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Hadi Mizban / AP file
A female US soldier escorts Iraqi woman out of the danger zone, after a suicide car bomb exploded nearby in Baghdad, Iraq, in 2004.
A Marine Corps school that trains infantry combat officers is now enrolling women, the Marine Corps Times reported, marking the first time female members of the front-line fighting force would be specifically groomed for direct combat roles.
The Corps is seeking out female volunteers to attend the Infantry Officers Course in Quantico, Va., Gen. Joseph Dunford, the Marine Corps' assistant commandant, told the paper.
According to the Marine Corps Times:
It’s a monumental — if controversial — move for the Marine Corps, which until now barred female Marines from the program and required instead that they attend other courses aimed at preparing them for assignments in support roles such as logistics, personnel administration and aircraft maintenance, among others.
It was unclear, however, what the next steps would be after the women complete the infantry training. Marine officials were expected to finalize details on lifting restrictions on women in combat and make an announcement in coming days, the paper said.
“Women are already in combat, except the ones that are not technically on the front lines fighting,” said Karen Kelly of the Women Marines Association, “when they’re in Afghanistan, in Iraq, women are right there with the expeditionary forces.”
In February, the Pentagon announced that some restrictions on women serving in combat roles would be relaxed, acknowledging the fact that they are fighting, and dying, on the battlefield. But the Defense Department said it would still prohibit women from serving in the infantry, armor or special operations unit. At the same time, the Pentagon said it was developing “gender-neutral physical standards.”
Critics, including former presidential candidate Rick Santorum, have raised concerns about women in combat. Santorum argued the men fighting alongside women would naturally try to be protective, hindering the mission. Others said commanders would have to worry about women who aren’t strong enough for a particular duty.
According to the Washington Post, as of Thursday 139 women have died in the post-9/11 wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, compared to 6,257 men.
Australia will become the third country to allow women to serve in front-line combat roles, following New Zealand and Canada.
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Leave a Comment:
The only thing left to wait on is the co-ed barracks, tents, bathrooms and showers. Can't wait. Equal rights, right? Is this a co-ed training or are they segregated female vs female?
Are separate showers for openly gay men and lesbian women in order?
usually they have open bay showers for men and women but not together (obviously, maybe not for some though) they do not segregate gay and straight service members.
It was a rhetorical questions Chef80.
It does pose a good question though, should there be?
In this day an age, if male service members were allowed to shower with female service members, there would be lust in the eyes of some.
Why would this situation be any different with same sex attraction? If a gay male or female has the same lust as listed above, wouldn't this have the same awkwardness for the heterosexual male or females in the shower?
All of the service branches have been following a DoD standard design change for years. Some faster than others.
Everyone has had to deal with it in the field for decades. Its no big deal. No one has to share a shower tent at the same time, they just set up different hours. Also I sure never saw anyone worrying about who was going to see their booty when the had to strip for a chemical decon shower run by a decon unit with males and females in it.
More older facilities exist than new. Still no different in the field though.
Absolutely, first time I saw any of the upgrades was iin the mid 90's at Ft. Hood. They were gutting down to the frame the old VOLAR rolling pin & hammerhead design barracks and rebuilding them with 2 man rooms. Planty of places are still redoing the old ones as well as putting up new ones the meet the DoD plan. LOL! From that article it would seem that the Marines are just getting around to it.
it still doesn't address the fact that most women benefit from a double standard that shouldn't exist in the military. Everyone serving should be required to meet the same minimum standard in strength and endurance regardless of gender.
The article also sates;
Look at some of the pictures in the video www.thewarriorsong.com .
I have no problem with women being in combat roles, what I have a problem with is lowering the standards to enable to pass. If a Marine isn't able to successfully pass requirements in Infantry Training Battalion you don't give them 100 attempts or lower the standard so they can make it, you cut them out. The other thing, and this is what I worry about for women in combat roles and something the Army has trouble with regularly, is that the infantry is an alpha-dog mentality, we are hard, mean and @!$%#s- these are things that cannot be changed, and females wishing to be apart of this would face sexual harassment, rape and other related incidents. Something that plagues non-combat units is fraternization, which would be a huge problem in combat units, and the biggest in all honesty is pregnancy- if a woman becomes pregnant then she cannot deploy and if that happens then that's one less rifle up on the line and that is the exact thing that should keep women from combat roles.
I am not sexist by any means, but ladies, seriously, do you want to go through the @!$%# we go through on a regular basis? Aside from unfortunate IEDs and ambushes, women on the front line are not actually ON that line and are limited in the types of missions they are involved in. Do you want to go on a 9hr combat patrol? Do you want to to lay in an ambush site for 6hrs? Do you constantly want to be shot at? We men do not, and to demand that you have the chance to is just insane. Feminism is the most irrational thing in the world, you should be glad that we want to keep you protected and in limited roles to keep you from the worst of it. Don't look at it as gender segregation, rather, think of it that we value you too much to risk your lives.
Eben Osgood
That was a great post I agree with all you said, but if women insist on going in combat, there needs to be a set of standards, First and foremost the woman can not have children, a mother belongs with her kids not on a battle field, second , no lowering of training, if she meets the standard set now then she should have the chance to go in combat,you folks telling about veitcong women would as soon pull a trigger on you then not, but can she defeat a man in hand to hand combat,1% maybe 99% no, give them a fair chance, if they can do it well and good , but if they find it is more a burden then resend the order to have them in combat.
This is so stupid! Woman are on the front lines every day. That doesn't mean they are engaged in combat. The last time a female was in a firefight, she got captured. Anyone remember Jessica Lynch? And if anyone actually read the article they would know that woman still will not be allowed in Infantry, Tanks, or SpecOps MOS'. They are letting females into IOC but that's not with the intent to put them in combat. It's just to appease the hairy feminists. Take note that it's "infantry officer course", not a move to an 03 MOS. I guarantee they will stick them in the COC or the FOB all deployment. I just don't understand the outrage behind all of this i guess.
Girls, it was never sexist to keep females out of the infantry, it was just common sense. You're all taking something to heart that you don't really even understand. Aside from arguing about whether you can or can't make the cut, ask yourself if you would really want to anyway. It's a pretty nasty job. I didn't enjoy very much of it. If i were to guess, i would say this is more about the fact that someone is saying that you can't do it and less of you actually wanting to.
If they can meet the standards, women should be allowed to serve in combat roles. Unfortunately history tells us that women will be held to lower standards, which will get them and their comrades killed.
Females should be allowed in combat roles. Nothing says you have to lower the standards. If they can meet the same standards then let them go into combat roles, if not don't allow them and let them go into a secondary role or something. Not all woman can cut it, nor can all men.
Like it or not, they are here to lay there lives on the line. Just like the brave soldier before them. I wonder how many of these people who are griping about women, who they feel can't do the job. I bet most of them have never been in combat or the military at all, but they can form some opinion of what can't be done. Get out of the stone age. Israel trains everyone one to take up arms in defense of their country. If a female soldier wants to go into the danger zone and is properly trained to do the job. I applaud them for their bravery.In the greatest country in the world. You ask most of the population would they go to war and the answer is mostly hell no!! They would rather snipe people on online instead of really earning the rights they so freely enjoy. You don't care what nationality or color of the person watching your back is. The only thing that matters is they are trained to do what has to be done. Now please don't deny someone the right to be a patriot and soldier based on gender. I truly hope that no one ever has to go to war but someone has to when it is necessary. God bless American united we stand.
I find it really interesting that the article says "gender neutral physical standards" and everyone assumes they're lowering the standards and weaking the fighting force. Having been raised by a Marine, I can't imagine the USMC purposefully weakening itself. Perhaps all they intend to do is remove the lower physical standards for women, at this combat school at least, and only allow women to pass who can do it as well as the men. I have met quite a few female soldiers and Marines who could kick their male counterparts' asses. Have a little faith in the USMC people.