Women make the best soldiers?

[Virginia Dare]

According to an acquaintance who is a high level civilian at the Pentagon, that is the general concensus there. Anybody else heard anything different or similar?

I don't have a statistic on how many women have been killed in combat in Iraq, I believe it's up around 100? Unthinkable even 20 years ago in this country.

[The2ndWheel]

1. So women are better at killing and being killed

because someone with authority tells them to do so? Finally. We, as a society, have arrived.

Hats off to the ladies :applause: :patriot: :yourock:

[TahitiNut]

2. As I've said before, even with a year in Viet Nam I never saw a job a woman couldn't do ...

... as well or better than a man. Gender just isn't tangibly relevant in the military. :shrug:

[NewJeffCT]

3. I thought married men make the best soldiers?

Since they're used to following orders!

:hide:

[Nikki Stone1]

5. If I had known you followed orders, I would have married you, NewJeffCT

As it is, most men never seem to do what they are told, especially taking out the garbage.
:evilgrin:

[NewJeffCT]

16. I do almost all the housework

outside of cooking, and that includes dropping our daughter off at preschool/daycare in the morning and picking her up at night - though, my wife does help me get her ready in the morning (I'm a disaster at putting my daughter's hair into a ponytail or pigtails)

[tomreedtoon]

9. There's another reason why married men make great soldiers.

Compared to going home to their wives, death is pretty appealing.

[HughBeaumont]

11. Married men are like Spartans.

They welcome war, since married life is more grueling.

:hide:

[ThomWV]

4. It Would Not Suprise Me

Why would women not make better soldiers than men?

[Virginia Dare]

7. Absolutely...

it's just amazing to me that the Commanders are admitting it.

:hi: Thom! Getting snow out in WV?

[ThomWV]

13. You've Certainly Got A Point There

For a military commander to admit to anything amazes me.

I was in the Army for a few years so I have something sound on which to make my judgments about it. Although it took me years to come to understand what I had been a part of its still hard for me to explain to people who haven't lived the military life. In any event my opinion of the military is not popular with anyone. I really mean that too, when I tell people how I feel about the military it simply pisses off everyone, conservative, liberal, war hawk or dove, makes no difference; mad as hell. Part of that overall understanding of the military that I have is that it admits no wrong or lapse.

Snow? :) Certainly you jest my dear. Thanks for asking. As the mailman said this morning, 'I dunno what its gonna do, but it ain't gonna be good' The only reply I could come up with was "no shit". Forecast is for ice on top of the foot of snow we already have. I think they care calling for another six or eight inches too. The forecast is bad enough that my wife's Second-Tuesday-Lady's-Lunch to be called this morning, and I don't recall ever seeing that happen before.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

6. In A General Sense, I Find No Logical Reason To Believe This Has Any Legitimacy Whatsoever.

Each soldier based on their own merits. Your acquaintance at the Pentagon has nothing more than an opinion like you or me. I wouldn't take it as anything more than that.

[Virginia Dare]

8. It's the feedback they're getting from the Commanders...

that is where it's coming from, according to this person.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

Ehhh, I Take It With A Grain Of Salt.

Like I said, there's no logical reason to believe it in a general sense, and hearsay from an acquaintance of yours doesn't carry enough validity for me to grant this any legitimacy. Even from the commanders, of which I'm sure they could have equal or greater number say otherwise, it is still just an opinion.

The important thing is that women, minorities or otherwise have every bit the potential for performance as anyone else.

[Virginia Dare]

14. Very little I hear or read that I don't take with a grain of salt

don't you find it interesting the full circle that we've come, from just 20-30 years ago when the Pentagon's stance was that there was no place for women in the military, especially not in a war, to now at least some of them apparently admitting that women are the better soldiers.

[BoneDaddy]

10. Absolutely

How can anyone take this seriously? Christ, these gender absolutes are often devisive and ridiculous.

[KittyWampus]

21. International Small Business Loans are given only to women. They are more responsible

and way more likely to repay the loan.

Just saying.. there are differences in attitudes that cut across cultures and economics.

Women are better drivers (lower insurance premiums).

[Virginia Dare]

24. I was thinking the same thing...

better soldiers presumably are ones that tend not to get killed. Young men are notoriously more wreckless than women, at least behind the wheel. Could be a correlation?

I was reading an obituary this morning for a 24 year old Marine Sargeant that just got killed, one of his female soldiers recalled that he made her put on all of her protective gear before going out on patrol, and it saved her, but he didn't have his on and was killed.

[BoneDaddy]

25. That may be true

but if there were "men are better _________(fill in blank)" threads started on these forums, they would denounced as sexist.

That is my point.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

26. Women Aren't Better Drivers, They Are Safer Drivers. Just Clearing That Up LOL

[shadowknows69]

12. You ever really piss a woman off?

Nuff said I think.

[sanskritwarrior]

15. I'll say it

in the Army at least this is no true. My last assignnment was to an MI company, yes I am a Combat MOS but I was an Intel related MOS in my younger days, so on occasion I am OPconned to an MI unit. That unit was preparing for a deployment to Iraq, I was preparing to PCS to where I am now. There were about 25 women in that Company, I was the Platoon Sergeant for the Analysis platoon, I had 8 women myself. Talking about the deployment I had htree tell me to my face that they would get pregnant before the deployment to avoid going. That in and of itself is bullshit when it comes to good order and discipline. I'm sure some of you will cheer them for their "bravery" but to me as a leader that is akin to deserting the rest of us. I also had more weight/physical fitness standards from the women and more UCMJ problems. I am not blasting women in the military, I have worked with women more professional than many men, but those women are few and far between. I am not saying men are better, but I knew that I could count on more of the men to show up and do their duty without pulling the "pregnancy card"........

The MI CO had 84 soldiers, we deployed with 74, 10 of the women carried through with their threat. In fact one of the young ladies was chaptered out of the Army for sleeping with men for money. She was sleeping with as many men as she could to get pregnant and charging them money for a "piece"........

So again flame away if you want to, but in my personal experience this is not true at all.......

[jollyreaper2112]

19. I don't doubt it

Then again, if men could get pregnant, how many would use that out? Right now the only options are declaring your homosexuality or shooting yourself in the foot.

[Virginia Dare]

22. I believe our brave and fearless Vice President used..

the pregnancy card to get out of VietNam.

[sanskritwarrior]

27. LOL

that's funny......But what kind of monster would he sire??

[Virginia Dare]

20. No flames about your personal experience...

I for one haven't been there. Thanks for your perspective.

[treestar]

17. Maybe it has to do with the "women have more endurance" thing

There could be a point to it, and as military service becomes less about brawn and more about brains, it could have its effect.

[seabeyond]

18. ya... they will all end up sittin aroud chattin and forget to kill each other

no.... i have never heard this. logically it doesnt make sense, but who is to know

[tabasco]

23. There are physical differences between the sexes.

Females do not have the strength or physical endurance, in general, as males.

For operations such as infantry, that are physically intensive, females are not better soldiers.

For specialties that are not physically intensive, females are certainly equal to the task.