Women in Combat Roles

Luddy has contributed a piece on women in combat in which the underlying argument is really a veiled threat: Break the male monopoly on military career opportunities and the men will see to it there’s the devil to pay. He warns of the “disruption” created by the presence of women on the front lines (as if there hasn’t been any sexual interaction among men in combat since the dawn of recorded history) and even hints that a male soldier, his inhibitions loosened by the stress of battle, might go so far as to “punch a woman under the same circumstances in which he might punch a man.” Truly horrifying. Does Luddy have any idea how many women get punched (and worse) every day in their own homes?

When you take Luddy’s argument down to the bone, it’s really saying that what we have to fear from loosening restrictions on women in combat is the wrath of men in combat.

If, as the Tailhook fiasco suggests, this is the state of discipline in the military, I submit that it’s men who should be benched until such time as they can get a grip on their emotions.

MARGARET ECHEVARRIA

El Segundo