The failing effort to add women to infantry, special operations forces

Tampa Bay Times ^ | 10/21/2016 | Dan O'Shea

[tekrat]

In January 2013, the Department of Defense announced it was removing the combat exclusion ban that kept women out of infantry units and special operations forces like Navy SEALs and Army Green Berets.

Where do we stand nearly four years later?

Former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta argued, "If members of our military can meet the qualifications for a job — and let me be clear, we are not reducing qualifications — then they should have the right to serve."

And the day the change in policy was announced, Col. Ellen Haring of the U.S. Army Reserves, who filed a lawsuit challenging the combat exclusion ban, said, "Nobody ever asked for special considerations or reduced standards; just let us compete at the standards as they exist."

[tekrat]

Sum it up: some women want to join the infantry but can't make the current standard. They are unable to meet the standard men do. So they want a special standard for them. The military says no (for now) because that will endanger everyone involved when their on the field.

[Will88]

Looks like they might have to resort to genetic engineering to obtain qualified female combat personnel.

[shotgun]

The onky thing that should matter is if the SHTF and their post is overrun, then they can pick up a weapon and point it in the direction of the enemy and return fire.

[equaviator]

The only effort that fails are the efforts of the women trying to meet the standard.

[SandRat]

It was long well known, that the DACOWITS Witches and women LIBERS were wrong, but they wouldn’t listen.

[ltc8k6]

I think that we all knew that the bar would be lowered.

Since there is still no “diversity”, they will create it.

[lodi90]

I don’t think they actually want these tough military jobs. These ticket punching careerists just want Ranger tabs and such for their resumes, IMO.

[wastoute]

As long as they can expect and fully understand that they enemy will surely single them out for prolonged torture in earshot of their comrades and be fully aware our troops have to be trained to resist exactly this sort of pressure, sure, let them.

[DuncanWaring]

Paraplegics can do that.

[imardmd1]

It’s going to be disproportionate, but not exclusive.

[DesertRhino]

Yeah, that’s what non grunts think, “can they point a weapon and shoot?”. The problem comes when they get pregnant a week before a deployment and leave holes in your trained up squad. Or when they get pregnant while deployed.
Or when they flirt and get attention from NCOs and Officers....
You are a grunt, burning shitters, and you never seem to notice her getting that duty.
Your wives send you off with females to an emotionally intense environment. THAT’S good for morale.

Its a lot more than “can they shoot”.

In the real world, under the yellow sun, grunt work is a lot of hard physical manual labor. It is long long periods of time stuck away in boring places. Both of those are huge trouble if you have women there.
Shooting weapons is the sexy part everyone sees. But there’s a lot more to it than that.

[ltc8k6]

“The onky thing that should matter is if the SHTF and their post is overrun, then they can pick up a weapon and point it in the direction of the enemy and return fire.”

Cool! We can stop wasting all that money on weeks of BCT, and just have a rifle range to qualify for getting in to the military.

But wait, the current and likely future administrations don’t want civilians to know how to shoot rifles...

[Uncle Sam 911]

The only way a “female” will succeed in this area is as a cross dresser,er....transgendered woman. How long before the social leftists at the Pentagon lower the standards???

[lodi90]

You are a grunt, burning shitters, and you never seem to notice her getting that duty.

---

Because she is busy giving a nooner to the NCO. That will do wonders for moral. No doubt.

[SJSAMPLE]

I cannot tell if this is sarcasm, so I’ll bite:

The ability to fire a weapon is about 5% of combat arms activity. Being able to hump your own sack, carry a buddy, haul a mortar base plate, etc.

[Twinkie]

It’s not as simple and easy peasey as that. Would that it
were. - In combat, there are situations that call for
upper body strength that women do not possess.

Over 20 yrs. ago, a retired Army medical officer stated
that his unit got the “bug-out” order; which meant they had
to load a lot of heavy medical equipment on trucks. The
unit was mostly nurses and medical staff. The could not lift
the heavy machines. - They did not bug out. - In battle
conditions, you cannot just refuse to do whatever is needed.

If your buddy is wounded in combat, you may have to throw
him across your shoulder and lug him out to get him out of
the line of fire and to medical help ASAP. Try that as a
110 lb. female attempting to lift a 230 lb. male (or
heavier). Wishes are not reality.

[Mears]

I’m an old lady and my generation KNEW that men were physically stronger than women-——and we liked it that way.

Men protect,women nurture.

.

[The_Media_never_lie]

Duh! What genius inspired this plan?

[DesertRhino]

And in any group of men that functions well, add in 5% females and watch the unit destruction as they pair up with their favorite males. (invariably the ones with power)

Unit cohesiveness matters a lot.

[DesertRhino]

Besides, they should be home creating families.