German Military Expected to Cut Back in Draft Service Time
Ostensibly good news for all the German guys who get drafted into the German Military – a new regulation, effective as of January 2011, might reduce the current military service of nine months down to six months. The final result is expected to be announced this Sunday, 25 Oct 2009.
My brother-in-law got drafted in the early 70s and, if I remember correctly, had to serve two years in Hammelburg, the closest military post to my hometown. My older brother was exempt from the draft due to a physical liability and my younger brother served his year and a half in the early 80s (during which time he totaled four cars..). My nephew opted for the civil service instead.
The further we moved on in time, the more antagonistic its participation became, at least in my family. Additionally, I have never heard a German say I am proud to serve my country nor I am proud to do my military service. The draft was not a promising venture, very unlike what U.S. Forces recruiters will tell their prospective career soldiers.
Again, these are just my observations. I fully agree with a cutback in service time, as a six-month experience as a soldier seems sufficient in my eyes. As a baby boomer, growing up during the Cold War, I turned pacifist, especially after learning about my country’s war-hungry history and atrocities.
Six months of service are enough and I hope it will go through.
Tags: German draft, military service time in Germany
October 23rd, 2009 at 6:36 pm
Shouldn’t that be something like “civilian service”. “Civil Service” would be a Beamter.
October 27th, 2009 at 10:08 pm
I have my doubts – is six months long enough to really learn anything? If not, what benefit would it offer for either the army or the “victim”?
My own feeling is that military service might be a good idea, in the sense that it might give some youngsters training which helps them acquire skills that they wouldn’t otherwise learn (No, I mean driving trucks or learning electronics, not killing people
But six months seems too short to achieve anything. Of course, the civilian service as an alternative has benefits for the community and runs for longer than if the military option is taken, but I don’t think we should be using compulsory military service as a tool to compel young people to serve the community.
A more honest approach would be to make the army 100% professional and nonetheless to make civilian service for perhaps 12 months mandatory for everyone?