Hi Reddit,

I’m from Australia, where we don’t have national service, and I’ve been really curious about how it works in other countries. If you’re from a place that has mandatory national service, I’d love to hear your experience or knowledge!

A few things I’m curious about:

1.	Is it all military, or are there civilian options too? If civilian, what kind of industries are involved?

2.	How are young people protected from exploitation? For example, if the service lasts a couple of years, how do they ensure people aren’t taken advantage of?

3.	Are participants paid? Do they have any savings by the time they finish, or is it purely a service with no financial benefits?

4.	Can it be done part-time, or does it take up all your time?

I’d love to hear your insights, especially if you’ve completed national service or know someone who has.

Thanks in advance!

At the end of the men in black movie it zooms out to reveal an alien that is so big the entire observable universe is the size of a marble in comparison to him. If this creature were to stand directly in front of earth, what would we see? Would we be able to see the atoms floating in its body?

What would be the things they’d do? probably invade south

I was born in 1990 and we were taught to never ask older people about the war. How the hell did these guys cope with the shit they saw. I had close relatives who fought in D Day and it was drilled into me that asking them about the war was off limits

Take into account the decline in literacy and other skills seen worldwide among teenagers, and including mental effects such as addictions, attention spans, laziness, depression, etc. caused by negative social media and “brain rot”. Should government interfere, like seen in recent restrictions made by Australia?

When I say “behave differently”, it’s not just behavior, but also intellectual/mental changes which are not intentional. There’s this really interesting ?occurance? which I’ve never seen before. I thought, is this a split personality disorder? Dissociation?? Autism? Hypomania? Or maybe it’s as simple as them being on medication? Or am I just seeing things? I will avoid mentioning certain things to avoid sharing identifying details about them & me. But, with that said, “Jessica” has an age range of 5-13. It is certain that she has autism, it’s diagnosed. She is also suspected to have a learning disability, but that isn’t diagnosed. She was also neglected for some of her years (can’t specify - privacy). During the day, Jessica is “behaving” in a “lower functioning state”. This extends to every aspect, like personality and mental reasoning.

Her communication level though, is what alone made me notice all of these shifts. During the day Jessica might be speaking with grammatical errors in her speech. They also struggle producing certain sounds, like “Tree” is said as “Ree”. Her behavior, likely due to her autism, is very repetitive and linear during the day. However, at night Jessica seems to have no routine (less repetition) and isn’t very linear. Can go from one thing, to another. Also at night, her communication improves dramatically. In fact, while her behavioral change is noticeable if paid extra attention, it can be overlooked. The change in communication ability, can’t. It’s the sole reason why I even noticed all this. At night, she can now speak in a more consistent grammatical structure, and produces sounds she struggled with. “Tree,” is now no longer pronounced “Ree,” … it’s perfectly said. There’s various other words / sounds she now says (can’t specify - privacy). Of course, it still isn’t perfect, but very improved. I noticed this month(s) ago, but after being “weirded” out by it and looking into it with no answer, I brushed it off. However, recently I was reminded of how odd the change is again, because I noticed a change in her pupils when this occurs. Now, from this point forward, I am just theorizing so maybe it’s completely unrelated or due to it being night. During and/or following the changes, her pupils are much more dilated. I can’t help but to notice it everytime now, ever since the 1st time. It’s weird. I read that sometimes (hypo)mania can produce a change in dilation, and also dissociative disorders , hence why I think it’s psychological as opposed to it being night. I mean, the lights are still on. But again, I’m no expert. Am I just overthinking things/looking too much into it? Or is there something that can more or less explain this??? The most other plausible theory is that she is on some medication in which the effects wear off/or kick in at night. But which?If there’s any concept for this, I’d like to read and learn more about it if so.

As far as I can remember, whenever I go on social media there is always a clip that is viral of someone getting offended by something minuscule to which people laugh at and say “this offended generation”, “these snowflakes”, “people are so weak nowadays” and so on.

For me it is not laughable, it saddens me seeing somebody get so crazy about something. I always think what has happened in the life of somebody that mentally they are so weak? Nobody is born mentally weak, the world and life makes us like that.

So now my question is, why do we laugh at those people? Why don’t we empathise as society and give those individuals the help they need? If people hate seeing other weak individuals, why do we let people get weak and then hate them for that same weakness? If weakness is such a hated trait wouldn’t it be ideal to eradicate it as a whole?

If you've ever had a discussion about a friend/family member struggling with substance abuse then you'll eventually hear someone say that they should be cut off, kicked out of any home/locks changed, reported to police for theft.

I understand well why people do this as compassion fatigue becomes a thing after sometime but I wonder whether it's the success that people portray it is. I'm speaking anecdotally but I had four friends and acquaintances whom I knew well in high school. I was part of a larger group that dabbled in substances (mostly, adderall pills, mdma) but those four were outcasts because they used prescription opioids, benzos). Two of them were given the tough love by parents, one kicked out after 18, the other did well in college and started stealing from his parents for drugs so they kicked him out and pressed charges. Those two eventually died from overdoses on the streets several years year. The remaining two were supported by their family despite multiple overdoses and relapses and now they're lives are put together albeit not as much as their other classmates.

It's obvious that being homeless and prison make recovery infinitely harder and just as many "sink" than they do "swim". It seems to me that such "success" stories are examples of selection bias where people who are dead, homeless, or behind bars aren't able to give their other side of the story.

I live in Northeast Asia. Today, an article about a suicide incident was posted on an online community in my country. Most of the reactions from people who saw the post focused on how the individual jumped from a public place (a department store), causing shock and trauma to others. The general sentiment was, "If you want to die, do it in a place where no one else is affected. Don't cause trouble for others and die in a place where no one is around."

This made me wonder: Is such a perspective common in our society because we are a collectivist culture in East Asia? If so, how might people from Western individualistic cultures think about this issue? Would they share the same perspective? What do you think?

I’ve always wondered—why is it so hard to remember dreams? What if the reason we forget them isn’t just because of science or brain chemistry, but because they’re not meant for us? Maybe dreams are like messages or experiences that we’re only supposed to feel and not fully comprehend. What if remembering them would change how we see the world?

Anyone else ever think that there might be a bigger reason we forget our dreams?

For as long as I can remember I've been a quitter, it totally sucks I know but it's true. If I'm not satisfied with my performance on the first few tries of something I throw up my hands and call it a day. Theres even been times if I go on a bad streak with something I did really like I'll still throw in the towel.

Meanwhile there's my brother, raised just about the same way as I was, who is super perseverent and driven in everything they do even when it's apparent they can't they still take things to the very end.

For years now I've tried to be more like that but ultimately I think I'm just unfortunately weak willed which kinda makes me sad

I just don't get how we're so different in this regard and so similar everywhere else

Is drive genetic?

Edit: Thank you everyone so much for your helpful and thoughtful answers I appreciate it

I'm not Chinese, but I used the youth mode of the Chinese app Douyin, which is the Chinese version of TikTok, some time ago, just to view. The content is purely educational and engaging, I received tons of videos on English grammar, tourism, sports, swimming lessons, etc. In the youth mode, you aren't allowed to comment or chat with anyone, rather you can only like or save posts. Also, videos promoting products were not seen, rather tones of DIY toy/gift/project idea videos were shown. The content was addictive no doubt, but engaging, you learnt something new in every video. The app also has a set time limit and you cannot use it at midnight. It does have some loopholes (you can unlock the child-free mode if you got a Chinese number), but that's about it. There were also pages of foreigners as well teaching educational content like foreign languages. The app also has a safe mode for adults where only educational content will be shown which adults could opt for.

Now I get the argument of kids not being allowed to use social media, but Douyin seems to have managed to channel the addictive component of SM in a good way. The youth mode is safe for kids. It makes SM like a learning platform for kids rather than an addictive cesspool. You'd rather have your kids getting addicted to grammar and science lessons instead of falling victim to the awful things platforms like IG and Snap can possess. They do not discourage kids from truly using SM but create a safe platform where they can have fun, learn things and at the same time not get too addicted.

Why hasn't any big tech company or startup in the world come up with a similar idea at a global scale? Even platforms like YouTube kids are cesspools of awful content. What is stopping the US government from extending the COPPA age limit to 17 years and forcing tech companies to have child-safe modes? A lot of the platforms even with restrictions are not truly child-free, creeps can still get to children. Why isn't anyone thinking of such a platform, considering how prevalent SM is among kids?

Most of the world is in democracy or has changed itself to democracy but is it really the best way to run a country..Is capitalist economy is the best way for the country..If it is then, Why people are still unhappy with the progress of their country? Most of the countries are independent for more than 100 years by now and they are running in a democratic manner but still in those countries corruption is high, so is the crime rate.. And the poor section of the society is poor and rich is getting more richer..therefore there is a huge gap in between them .

I have been on reddit for more than 4 years now and I have seen people still defend politicians so passionately like it is their family member you are disrespecting.In any country I look all the politicians play the same game that is divide rule and still we naive people fall for this trap

I have my own experiences and opinions about this question but I wanted to hear from random people about what they think. There is obviously some subjectivity to what a person considers to be a person of low/high integrity but I think most people have an objective opinion of the idea. For example, most people aren't going to think a Karen, a criminal, or anyone similar would be a person that has high integrity.

Lately, I’ve been reflecting on how my experience on the internet, especially on Reddit, has changed the way my mind works. It feels like I’m no longer thinking alone. It’s as if my thoughts have internalized into the internet, becoming part of a massive hub of thinking minds-a giant ecosystem where each individual is like a galaxy, filled with ideas, impressions, and reflections.

To me, the internet isn’t just a place for quick interactions or consuming information. It’s something timeless. It feels like a computational model, divided into behaviors, dimensions, and temporalities that coexist. I feel like we’re all orbiting something greater, exploring something deeper, something that goes beyond screens and even the internet itself.

This makes me wonder: are we all contributing to something collective, a kind of universal intelligence? Does our mind, when connected to this space, somehow transcend the limits of the “self” and merge with the whole?

What about you? Have you ever felt something like this? That the internet is more than just a communication medium almost like an extension of human thought? I’d love to hear how you perceive this connection.

If a draft were to take place and one were to be drafted in wartime, what skills should he possess in order to be considered more valuable in a logistical/home front position than an active combat one, and thus not put on the frontlines by the US Military?

Does reveal more about people than the politician? Why does it seem like people don't value integrity?

In Zen, 'be open to everything, attached to nothing" is a goal.

But psychs break down a bunch of mental health issues in terms of failure to make secure attachment. And they speak of attachment styles and how they impact relationships.

Are they using the same meaning?

Edit, after some one digressed intot he difference between zen and psych -- not the question.

I don't want the difference in psych and zen, but the difference way they see attachment.

In particular. Zen seems to see attachment as an obstacle. Where psychs see attachment as being a necessary component of mental health.

I think love in zen is agape. "Disinterested love" Love that wants nothing for the self, but only the well being and growth of the beloved. In the new testament agape is the type of love God has for his creatures.

Recently I read a description of schizoid personality disorder. To me is sounded like a good description of a zen student more than halfway to englightment.

There’s undoubtedly a large portion of people who only vote based on the parties they recognise. If after each election, a party was forced to change names (let’s say, cannot use a party name that has been used in the last 20 years), would that force people to have to learn about the parties and therefore become more informed about what they are campaigning for / promising to do?

I’ve always thought schools should focus more on practical skills, imagine if we’d had a class on budgeting or basic home repairs in high school. Now, as an adult, I’m realizing how much those things would’ve helped me feel more prepared. If you could add one essential life skill to the curriculum, what would it be? Curious to know what others feel would be the most beneficial.

In the far east, China's economy and geopolitical influence is constantly growing. They are getting bolder and bolder in challenging US hegemony and getting closer and closer in technology, military, economy etc. BRICS likewise is getting stronger with more members joining and recently their current attempt at dedollarization. Russia's offensive in Ukraine is still going strong and it seems American and EU support is only barely holding them. Both Iran and Russia have been hit with such sanctions yet they are holding fast and haven't collapsed despite the wars they are involved in. You also see rising economies and massive projects ranging from NEOM in Saudi Arabia to China's Belt and Road.

Meanwhile, You see economic downturns and woes all across the West world. The Canadian housing crisis, while not getting tons of coverage, is now having a massive effect on both citizens and immigrants. The USA's internal political strife is of course on every screen. More and more countries seem to dislike the US and even some allies look elsewhere for economic and military opportunities. Global support for Israel because of the current war is shifting more and more towards the Palestinians fight for freedom. GenZ is reported to rank amongst the all time lowest in USA in terms of Israeli support and alignment. Brexit. The effect of Ukraine war on European economies that look to be waning.

From a surface level, the west is showing signs like those ancient empires started to exhibit at the beginning of their ends. Is that what you think is happening right now ? Do you think the Western World Order will remain at the top in the next 30-50 years or will we see a Chinese or Russian dominance in the 22n century ?