German Soldiers to fat to fight
German soldiers have taken a few body blows to the old ego lately. First they were accused of being scared to actually fight. Then they were accused of failing miserably to train Afghan forces. Adding insult to injury, the mighty German warriors now stand accused of being drunken porkers.
How much did they drink?
A German parliamentary report has revealed that in 2007 German forces in Afghanistan consumed about 1.7 million pints of beer and 90,000 bottles of wine. During the first six months of this year 896,000 pints of beer were shipped to German forces in Afghanistan. British and US bases in the country enforce a strict ban on alcohol.
What really has to hurt the image of the German soldier is that Germany’s soldiers are on average more overweight than its civilian population.
The physical condition of the soldiers was already in question after a German armed forces report found that 40 per cent of its soldiers aged 18-29 were overweight, compared to 35 per cent of the civilian population of the same age.
