| Tango01 | 02 May 2015 11:13 a.m. PST |
… in combat units. "Retired Army Col. Ralph Puckett watched thoughtfully as a few dozen soldiers prepared for an outdoor breakfast of eggs, home fries and waffles after a six-mile road march. A legendary Army Ranger, he earned two Distinguished Service Crosses, two Silver Stars and five Purple Hearts while serving in Korea and Vietnam, but was reflecting on the military's future before dawn on a damp morning in April. Puckett, 88, is revered enough in the Rangers to have a street named after him on this massive base in western Georgia. He's the sort of old-school soldier that is celebrated for his heroism, and welcome virtually anywhere on base. He also appears relatively open-minded when it comes to the polarizing idea of women serving in the infantry and other combat units. "It's okay with me if they maintain standards," Puckett said April 19. "I think there are some who can meet the standards, and I want to see it."…"
Full article here
link Amicalement
Armand |
 Murphy  | 02 May 2015 11:42 a.m. PST |
At the risk of this quickly derailing, and going into Fez and DH territory I would say the magic phrase is…. "IF they maintain standards"….which we know they won't due to political social pressure… |
| Cacique Caribe | 02 May 2015 11:43 a.m. PST |
Isn't it obvious? Because the dog, not woman, is man's best friend!!! Dan |
| Todosi | 02 May 2015 5:00 p.m. PST |
Murphy, not sure what political social pressure you are talking about, but the standards are written and available to those that apply. If they are capable of meeting the standards, they pass, if not, they don't. This is regardless of sex, race or any other issue. |
| Stryderg | 02 May 2015 5:25 p.m. PST |
I think the problem is that the standards are lower for females (at least that's my problem with the situation). If I get shot on the battle field, I want the soldier next to me to be able to drag my 170 pound hinie to cover. Yes, I know, it's a bit more than 170 these days…loosing weight is on my list of things to do, right after I finish painting my lead pile. |
| Old Glory | 02 May 2015 7:02 p.m. PST |
I think the danger in these type of things is the eventual mandatory "quota" that will be implemented to see that every thing is done "fair"? Then to meet those mandatory quotas the standards will be relaxed --slowly at first.
Regards
Russ Dunaway |
Raynman  | 03 May 2015 5:43 a.m. PST |
Russ is correct. My experience in the Army has been that in order to get the "appropriate" quota of females in the military, the standards get relaxed or changed so they can compete and succeed. Just look at the Army Physical Fitness standards. There are two different standards, one for men, which is harder, and one for women, which is much easier. |
| Murphy | 03 May 2015 7:22 a.m. PST |
Todosi…Russ said it better than me, in how I said it. We can almost guarantee a high failure rate, and as a result, will be told that it's not "fair", and thus will have to change…ie…thus lowering the standards…. |
 Legion 4 | 03 May 2015 3:31 p.m. PST |
I have to agree … yes, standards are lower for females than males. At least that was the way it was when I was in the Army. Very few female that I knew of could pass the male standards. Plus after over a decade in the Infantry in my very distant youth.  There is more to being in most combat arms [ie.: Infantry, Armor and FA] than just passing the PT Test … |
| Bunkermeister | 03 May 2015 3:46 p.m. PST |
The USMC said they would never reduce standards for those who want to be combat Marines. Now the Marines have been unable to get any women through their courses and are talking about reducing the standards to make that happen. They will say the standard is being "changed" or "revised" not reduced. They will say the standard will reflect the new realities of the battlefield of today. One technique is to drop the standard that is a problem. If women can't climb an 8 foot high fence, then just eliminate fence climbing for everyone. That way they can claim the standard has not been lowered. The other thing that happens is the command says to pass these recruits. And by some miracle, everyone will pass. What constitutes a push up? Perhaps climbing the high fence can be done with a little push from below. link Mike Bunkermeister Creek
Bunker Talk blog |
| Old Glory | 03 May 2015 5:55 p.m. PST |
Goverments love quota's to insure "level playing fields" ??????????????? Whatever that means ????????
regards
Russ Dunaway |
| Legion 4 | 04 May 2015 6:07 a.m. PST |
These pundits just need to watch footage of ground combat in Vietnam, Iraq and A'stan at the squad and platoon level. Nobody should have to be exposed to war at that or any other level. But the human race has not evolved enough to not go to war. However, many times there is no choice. Modern weapons make war even more deadly. And the West's recent enemies over the passed century or so are particularly brutal, etc. … It's bad enough to see young male vets missing limbs, but IMO, it's far worse for some reason to see a 20 year old female missing an arm or legs … Forget the PC crap … let reason and logic be the guides. I remember during Vietnam, many did not want to be drafted let alone go into the Infantry … Does anyone have to really wonder why ? |
is back from Council of Five Nations.