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Martin Schwoerer's avatar

Perhaps not just symbolism but also practical policing? In bad times, the last thing you want to have is under-occupied youths. Make 'em work and they get fewer bad ideas. Hungry students are revolutionary; the FDJ (DDR - era youth organization) was a pillar of the state.

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Gunnar Miller's avatar

The CCC in the US during the Great Depression as well https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civilian_Conservation_Corps . "The devil makes work for idle hands" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_American_Bund .

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Scott Lichtenstein's avatar

Great inter-disciplinary research, I don’t know how you come across these gems but thanks for sharing. Perfectly sums up the situation in the US-DC is the circus 🎪 confusing & distracting the herd as the elite take bread from their mouths whilst crushing dissent.

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Hggh's avatar

To be charitable, they could have been public work programmes during times of trouble to give employment to otherwise starving workers/ peasants? For example, a famine relief project in Lucknow from the 18th century

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bara_Imambara

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Harrison's avatar

Fascinating! How did the ancient Romans feed their armies? Why did the tradition of feasting begin? When was the potato chip invented? Explore when foods were first cultivated, from prehistory to present day:

https://thesecretingredient.substack.com/p/when-did-your-favorite-foods-originate

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