Monday Musings: Conscription - Indian Isstyle!!
Conscription- is the mandatory enlistment in a country's armed forces, and is sometimes referred to as “the draft.”
I read that Sweden is introducing compulsory conscription. I hear so is France toying with the idea under its new president Marcon. I am caught in a general mode of ‘I feel like doing nothing’ (which some might argue is a default setting) so I decide to board the flight – the flight of fancy that is.
(Only for those who love their tongues when it is in their cheek)
How the subject of conscription would be dealt with in here in our country.
#1. We don’t need a formalised version of conscription- we are already fighting most of the time.
Everyone is fighting everyone – particularly on the social media and on the TV debates. If these two are anything to go by, then we already seem to be at war.
Politically speaking Left is fighting the Right. Extreme left is fighting with the nominal left. Extreme right is fighting the nominal right. The Centre is fighting a losing battle for survival. The business folks are fighting in the court rooms if they are not fighting the battle on the streets. Men and women are fighting for either being men and women or wanting to be more of the other. LGBT et al are fighting for being just themselves. Borders are fighting because they are at the front end and hinterlands are fighting because they are the backend. Cities are fighting for wanting to be idyllic and villages are fighting to be city like. The deprived are fighting to have more and the well endowed are fighting to have more meaning. The jobless are fighting for jobs and those with jobs are fighting for better/different ones. The majorities (of all kinds) are fighting for the privileges of the minorities and the minorities are fighting for the heft that comes from being the majority. We are fighting for air, water and land all around us. Some have rivers but no water – others have water but don’t own the rivers. I shall not venture to offer an insight about the incidence and frequency of fight in holy matrimony for the risk of inviting another bout of fighting – but suffice it to say that peace is an aberration and peace of mind is a myth. With all of this and more, who really needs conscription? Aren’t we already conscripted enough?
#2. Conscription will need fitness – now that is just too much to ask for.
One of the basic demands of conscriptions is physical fitness. It is no one’s guess as you look around we are perhaps the most well endowed gene pool. Most are horizontal in the garb of being vertical. The middle of all shapes that move around is well protruded, well rounded and in a manner of speaking, the middle announces their arrival in a room before they themselves. Walking a short distance is an effort, running is a lofty goal. Long distance running is from bedroom to bathroom and lifting weights often means lifting ourselves up from the couch. Such high standards of physical activity and fitness do not lend themselves very well with the spirit of conscription. Now before many would lunge at my throat let me also add, fighting on a video game is not a boot camp for conscription in this context – you cannot mention the hundreds of hours on the terminal as relevant work experience on your CV for being enlisted.
😂
#3. Conscription – it might actually work here.
There are a few preconditions to conscription to work as I see it. Two come to my mind – one, we must be passionate about something and two, that things need to be defended – against enemies real or imaginary. It is no one’s guess that both conditions are in great supply with us. Some would say an oversupply – but that is just a matter of detail. I think we would be a great bunch to be conscripted. Now the only question left to be decided is – conscripted for what? I am sure we shall figure it out in due time.
😀
Guru
www.gurucharangandhi.com
@musingsbyguru
Conscription- is the mandatory enlistment in a country's armed forces, and is sometimes referred to as “the draft.”
I read that Sweden is introducing compulsory conscription. I hear so is France toying with the idea under its new president Marcon. I am caught in a general mode of ‘I feel like doing nothing’ (which some might argue is a default setting) so I decide to board the flight – the flight of fancy that is.
(Only for those who love their tongues when it is in their cheek)
How the subject of conscription would be dealt with in here in our country.
#1. We don’t need a formalised version of conscription- we are already fighting most of the time.
Everyone is fighting everyone – particularly on the social media and on the TV debates. If these two are anything to go by, then we already seem to be at war.
Politically speaking Left is fighting the Right. Extreme left is fighting with the nominal left. Extreme right is fighting the nominal right. The Centre is fighting a losing battle for survival. The business folks are fighting in the court rooms if they are not fighting the battle on the streets. Men and women are fighting for either being men and women or wanting to be more of the other. LGBT et al are fighting for being just themselves. Borders are fighting because they are at the front end and hinterlands are fighting because they are the backend. Cities are fighting for wanting to be idyllic and villages are fighting to be city like. The deprived are fighting to have more and the well endowed are fighting to have more meaning. The jobless are fighting for jobs and those with jobs are fighting for better/different ones. The majorities (of all kinds) are fighting for the privileges of the minorities and the minorities are fighting for the heft that comes from being the majority. We are fighting for air, water and land all around us. Some have rivers but no water – others have water but don’t own the rivers. I shall not venture to offer an insight about the incidence and frequency of fight in holy matrimony for the risk of inviting another bout of fighting – but suffice it to say that peace is an aberration and peace of mind is a myth. With all of this and more, who really needs conscription? Aren’t we already conscripted enough?
#2. Conscription will need fitness – now that is just too much to ask for.
One of the basic demands of conscriptions is physical fitness. It is no one’s guess as you look around we are perhaps the most well endowed gene pool. Most are horizontal in the garb of being vertical. The middle of all shapes that move around is well protruded, well rounded and in a manner of speaking, the middle announces their arrival in a room before they themselves. Walking a short distance is an effort, running is a lofty goal. Long distance running is from bedroom to bathroom and lifting weights often means lifting ourselves up from the couch. Such high standards of physical activity and fitness do not lend themselves very well with the spirit of conscription. Now before many would lunge at my throat let me also add, fighting on a video game is not a boot camp for conscription in this context – you cannot mention the hundreds of hours on the terminal as relevant work experience on your CV for being enlisted.
😂#3. Conscription – it might actually work here.
There are a few preconditions to conscription to work as I see it. Two come to my mind – one, we must be passionate about something and two, that things need to be defended – against enemies real or imaginary. It is no one’s guess that both conditions are in great supply with us. Some would say an oversupply – but that is just a matter of detail. I think we would be a great bunch to be conscripted. Now the only question left to be decided is – conscripted for what? I am sure we shall figure it out in due time.
😀Guru
www.gurucharangandhi.com
@musingsbyguru
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