vote and no say in what they were expected to endure - was phenomenal.

It's what earned us the vote.

Women were not allowed to be in combat in the first world war. There were plenty of women serving in auxillary roles though