this post was submitted on 26 Mar 2026
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39
Would you accept or refuse the draft if your country decided to reinstate it? (piefed.social)
submitted 18 hours ago* (last edited 17 hours ago) by SilentStriker@piefed.social to c/europe@feddit.org
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To put it in perspective: the USA has it (but dormant as it was last used in the 60s) now, instead part of an automatic register. I've heard that last year Germany for example proposed to impose a mandatory, volunteer-focused military service model on boosting defense against threats like Russia but would you really enlist in the German Army (Bundeswehr) or refuse instead of adhereing to politicians interests?

I've heard a similar thing in France with them introducing a new voluntary 10-month military service program for 18-19 year olds starting this summer 2026, but would guys there be willing to enlist or outright refuse? What ever the case is, would guys in Europe either accept voluntary military service imposed by their nation or refuse to enlist as they know that politicians are the ones who instigate wars in the first place?

For EU nations that still have the draft enforced (mandatory conscription): what happens if guys refuse it? Do they end up in jail? In that case, would you rather be imprisoned for refusing or comply? I know that some countries have alternative service (civic) rather than conventional military service, but what happens if the individual refuses either? I mean, is it a criminal offense for simply refusing conscription?

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[–] HuudaHarkiten@piefed.social 1 points 12 hours ago (1 children)

OK, so I fight at the front while maybe they are bombed at home. I’d rather use my skills to take the Balkan route the other way around with them to safety

When the Ukraine war started, I made a plans. If russia would have attacked us, I made a plan for my (now ex) German girlfriend to join my parents and for them to go to my sisters house in the north west of the country and from there over to Sweden, from there possibly back to Germany or just stay in Sweden. I would have gone to the front lines while they do that.

I don’t have a house, probably never will own one, cannot afford. I would be defending the house of my landlord who owns 6 houses. I don’t see the need.

So instead of paying rent, you'd rather have your house bombed to the ground? Seems a bit weird but okay..

It is a nice park, but the playgrounds for my children are broken, as “we don’t have the money to fix them”. Yeah, right, maybe ask my landlord about where that money is. The austerity kills everything beautiful in the cities, but apparently “there’s no alternative”. So in five years time the park is not worth defending anymore.

So the better option is to let a russian tank roll over the remains of the park and maybe set up a air defense system there?

You mean slaving in a soulless office for scraps, that will never buy me a home (see above), while politicians tell me “you need to work more for your country, oh, btw, we cannot afford social security and healthcare anymore ¯_(ツ)_/¯” All the while my kids go crazy with all the pressure and constant crisis around them.

"Things are bad now so I'm fine with them getting horribly bad. I work in a horrible job so I'm okay if bombs start raining on peoples houses."

Not gonna defend that asshole. He wants to ban gay marriage, deport brown people and thinks renewable energy will, idk, kill him or something.

"My neighbor is a bigoted arsehole, so I'm fine with the whole neighborhood being razed to the ground"

Might be cynical but that's how I hear what you are saying.

[–] kossa@feddit.org 4 points 11 hours ago (1 children)

"I am not willing to fight and die for the stuff I don't find that good and rather flee"

is very different from

"I find it better if everything and everybody burns"

like you interpreted what I wrote.

[–] HuudaHarkiten@piefed.social 1 points 11 hours ago

Well that's what it sounds like to me. You'd rather let the pan fire get out of hand, run outside and hope the fire department gets there in time, rather than covering the pot with a fire blanket or a lid.