MILITARY: Female Marines to get combat assignments

NC Times ^ | April 24, 2012 | Mark Walker

[jazusamo]

The Marine Corps said Tuesday that it is taking another step toward allowing women to serve in combat roles.

Gen. James Amos, Marine Corps commandant, said selected groups of female Marines will get combat unit assignments later this year as part of a study on the appropriateness of women on the battlefield.

Amos announced the initiative in a message posted on a service website.

The program calls for assigning women officers, gunnery sergeants and staff sergeants to combat artillery, tank, amphibious, engineer and assault units.

Current law restricts women from serving in direct combat in all but a few assignments, such as motor transport or aircraft crews.

But in practice women have served in combat jobs as special "attachments" during the Iraq war and in Afghanistan. More than 140 U.S. military women have been killed in the wars.

Last year, Congress ordered a review of the policy formally excluding women from combat roles.

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta took that a further step in February by directing the services assign women to some combat roles and study the results.

[MagUSNRET]

I have to share this....in the summer of 90, I was in desert training at Pendleton when Desert Shield kicked off...I was the training officer for all of the personnel in this group—bout 230 of them as I recall....OK...NOW...picture sending either of these two babes into Combat...one gal literally cut the end out of her leather gloves, so as not to break one of her fake RED fingernails (unauthorized polish, and nails...but I digress......) OR...the gal that had a FIT because she was “promised 8 hours of sleep each night”, and Reville came before she had even had 5 (my heart bleeds for her...THEN this same lass shows up in formation wearing PEARL earrings with her Cammies (Thats BDU’s for you Army pukes ;-) LOL
Needless to say...I was completely undwewhelmed by these officer wannabe “leaders”. THEN, when several of us were being called out of training to actually BE deployed ASAP...you should have seen the panic in the faces of these galsm, thinkins they might actually have to go DO something..UNREAL!

[MagUSNRET]

Ping to my post 101, if you need a good laugh, Chief ;-)

[Steve Newton]

LOL

I have seen some of this.

Male and female.

LOL

[Tennessee Nana]

When they decided women could be aircraft mechanics they didnt ask the women if they wanted to be

They just stsrted handing out the assignemts to mechanic school regardless of whether the woman was 6 ft and muscly or 5 ft and skinny and could even recognize a wrench

So the women got to go into the mens jobs and suddenly they had problems they never thought of

Besides the grease ruining their manicures

Those toolboxes were HEAVY

Youre right about the PC

I went into the USAF in 1972 brfore the idiocy started...

In the 7 years I was in I watched a lot of the dumbest changes I ever saw...

all in the name of fairness and equal rights etc...

Good grief...

[DMZFrank]

Back in the 1980s I was assigned as an NCOIC in charge of a night navigation course when I was a military police platoon sergeant in the Illinois National Guard. It was a relatively simple dead reckoning course consisting of following a series of azimuths for a specified distance, retrieving a specified object at each destination, and returning with them. The battalion commander had ordered every field grade officer to complete the course. One newly commissioned female second LT., a military police platoon leader in our 19-77 TOE military police Company, which amongst other duties was tasked with a light infantry rear area security role refused to take the course. When I asked her why she she did not want to take the course, she told me that she was afraid of the dark. I repeatedly asked her to complete the course and she repeatedly refused to do so. I marked her sheet as a failure to complete the course.

Later the officer in charge of the course called me aside and requested that I give the errant butter bar a passing grade. I refused to do so, citing the fact that this woman was expected to be able to lead her troops into combat. The officer blew his stack and threatened me with disciplinary action for refusing to obey his order. I told him that if he wanted to pass her, that was up to him but I would not do so. He subsequently calmed down and apologized to me explaining that he was under terrific pressure to pass all of the newly acquired women through all the training whether they qualified or not. I sympathized with him because he was actually a pretty good officer, and I was already aware of the background political machinations behind the integration of women into our outfit. I understand that the second lieutenant in question was assigned another administrative position within the battalion

Believe me I understand what you’re talking about.

[MagUSNRET]

Agreed...I suffered through being in the OCS class with the FIRST FEMALE Nuclear Power Instructor, hand picked by Admeral Hyman Rickover himself...and talk about a case of “We dont care WTF this chick does, just make sure she completes the course!”
Poor gal couldnt tell her left from her right when doing close order drills...the Drill Instructor literally gave her a rock to hold in her right hand, so she could tell the difference LMAO

[x1stcav]

Amen, brother.

[fireman15]

My wife and I were good friends with Col. Vera Jones. She was the first female Marine officer assigned to Vietnam. She died recently; she was a dedicated career Marine officer who served honorably and took her job very seriously.

I work with a woman who is a flight nurse; she has served in both Iraq and Afghanistan. She is close to retirement; she has served honorably and takes her job very seriously. She is a very capable person and nurse. She has helped countless guys who have been blown up or had their asses shot up. I know that they have been very grateful for her help.

My wife's sister retired after 28 years as a Senior Master Sergent in the Air-force. Her husband is Colonel and Squadron Commander. I know that she took her job very seriously and served her country with honor.

Patriotism is not a purely male avocation. During the Revolutionary War both the Americans and British had “camp followers”. These were women and children who followed the troops and helped with logistics. In many cases they were even provided with rations by the armies. In battle they sometimes assisted the men by bringing water, food and other supplies. Occasionally they got caught up in the fighting themselves.

In the civil war there were women camp followers and nurses and doctors. Women organized "food trains" and groups that cleaned clothing and assisted with hygiene and sanitation. One should remember that in the civil war over twice as many men died from disease than battle injuries. Over 20,000 women worked in the Union Army's Sanitary Commission.

In WWI 45,000 women served in military uniform both as nurses and also in support roles. In WWII women served in far more roles than in previous conflicts. In Korea, Vietnam, and of course our more recent activities in the Middle East women have made important contributions.

I know and have known many women who have served in the military. Some women were no doubt screw-ups as you have described, as were a lot of men. It bothers me that you and many of the other posters here are smearing the contributions of women that I know did important work and served their country with honor to the best of their abilities. Some of their contributions were indispensable.

I do not agree with putting people in roles that they are not suited for. But there are many jobs in the military that women have been performing admirably for decades. General Eisenhower said about his first contingent of 1200 WACs (Women's Army Corps) who arrived in Europe in 1943, “They don't get drunk. They don't go to sick call. They work twice as hard as the men just to prove themselves. Send me more!”

[fireman15]

I am not sure that I completely understood your posts. I did also intend to thank you for your 30 years of service as a woman in the military.

[narses]

Hey! I am not 400 lbs (yet) but I have vegetated on the cushions with the best. Are you impugning my patriotic rights? I may be old, somewhat heavier than I was and not quite as sighted, but what is the ADA for if not to let me play at soldier? After all, there isn’t really any major danger involved. Right?

[Eagles6]

Then again I could probably make more money playing professional basketball.

[MasterGunner01]

The pregnancy option is always the way out for the ladies. Once diagnosed as pregnant, the military moves heaven and earth to remove Sally or Jane from the zone and send her somewhere safe to have the kid. Her billet is NOT filled with a replacement, so the remaining members of the unit have to work to cover the job she was assigned.

[AliVeritas]

I guess thats why they pushed sterilization in Obamacare... as well as mil abortions.

[AliVeritas]

It has to be stopped.

http://www.politijim.com/2012/02/from-women-in-combat-to-male-soldiers.html

[AliVeritas]

OT Heads Up

Muslim Brotherhood in America 10 Part Free Course

http://muslimbrotherhoodinamerica.com/

Pass it on.

Thanks Jaz.

[jazusamo]

Bump

[HonestConservative]

Ty ali