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My issue is 'lowering standards'. If you go to basic training, ROTC or the Academy you will see squads running miles in formation. You will see them drilling, and busting their collective butts. Sure, driving in a Humvee is great; until your vehicle takes a mortar. Then it's on foot and retreating to a defensible position.

Here we have a man who is 129 lbs over weight. Again, 129 lbs overweight; or MORBIDLY OBESE. So, let's assume that he's with a normal platoon. He can't run because he's too fat. He's too lazy to get into shape; but his platoon will accept that. So, the platoon carries their supplies plus his. They carry his weapon, so they can retreat faster. Now, the big target stubs his toe, falls down and/or gets a boo-boo. How many men will it take to carry him?

For four years, he was made aware of the requirements. The article doesn't say; but I'm under the impression you have to make time EVERY year. If I'm mistaken, my appologies; but I have close personal friends serving in Iraq. They have to carry 100 lb rucksacks, plus the 50 cal. They have to haul, or they will be targets. You don't train in the back of a HumVee; you train on foot. The HumVee is a great benefit; but you train without it. This person can't do the most basics without a HumVee.

>>>>For four years, he was made aware of the requirements. The article doesn't say; but I'm under the impression you have to make time EVERY year.

The SCHOOL had him do the BIKE for the past four years because the SCHOOL didn't want Waudby to lose SIZE for the football they RECRUITED him for.

West Point officials declined to comment on Waudby's case, but they acknowledged that the biannual physical fitness test has been modified for others in the past.

He contends that over the four years he played on the Army football team, he was allowed to substitute cycling for running because of his size. Once his senior season concluded, West Point insisted that he pass the running requirement, his lawyers said.

Waudby said he passed the push-up and sit-up tests at each attempt but failed the two-mile run.

"My issue is 'lowering standards'"

On that we agree. The problem is Academy lowered those standards to get him into the school so he could play football. They allowed him to skip the yearly running tests because they didn't want him to lose the weight. For 4 years the Academy played an active roll in his failing to be able to run those 2 miles. This guy played along to be sure, but it is the school that lowered THEIR standards for 4 years and are now trying to raise them back up at a huge personal cost to this guy.

I've gone to a few AirForce football games and they have some of the smallest linemen in the game. They sometimes get their a$$e$ handed to them because of it. I don't recall having the AF toss a cadet because of something like this because they don't violate their height/weight standards.

As you said, any basic training for ROTC or an Academy involves running, running and running. How the heck did this guy get through that? Did he run? Or did he get a pass from the coach?

I think we can agree that he SHOULD have done the running. I think we can agree that if he was unable to keep up his drill instructors should have written it up. I think we can agree that if after a year it was clear he wasn't able to meet the standards he should have been washed out THEN. Clearly he wasn't and that issue belongs to the Academy.