An interesting article from the Deutsche Welle:
Germany set to Abolish Draft
Compulsory military service has been a part of German life that nearly all of my male friends from across the pond had to go through. I think that some of them would be very happy if the draft disappeared. I know a lot of people that opted out and went for a community service function instead of serving in the military. As it's pointed out, though, Germany might lose a huge number of community service workers if the draft disappears, which could be more detrimental to the country than the loss of a guaranteed fighting force.
One of my friends did join the military for his service, though, and managed to land a coveted position in one of the orchestras. He was happy about that, of course, but I don't think that he was philosophically opposed to the draft. This will be an interesting issue to follow.
Posted by steve at January 14, 2004 10:00 AM