Lamh Foistenach Abu!Give Sikhs a pass. Just my opinion.
Then act like one - shave the beard ...
The problem is a very slippery slope.
Really appreciate your patriotism, now remove the Sikhs so we can give you a buzz cut and issue you a nice helmet.
Conform to military standards or get out!
the RCMP had the same issue in 1994 - They caved.
When I was in the Army we had Sikhs. They wore their sword as a photograph. The underwear we didn’t care about. The olive drab turban fit nicely under their helmets. Beards were trimmed so that gas masks fit.
A beard is less disruptive than open, practicing homosexuals in uniform.
Since the latter is already supposed to be coming down, I can’t see a problem with giving into the Sikhs on this one.
It must have been a terrible shock to him when he found out he wouldn’t be the first soldier to be allowed to have a beard.
Lamh Foistenach Abu! They have a hell of a reputation as good soldiers in every way.
Steel turbans?
My dad has pictures of two Sikhs he served with in the 70’S and both are wearing turbans. Doesn’t seem to have been a problem then.
Ditto to all who said it, give Sikhs a pass.
“A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds”
In cases like this, a well regulated military can make small concessions for a greater good.
These guys are good to have, and they are no danger to good order and discipline.
Sikhs are generally very good soldiers. The only half credible excuse for kicking them out over non-sealing protective masks is nonsense, as a large percentage of black male soldiers have facial skin that will not seal masks either, because of Pseudofolliculitis Barbae (PFB).
Uniformity in the military is NOT so that militarists can get all excited about having an army of clones. It is solely for logistics and supply, neither of which are impacted by Sikh religious obligations.
However, Sikhs are in many cases far *better* soldiers than the ordinary good soldier. They are orderly, disciplined, professional, and responsible. This is why they tend to dominate the Indian army as a whole, and the Indian Sikh regiment is one of their most highly decorated units.
“The Battle of Saragarhi is considered one of the greatest stories of collective bravery in human history. The contingent of twenty-one soldiers from the 36th Sikhs was led by Havildar Ishar Singh, and held off an Afghan attack of 10,000 men for several hours.
“All 21 Sikh soldiers chose to fight to the death instead of surrendering. In recognition of their supreme sacrifice, the British Parliament rose to pay them respect, and each one of them was awarded the Indian Order of Merit (equivalent to the Victoria Cross).
“The battle has been compared to the Battle of Thermopylae, where a small Greek force faced a large Persian army of Xerxes (480 BC).”
To get to this type of comraderie, all of the recruits have to look the same, sound the same, march the same, talk, eat, sleep, crap and generally get robotized before they can rely on each other.
If the Sikhs want to go through that and AFTER getting assigned grow their beards back, and wear their tubans, I see no problem with it. Sikhs are fanatic friends and fearsome fighters. Any of the services should welcome them.
Seems to me this might be a case of the US pays for my medical school, and then I don’t have to fullfill my part.
They had to know before that turbans weren’t part of the uniform.
If he don’t like the way we do things in America he can go back to where he came from. We want miss him.
I have met and worked with many Sikhs (including ex Military types) and I respect them enormously.
I believe this insistence on “rules” is ridiculous. These rules are not sacred like our constitution. These rules in many cases were CHANGED tens of times since our country began and can be changed again. Heck, our Constitution, which next to the Bible is the holiest document to me, allows itself to be changed.
We allowed beards once and we can allow it again. Rules should NOT be ignored. No Sir. However, rules can and should be changed when they make sense.
We allowed blacks in the Army. Using the idiotic logic on display in this thread, if FR had existed back in the 40s I am sure someone would have posted “Rules are rules”
Keep context in mind guys. Some random Sikh guy wants to join our United States army and DIE FOR ME!!!!
Did you get that?? He wants the privelege of dying for me, my family, my consitution and my country (and Texas, my most beloved state).
This Sikh guy also likes to wear a beard as his religion asks for it.
So the way I see it, we allowed beards once. Our greatest generals wore beards. We can freaking allow them again for what is arguably one of the greatest martial races in the world.
Go Sikhs! Go US Armed Forces! Go Texas!