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Net Addiction Gets Finnish Soldiers Out Of Army
nerdb0t writes "Reuters is reporting that the Finnish Defense Forces have allowed some men to be excused from military service because of 'Internet Addiction.' The service period is 6 months - but that's too long away from the internet for these guys. Is this a joke? Is this a legitimate illness? Hm..where can I apply for disability..."
About two years ago I spent 2 months as a counselor at a summer camp, most of which time I had no internet access, and when I did have access it was minimal. I know this is a little pathetic, but I really felt like I was being deprived. I mean, I wasn't sick over it or anything, but it was something I genuinely missed and I was really bothered that I couldn't use it the way I was used to. That said, I don't really think that this is a legitimate sickness worthy of being discharged because of, it's really quite managable. The main way I dealt with it was reading a lot. Generally I don't read that often, but that summer I went through a few tens of books.
This is ridiculous. Unfortunately, the story is true. What's ridiculous is that the service doesn't mean 6 months of no net -- it just means you can't get on the net _as much as you might want to_. First, the Finnish army gives you three out of four weekends off, which means you get to go home (=on the net if you just have to get your fix) for the weekend and report back on Sunday evening. Second, most if not all garrisons have computers with Internet-connections that the conscripts can freely use during the evenings. And if you still can't handle it? Growing up is exactly what you need.
I can identify with these soldiers. I once spent a month at a house with no internet access whatsoever. I had no idea what to do with myself in my spare time. I had my laptop with me and spent hours playing solitaire. I couldn't get my mind off the internet, and what must be happenning in my absence. I tried watching tv but I usually watch tv while browsing /., so it was no help. News papers weren't much better because I couldn't adjust the font size or get the perfect lighting of the computer monitor. I even went through pages I had available offline. I ended up just signing up for a month of dial-up connection, but it possibly made it worse because I had an old modem and was used to broadband. I had exactly the same sensations that I had while trying to give up cocaine (a habit from my young and stupid days), except there was no real physical sensations except those produced from nervousness.
_____
Thank you.
As a Finnish citizen I am very happy that our army sends these sissies home to grow up and is not trying to adjust the service easier for them. Our army is for self defence (not attacking poor people for some ;-) reason) and we really need good men (and women) to do the job.
They did't. Basically, they sent the rookies back home to their mommies in order to grow up. In few years, they will find themselves back in the army. So, being addicted to the net is not a valid excuse to get them out of the service.
I was excused from the service back in my day, but that was because I got a severe allergic reaction the moment I reported for duty. It was propably the washing-powder (industrial strength) they use to wash the uniforms. Three days in the service, 30 days in the hospital and I was sent back home.
Speaking as a Finn.
Lesbian Nazi Hookers Abducted by UFOs and Forced Into Weight Loss Programs - -all next week on Town Talk.
The Finnish army practices lying in the snow, waiting for enemies to take out with one shot of the rifle.
:)
If you want winter experience, learn from Finnish, Norwegian or Swedish soldiers.
When I served my time in the Army, in Harstad, Norway (look it up)in jan-jul '97 there was a snowfall record. 2,5-3 meters of snow in valleys and -15 to -35 Celsius was the norm.
Advantages: You learn to handle extreme cold. It's easy to dig trenches and to camouflage the tent.
Disadvantages: It's bloody cold. When you've had your 4 hours of sleep inbetween watches, the uniform is not frozen anymore, but it's still damp/wet. When you get outside everything turns to ice.
Super-duper-advantage: During watches I got to see the Hale-Bopp comet at night, in perfect sky conditions. With night vision goggles too, that was incredible (and quite green/white). I missed an attack on the base though, the enemy got first strike there...
All finnish men have to do their military service, which is 180, 270 or 360 days. Usually men go to this service after "basic" schools, at the age of 18 or 19. The military service starts either july or the next january. This leaves you time, when you have nothing to do ( if you can't get a job ).
During this time some ppl get addicted to net. And it's not just the net, it's the hours. Pretty much every net addict has bizarre sleeping pattern. Usually you go on chatting/surfing/playing 15-24hours, and then get some sleep, when you get really really tired. You have no obligations to be awake at some given time.
One finnish news site said, that the biggest problem was adjusting to regular sleeping pattern, not the actual net addiction.
The first weeks in the army are ofcourse the worst. You are in a totally new enviroment, you don't know anyone, and you live in a single room with 8-12 other men. Lots of people keep yelling at you and bossing you around, and that makes people very stressed. During those first weeks, pretty much everyone wants to quit.
When you add sleep disorder to this, you pretty much are done for it. There's no way you can maintain your mental health and motivation.
I had no problems during my service time, but I know what those sleep disorders from too much computer using can do to you. It's total hell trying to live as a productive member of society, when you simply can't sleep during the nights. Almost screwed up my school because of that, but luckily I'm over it now.
But it still bugs me that sleeping 7-8 hours a night and spending 9 hours a day of your time to work, it leaves you so very little spare time. Atleast to compared to the situation where you had nothing else than spare time.
"standard practice in the Finnish army "
That reminds me, how come a country as small Finland is capable of producing two world class Formula One drivers (Mika Häkkinen and Kimi Raikkonen) and a world class rally car driver (Tommi Makkinen) among others?
This is all the more amazing when a country the size of the USA produces, erm, none!
What's that all about;-)
I saw this same news at our local TV news too (I live in Finland). 6 months is the minimum these days. I did spend my own service during 1998 and I was there for 11 months, but I admit that I had my laptop and GSM-modem with me almost all the time (I was remote working from army).
:)
You can just imagine how our commanding officer was surprised when he opened the door into our tent and I was there surfing Internet in middle of the forest during my night shift by the fire. Laptop and GSM were powered from generator that we filled with fuel oil between 5-6 hours. Usually people were sleeping and that's why they were checking the tents during nights.
I often wonder if the United States is headed for a general conscription.
Many other democratic countries have it, and arguably it's good for people. I often wonder how my life would have been changed by a term in the military.
And hey, since we're now fighting an endless war, it seems more likely than ever.
Intolerance for ambiguity is the mark of the authoritarian personality.
This is hilarious. The general mindset here in Finland is that to be a man, a person must serve in the army. Nobody ever bothers to mention what's so special in the Finnish gene base that causes Finnish males to be boys before they serve, be they 18 or 28.
This kind of thinking belittles real problems fresh recruits and young men are having - which have absolutely nothing to do with immaturity. Our glorious defence force, where the first thing a young soldier learns is how to avoid responsibility and doing stuff, is the bastion of immaturity here.
When I did the service we were told to protect against "the Enemy".
:)
When asked to elaborate the officer said something like: "Well, we are not allowed to say who the enemy is, but we can say this much: It's not the Swedes"
I guess it's between Norway and Russia then, even though I find the two scenarios you presented more likely to occur
There is another odd rule in Europe as well - Stress Leave. Its a treatable illness here and you can take paid time off from work for it. Unfortunately, the US Military or GS's stationed here can't take advantage of such a rule...
When I was younger, a bus load of American kids put on of their Dutch bus drivers on stress leave for 6 months... Unfortunately, I wasn't riding the bus the day it happened, but heard it was a blast.
I can honestly say it is. I was (and still am, in some way) net-nerd.
But 6 months in coastal infantry was very good change in life, and in my opinion helped me to gain some experiences i wouldn't otherwise had. And there was those leaves, when we went to city with our friends and got drunk. Helped me to get life of my own, outside of computers.
So, if there is any young finnish people reading this, i would encourage you to stay in the army, and try to enjoy experiences you can't have, when you are playing counter-strike or hanging in irc.
The problem in the world today is communication. Too much communication - Homer Simpson
Just like to address few things.
:).
Any serious military attempt to seize Finland would be noticed 2-6 months before the attack could be made. It is just not possible to move all needed manpower and equipment for attack to Finland to the border without anyone noticing, and if you close your borders, its kinda clear message. This means that army has decent time to mobilize and give some extra training. Of course all bridges, roads and such could be mined before any attempt to take them could be made. In example, all finnish bridges and tunnels have holes in their concrete structure, where the explosives will be placed in case they need to be destroyed. I have even heard that there is book which contains all information about all bridges, their locations and amount of explosives needed for their destruction.
Our soldiers in peacekeeping missions get only 1-2 months of extra training before going to peacekeeping missions.
Of course it is possible to make surprise (finnish air defence would have ~20 minutes to react) attack with airforce only without any warning. But still, ground attack would be months away.
And about those pesky IR-thingies. do you people understand that they have very limited capability in forests. IR can be used to see in dark yes, but you can't see through things, such as forest. Thermal imaging can help with that, but mostly, thermal imaging equipment good enough to penetrate thick forest is in satellites, and in some recon planes and finland is very big country to sweep through constantly and accurately enough, to make any diffirence. When ever Finnish forces would be concentrated enough(like counter-attack) to use air force against them effectively, finnish forces would of course use their own air force and SAM power to counter enemy air superiority for small time period, so finnish forces can make their maneuver without full air power in their neck.
And in the end, i'd like to remind that Finland has much more modern air defences that of serbs or iraq. Especially in southern Finland where the BUK M1 units are situated.
And there is even more, i'd much more compare finnish situation to soviet vs. afgans than serbs or iraqis. Afgans were able to fight off soviet air attack with only stingers. While the terrain in Afganistan is very much diffirent than in Finland, when thinking about war, they give the same obstacles, just in diffirent form. I'd even say that when thinking of air defence, Finland is better country to defend than Afganistan. There is no better place to ambush air forces than country with lots of forests and modern air defence systems like BUK M1, Crotale NG and Igla.
What comes to alcoholism, yeah, military personnel drinks like any other worker class dude here. Mostly the stories what i heard in army were urban legends, totally incorrect or just greatly exaggarated. Even my father had heard few of the same stories that go around nowadays, and he was in finnish army 1952. If you ask about the stories from someone who has been in army, lets say 1980 you probably get even more same stories
And final part of my long post. I don't know if you have read the studies, but fins have one the highest ratings when they question the citizens will to defence their country against foreign invasion'. Me and most of my friends are ready to take arms if Finland is invaded. I have no will whatsoever to take arms to attack anywhere, or to fight in any other theater than Finland.
So, i'm not forced against my will to defend my own country, my friends aren't, and i think most of fins aren't. Even most of those people who didn't like army and hated it because they though there wouldn't be war (waste of time) would be ready to take arm once they noticed that Finland is under attack. There is small portion of people who don't like to use arms, i accept their choice. There is small portion of people who would be there against their will to defend their country. But so small that they probably wouldn't have any serious input in war anyway, they can always serve elsewhere than in flashpoints.
But mostly, above all, there would be determined finnish army with intention to fight off any invader.