We don’t let people younger than 26 rent cars because they’re not mentally mature enough yet to be responsible. Yet we give them assault rifles and tell them to kill each other. This is a large scale issue across most militaries. For anyone over the age of 26, I want you to think back to how you saw the world when you were 18. Did you see the full picture? Or were you more easily influenced by people in positions of power because you were still a kid and you sought that structure? I’ll say this. When I first got to college I thought mass incarceration was made up and I’d never heard of “systemic racism.” No one had told me that “I don’t see color” is a racist thing to say. Those are the kids the world’s militaries rely on to maintain the global system of torture. Russia initiated an unprovoked war to enforce the global system of torture. To enter Ukraine and enact genocide. Putin’s policy is effectively Lebensraum. I want everyone to consider this, too. Very consistently throughout history, what comes for Ukraine comes for all of us. Its positioning between worlds has always made it a place where conflicting ideologies clash before spreading elsewhere. Whoever succeeds in this war, that will be the system of power we will all come to see in our daily lives.
Ah that’s very kind and I’d love to take that level of credit but tbh it came from a moment of reflection doing one of those things that we all do when we’re young which is to over-examine our previous actions.
Sometimes that’s really healthy and in adulthood absolutely imperative (edit: especially as a parent and I try so hard to be a good one) but when you’re young that looking back and cringing can lead to unkindness towards yourself when you’re still growing into who you’ll be.
It was just a decent moment of cop on but it really did serve me well.
Edit: And hey… Don’t stress too much about whether you’re an adult. As long as you’re trying to be a good person and reflect (not too harshly) on your mistakes then jog on, friend.
I don’t actually mind if someone’s been a cunt to me as long as they reflect on it and say sorry. We’re all a cunt occasionally because life isn’t smooth. Sometimes external stressors or being caught up in a moment cause you to behave in ways that aren’t you and result in regret. That’s OK. It’s the reflection with intent to improve and communicating it to your loved ones, usually by saying sorry, that’s really, really important IMO.
Except when there’s a draft, nearly all US soldiers spend the first 2 years of their duty as teenagers. In Vietnam, the combat rotation was 2 years; many men joined as teenagers, and died as teenagers. This really isn’t unusual.
You’re right about Putin, but he’s no different than any other leader of a country with a military WRT enlistment age.
Teenagers… Putin is slaughtering Russian youth for the sake of waging war and clinging to power
As it always was.
We don’t let people younger than 26 rent cars because they’re not mentally mature enough yet to be responsible. Yet we give them assault rifles and tell them to kill each other. This is a large scale issue across most militaries. For anyone over the age of 26, I want you to think back to how you saw the world when you were 18. Did you see the full picture? Or were you more easily influenced by people in positions of power because you were still a kid and you sought that structure? I’ll say this. When I first got to college I thought mass incarceration was made up and I’d never heard of “systemic racism.” No one had told me that “I don’t see color” is a racist thing to say. Those are the kids the world’s militaries rely on to maintain the global system of torture. Russia initiated an unprovoked war to enforce the global system of torture. To enter Ukraine and enact genocide. Putin’s policy is effectively Lebensraum. I want everyone to consider this, too. Very consistently throughout history, what comes for Ukraine comes for all of us. Its positioning between worlds has always made it a place where conflicting ideologies clash before spreading elsewhere. Whoever succeeds in this war, that will be the system of power we will all come to see in our daily lives.
I had a rule that I think is solid… If I looked back two years and thought I was an idiot then I probably was still one.
27 year old me realised I’d become a man at 25.
That’s an incredible degree of self awareness and I admire you. I’m still trying to figure out if I’m an adult and what adulthood even means
Ah that’s very kind and I’d love to take that level of credit but tbh it came from a moment of reflection doing one of those things that we all do when we’re young which is to over-examine our previous actions.
Sometimes that’s really healthy and in adulthood absolutely imperative (edit: especially as a parent and I try so hard to be a good one) but when you’re young that looking back and cringing can lead to unkindness towards yourself when you’re still growing into who you’ll be.
It was just a decent moment of cop on but it really did serve me well.
Edit: And hey… Don’t stress too much about whether you’re an adult. As long as you’re trying to be a good person and reflect (not too harshly) on your mistakes then jog on, friend.
I don’t actually mind if someone’s been a cunt to me as long as they reflect on it and say sorry. We’re all a cunt occasionally because life isn’t smooth. Sometimes external stressors or being caught up in a moment cause you to behave in ways that aren’t you and result in regret. That’s OK. It’s the reflection with intent to improve and communicating it to your loved ones, usually by saying sorry, that’s really, really important IMO.
Except when there’s a draft, nearly all US soldiers spend the first 2 years of their duty as teenagers. In Vietnam, the combat rotation was 2 years; many men joined as teenagers, and died as teenagers. This really isn’t unusual.
You’re right about Putin, but he’s no different than any other leader of a country with a military WRT enlistment age.