Fighting on the Front Line, Fighting for it.

Should women be able to fight on the front lines of war?

"The simple fact of the matter is that women do not have the capability either physically or mentally. I spent eighteen years in the British Army having left only recently and I can assure everyone that, although women were more than capable of doing their day to day jobs such as administration etc., when it came to actual soldiering they were a liability. No doubt people will accuse me of being sexist but the facts speak for themselves. The army has had to lower the pass times for the six-monthly physical tests because women could not match the men. They whinge constantly and have to be closely monitored when handling weapons. Toss in a bad case of PMS and a firearms, and like I said- major liablility."
Vic Chapman, UK BBC News.

Is that the sound of knuckles dragging on the ground I hear? Vic Chapman - what planet are you on? It is a fact that men have a higher suicide rate, are more prone to depression and cope far worse than women with the breakdown of their relationships so who mentally is the stronger sex - WOMEN of course. If women have passed all the necessary tests just as the men have then why shouldn't they be able to fight alongside them? A good soldier is a good soldier, regardless of gender. Although it could be argued that men may be physically stronger than women; the armed forces aren't just about brawn. Effective communication, the ability to motivate and encourage teams, good management skills and lateral thinking etc etc. These are all skills which women naturally have in abundance and ones which the forces can only benefit from in times of combat. Get back to the stone age Vic.

Decades ago, The idea of ever having a woman fighting on the front lines of war would be completely ludacris. But as society progresses, so should the ideas that we live by. I was 11 years old the first time I held a gun in my hand, unloaded of course, my uncle had just returned from being stationed in Hawaii. He spent the night at my families home and I listened to the stories he told. They were filled with adventure, and honor and loyalty...and the feeling like your life was suddenly worth so much more then you ever saught possible. Since that day I have wanted nothing more then to serve my country- and not seperated from the male soldiers with the same goals and feelings as I, but beisde them.

Sure there are women in our society who can't cut the mustard, but there are also many men who don't measure up. That's what basic training is for - to weed out the undesirables. To not give women-many of whom are just as physically and mentally strong as men- a chance, is denying us the right to fight for a country that stands for strongly for the principle of equality.

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