Women To The Front Lines Soon

May 13th, 2011 by Angela

females, who make up some 14 percent of the armed forces, should Eventually be granted to serve absolutely in front-line combat units, a military advisory panel says.

The call by a commission of present-day and retired military officers to dismantle the final important area of discrimination in the armed services could cause another avalanche of changes in the military , decades after interracial limitations fell, grapples with the phasing out of the ban on gays serving openly .

This most current move is being suggested by the Military Leadership Diversity Commission, founded by Congress two years ago. The panel was to send its proposals to Congress and President Barack Obama.

It is time “to create a level playing field for all eligible service members,” the members explained Friday. There is no doubt that the picture of women in this country has gone through enormous changes in this country over the past 50 years . It wasn’t long ago when chauvinistic men only looked at women as performing household duties such as cooking and cleaning. The view was that they were to tend to looking pretty, getting pregnant, raising the children and so forth. But over the past 50 years, women have more than proven their abilities in the work force. Women are not just taking care of the Tiny ones and Fido anymore. Often times, they are the major bread winners in a home. And on top of that, they make a massive percentage of this nation’s soldiers.

As you can imagine, there are reactions that head both ways in response to this article. For those combating for women’s rights, this is a huge win. If women can establish themselves physically and mentally, there will be no restrictions for advancement in the military. While it seems to be progress in terms of discrimination, the question might remain, is this a good victory for the United Says soldiers?

The numbers of women killed in Iraq and Afghanistan are vastly reduced for women than for men. In Iraq, 110 women have been killed versus 4,300 men. In the Afghanistan campaign, 24 women have been killed compared with more than 1,400 men. There is no question that if women head to the front lines, these statistics will shift. Those who are championing this report could come to despise its passing as more women are shipped home in body bags.

Truly, this article could be a blessing and a curse. For those women who have been longing for this chance, this is an astounding honor to be ready to serve in this way. For friends and family, this might be a time to mark a significant milestone in a military career , a time to rejoice over the promotion with a custom military ring. It certainly will be a special occasion to be in this honored position. However, with the honor comes more risk and more danger. Just because you have a marine ring on your finger, doesn’t mean you have force field around you when the bullets begin flying.

It seems fitting that a monumental change that could be coming from this report is happening during President Obama’s term in office. Certainly, President Obama has shattered the notions of many who believed that a black president would never be in office in the United States. However, Obama has encouraged many people, and American citizens continue to forge ahead into the long term.

So, women will soon be fighting on the front lines. Do you believe this is a victory or a unhappy day for America?