The ability to defend is being redefined as "war readiness", the Bundeswehr is being equipped with 100 billion euros, and discussions about reinstating compulsory military service are underway: the signs point to mobilization, even mentally. The nation is glorified as a great community of solidarity, to which everyone is expected to happily serve. This comes after decades of disintegration, during which the impoverishment of broad sections of the population was deemed unavoidable by neoliberal politicians.
Ole Nymoen raises an objection: the claim that a state's security interests necessarily align with those of its subjects seems absurd. After all, it is young men like him who are forced to stay in the country and risk their lives in the event of war, whether they want to or not. Not to mention that "serving with a weapon" also means killing others with that weapon. And who actually decides about going to war? Is it really the demos, the people?
Not wanting to fight for a state, in this context, is more than just an individual refusal – it is an act of humanity and protest for greater collective self-determination.
