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๐Ÿ‡ฑ๐Ÿ‡น Lithuania /Conflict & Security

Bottom rhythm

From Delfi · () Lithuanian

Translated from Lithuanian, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

Analysis Sources not specified Context piece
  • A record number of over 8,100 young Lithuanians volunteered for military service, but a third will not be accepted into the army.
  • The Defense Minister attributes this to a lack of instructors and weapons, a claim the article disputes.
  • The article criticizes the government's approach to education, arguing that lowering standards hinders national defense capabilities.

Lithuania faces a paradox: a record 8,100 young people have volunteered for military service, yet a third will be rejected. This situation arises despite the ongoing war nearby and the state's objective to expand its military and train more citizens in weapon use.

Defense Minister Kaunas attributes the rejections to a shortage of instructors and weapons. However, the article strongly disputes this, likening the excuse to a decaying boar carcass from a hunting accident. It points out that this argument has been repeated by multiple defense ministers and military leaders since Russia's invasion of Ukraine began, and questions why Poland does not face similar issues. The piece argues that training military instructors does not take longer than training officers, and that resources spent on unnecessary purchases could arm conscripts and riflemen.

The instructor argument stinks like the carcass of a boar injured during a hunt last year.

โ€” AuthorCriticizing the Defense Minister's explanation for rejecting volunteers.

The article criticizes the government's educational policies, particularly the removal of the requirement for a positive grade in Lithuanian language and literature and mathematics for gymnasium admission. The author argues that this "calming path" championed by the Minister of Education, Popovienฤ—, will not improve education but rather mask existing knowledge gaps. Without basic comprehension, writing, and calculation skills, young people will struggle with more complex subjects, leading to frustration, inferiority complexes, anger, and reduced national resilience.

This approach, the article contends, could extend to higher education, with suggestions of admitting students to universities without diplomas, including medical programs, or to master's programs without bachelor's degrees. The author concludes that the government's current direction is not strengthening Lithuania but leading it towards a "bottom" by undermining its citizens' education and defense readiness.

You don't want to increase the Army. You are driving Lithuania down a path of calm to the bottom.

โ€” AuthorAccusing the government of undermining national defense through its policies.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Delfi in Lithuanian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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