Female U.S. Soldiers Under Fire

Associated Press ^ | 1-28-04

[TexanAmerican]

Bump

[Veritas_est]

ping

[arm958]

"I think it's cool to be in a dangerous position. It's kind of fun,"

Hey honey, this isn't extreme sports.

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

"I think it's cool to be in a dangerous position. It's kind of fun," Williams, from Algiers, La., told the AP while driving to Samarra. "In the MPs, it is the closest women can get to combat."

She won't be re-upping after the first RPG attack.

[RicocheT]

We need female MPs in Iraq and elsewhere. They have a job to do and do it well with proper training.

The Iraqi and Muslim culture is very sensitive to men outside the immediate family viewing or touching their women. Our female MPs can do searches on female terror suspects and not inflame the Muslim bystanders (beyond their usual anti-American bias) and thus avoid riots.

The other female soldiers are in support roles such as maintenance and do those well, too. They and the men soldiers serve for us and I respect their service.

[Prodigal Son]

Hey honey, this isn't extreme sports.

She didn't say it from an armchair. Something to keep in mind.

[Terriergal]

"I remember when it was optional for women to fire an M-16 rifle during basic training,"

Why would anyone say NO???

"We also had to learn how to wear makeup properly in the field.

Oh brother! Makeup? What for?

[Terriergal]

Hey honey, this isn't extreme sports.

maybe she knows. Just maybe.

[Terriergal]

good one!

[Old Grumpy]

Isn't that part of being a SOLDIER?

[CholeraJoe]

"I think it's cool to be in a dangerous position. It's kind of fun," Williams, from Algiers, La.,

If she's from Algiers, Iraq must seem tame to her. That's "rock 'em sock 'em" rough country across the river from New Orleans.

[dts32041]

An "Of the Troops and For the Troops"

BUMP

[Poohbah]

If she's from Algiers, Iraq must seem tame to her. That's "rock 'em sock 'em" rough country across the river from New Orleans.

You just reminded me of one of my favorite movies: "Iron Eagle II."

American General Chappy Sinclair (Lou Gossett, Jr) to his Soviet counterpart, during a firefight: "After this is over, you oughta come visit America with me."

Russian: "I hear in America, they shoot communists in the street!"

Gossett: "Hell, in my hometown of Detroit, they shoot EVERYBODY in the street!"

[Khurkris]

""Now basic training is the same for all people, male and female. I am waiting for the day when they say women can enter the special forces. It doesn't mean everyone can do it, but it means that people should be given the opportunity to be assessed on their own merits."

Pure fantasy. Basic training has been changed to reflect the gender-differences.

"Recruit Honey...you just get down there and give me as many of them lil push-ups as you feel comfortable with in the next 2 minutes. Yes Recruit Honey...put yr knees on the ground...and its ok if yr back is not straight. Ok Recruit honey...we'll skip that nasty 'Ol crab walk up & back...and if you don't mind...can you try a pull-up over there? And Recruit Honey...don't worry about that heavy 'Ol 60 lb ruck on that road march in the field. Troopies don't have do that anymore."

Flame away if you need to. But there is a lot more to being a Soldier than is being presented. And as for the day when Recruit Honey gets her RANGER or SF Flash, well...stay indoors 'cause porcine fecal matter will be fallin' from the skies.

(can I p.o. anyone else today?)

[archy]

She won't be re-upping after the first RPG attack.

Neither do most guys.

[archy]

"I think it's cool to be in a dangerous position. It's kind of fun,"

Hey honey, this isn't extreme sports.

You couldn't tell it from the training female officer cadets receive.

[archy]

Flame away if you need to. But there is a lot more to being a Soldier than is being presented. And as for the day when Recruit Honey gets her RANGER or SF Flash, well...stay indoors 'cause porcine fecal matter will be fallin' from the skies.

There's a possible place in Ranger or SF units for some women, but it'd be for a very few- less than one in a hundred- just as Rangers and SF hardly represent the average grunt, either. And SDOD-Delta has had female *friends* who help make their penetrations more effective; *everybody knows* the USA doesn't have any female SF operators, right?

But I really think the most likely place for female soldiers in combat would be in armor. Aside from the loader's position duties, there's a minimum of strength, particularly upper body strength required for being a tank crewman- and an automatic loader could take care of such requirements in that respect, in future tank designs if not in today's Abrams.

Women are turning out to be pretty decent F16 and A10 pilots- even the Israelis have a female F16 driver now- and a few could surely be found who could handle the driver's and gunner's jobs in a tank. Though the thought of an idiot female 2nd Lieutenant tank platoon scares me to death, the same is just as frightening when considering some such male counterparts. But I'd bet it could be made to happen more effectively in Armor than in Infantry, Artillery, or the Combat Engineers.

[American_Centurion]

But when it comes time to break track they won't be anywhere around! You know doctors appointment.

[archy]

"We also had to learn how to wear makeup properly in the field.

Oh brother! Makeup? What for?

Well, it's SO helpful for some evening functions: