Sec Def Leon Pannetta has decided in his infinite wisdom that PC trumps evolution and the need to actually win in combat (from firefight to the war in whole) and has commanded the US military to allow women into ground combat roles. This is not going to end well.
A normal Army infantryman carries 63lbs worth of gear. SAW gunners, grenadiers, AT gunners, mortarmen etc can carry over 100lbs. That is without accounting for specialized environmental equipment. Load 99% of the women in American down at those levels and they will be profile cases in short order. Its not sexists, its a matter of bone density and muscle mass. Men with much denser bones and gobs more muscle mass still get injured carrying those loads.
Similar problems exist for most of the combat arms. Women might excell at being MP's, but what about engineers who carry even more kit than the infantry. Can a woman feed a gun tube all day? Maybe, if she can pass a mans PT test and prove her upper body strength. However i am willing to bet the PT standards wont merge.
A normal Army infantryman carries 63lbs worth of gear. SAW gunners, grenadiers, AT gunners, mortarmen etc can carry over 100lbs. That is without accounting for specialized environmental equipment. Load 99% of the women in American down at those levels and they will be profile cases in short order. Its not sexists, its a matter of bone density and muscle mass. Men with much denser bones and gobs more muscle mass still get injured carrying those loads.
Similar problems exist for most of the combat arms. Women might excell at being MP's, but what about engineers who carry even more kit than the infantry. Can a woman feed a gun tube all day? Maybe, if she can pass a mans PT test and prove her upper body strength. However i am willing to bet the PT standards wont merge.
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