Woman have volunteered to act as spy's and even a few have enlisted as men to fight since the Revolutionary War.
Their history is intriguing to say the least. [There was at least one female pivateer], today we have females in space and soon aboard Subs.
We had Annie Oakley and wild west bandits, Bell Star for one and Bonny with her Clyde. Females flew food supplies to distant areas in WW2 and the nurses in the pacific captured by the Japanese to endure a hell on earth time in a POW camp.
Israel has had woman in combat since its beginning, and from what I see so does Iran at this time. China an NK use huge numbers of female troops ---- Go way back in time Joan D'Ark could ride a horse and fight some how peeing over the side of her Saddle as the men did.
We could not have tamed the West had it not been for the woman that loaded the guns for the men to use in an Indian attack. When a male fell the woman picked up the weapon and fought herself. No shrinking violets these woman.
That may be true in the scenarios you outlined, Vesta. But women were not carrying up to their bodyweight for miles at a time in the mountains in the civil war. It puts a toll on the body, even for us men. I've known of Command Sergeants Major who had to have both knees rebuilt, and they were PT studs. You are telling me that a woman carrying 200+ lb loads in some cases for miles at a time will not cause them injuries?
All this will do if women are let into the Infantry and SOF community is get a lot of women hurt prior to reaching the 20 year mark just from TRAINING. Why should we want to permanently damage some of our best and brightest women?
Are there some women out there who could do it for a full 20? Maybe. But there has been no argument put forth from the affirmative action types as to how this makes us more COMBAT EFFECTIVE.
All I can see from my perspective of 20 years as an airborne and mechanized Infantryman, is this is adding more stress and drama to a job that already has enough stress and doesn't NEED drama. This politically correct B.S. will not make our nation safer, nor more combat effective, PERIOD.
Women are doing a fine job on FET teams in Afghanistan. They are better pilots than men, play to your gender's strengths Vesta. This is more 'everyone gets a trophy' B.S. plain and simple.
P.S. We have the finest army in the world, comparing what we do with those crazy martyr lovers in Iran and North Korea of all places? Not really helping your case.
