Why do you so rarely see members of the armed forces?
They usually change into mufti, to avoid the attentions of both war survivors and others who are anti military, and the loud minority who are very pro. Because there are no restrictions on haircuts (apart from dyed hair), and not many are into bodybuilding, they don’t stand out once they are out of their uniforms.
How come some writers say Japan’s military spending is very low (and hence the economy grew so quickly) and others are shocked it is so high for a so-called “Self-Defence Force”?
Why are there female members of the Jieitai (self-defence force) if they aren’t allowed to take part in combat?
Why aren’t women allowed on combat operations?
Officially, because they could be raped by enemy troops
Guglielmo said,
April 19, 2012 at 4:13 pm
Concerning the question on Japan’s defence spending, I think it can be explained with how def. spending is usually measured: as a percentage of the GNP; from this perspective Japan’s defence spending is low (but not extremely so) as it averages roughly 1% of the GNP. However if we keep in mind that we are talking about 1 % of one of the largest economies in the world, i.e. it is still a lot of money for a country that does not officially have an army.