Sociological Question?

Question

Imagine from now one all individuals upon reaching 18 will have to give two years of military service to the federal government, how would this affect the social system?

Answer 1

well, don't need to imagine one, I'm already living in a country in which military service is mandatory for every male citizen coming to age of 18.

hmm, how this situation affects the social system is definitely a whole 300 paged PhD thesis! But I can summarize like this;

every male citizen living in Turkey is forced to think that they born soldier, and the ones who are reluctant to do their military service is labelled and prosecuted as a "traitor".

If you decide to refuse the military service and become a consciencious objector, you'll be facing lots of tortures within the military prisons. Even you get out of prison, since you become a "drafter", they confiscate your identity card. And imagine what kind of a life you'll live without an identity card (no passport, no buying houses, no voting, no bank accounts, no chance of getting into a university..etc. literally a "civil death" and why? just because you didn't want to get a training in order to become a soldier.)

In a situation like this, it is almost impossible to eradicate militarism from the social as well as the political life. You have laws such as "alienating people from military" in your penal code, which makes it impossible even to criticise the politics of military and the actions of army. (

On the social level, most of the parents don't let their daughter get married to a guy who hasn't done his military service yet.

Everything relating to military will be arbitrary, even in your constitution it states that you're living in a democratic state and the army is under the control of the parliament, the reality is way different than what is written on the constitution.

Think of a society in which young, newly graduated 18 year old men are doing their military service reluctantly; try to imagine the psychological trauma that these people are facing and the effects of that on the society.

And lastly, think of being an anti-war, anti-militarist supporter in this country. It is sometimes really hard to even pronounce the word "peace".

Answer 2

many countires around the world have mandatory involvement in the military, I imagine the effects would have to do with more than just whether or not they have to serve.