I'm tired, but here's a couple of quick thoughts.

commandment one: How does that explain Triads? Just because someone isn't hanging around on a street corner, it doesnt necessarily mean they are behaving nicely elsewhere...

commandment 2: Not every 'child' is suited, or mature enough at age 16, for military life...but, I have in the past thought National Service might lick some discipline into some kids....I dunno though. A thought.

commandment 3: I TOTALLY AGREE with this, but -- if commandment 3 were upheld, we wouldn't need commandment 2 would we? Or one really.

Do what you like with rules 1,2 and 3, but please leave my eyeballs alone.....

My youngest lad will be leaving school after his GCSEs next summer. He wants to go on to college then university. I dont see why he should be forcibly taken out of academic life to be shouted at for not jumping into sheepshit quick enough (in the words of The Chief) and taught how to wave a gun around - *then* be given the option of either stay in the army and get his head blown off in some foreign land, or go back into the academic world.
Presumably, vinmaster also meant to offer another choice, get a non-forces job?
Even if these kids in national service are not going to be paid to do so, who is going to pay for their upkeep for those two years?
After WW11, the govt allowed people to go back to their studies, all 3 of my uncles went to cambridge university after being de-mobbed and the govt helped them financially to do so.
But those were exceptional times.
A very flawed concept, methinks.