Iz Man wrote:Oh, I see. There is no terrorist threat. I get it.

I haven't seen any terrorists in the US, have you?
Hardly. I would say it improved both. Sounds a bit racist to me VT.
And yet when you replace "blacks" with "women," somehow it becomes a bulletproof argument.
I'm sure you have a lot of experience in military matters

. This statement, however, is not true. There are many non-combative positions in the military. That's why they have classifications of combative and non-combative.
Right, and somehow they'll be magically protected by the non-combative title when they get blown up or shot at.
The USS Cole had some non-combative personnel on it, if I remember correctly.
Societies change, yes. The fact that men & women are different does not. I don't need to be the authority, nature dictates who is more suited to fight in combat.
Well, the fact that conservatives and liberals on the hill disagree with you should tell you something.
Thank you for advancing my argument. The fact that they have different physical standards shows that as a whole, women cannot reach those same standards as men. By doing that, you lower the overall physical ability of the military.
And lowering the standards of physical fitness and widening the age of conscription had nothing to do with it. I see. It's all because of the damn women.
Um, another man.

So, if we revisit your scenario, the man's gonna drag you out of the firing line while the woman lines up the shot and takes out the bad guy.
Yeah. They really shouldn't be there.
Also not true. So you're saying that there are not enough men to fight, and our only hope is to get women in combat because of sheer numbers?
Your argument is waning fast......WWII was fought with women in a supporting role, both at home and abroad, in the military and as civilians. Without their help, the Allies couldn't have won the war; but it was men on the front lines. We lost over 400,000 and did not have the need to place women on the front lines.
400,000 out of what, 7 million in WWII? Our current situation has 1,048,884 deployed in Iraq
(Source). That's a little over one-seventh (14.3%) of the troops involved in WWII. That's a massive gap.
Answer this. Why are men who cannot pass the PT test given the boot (i.e. not allowed in combat), when women who cannot reach those same standards are allowed to stay? Why don't we just lower the PT standards for ALL military personnel to that of the female standards?
Because old guard conservatives like you would prevent it.
We're entering the 21st century, technology is replacing many of the physical challenges that soldiers have faced for the last 70 years. Perhaps it is time to review these facts and change PT requirements across the board, perhaps not.
Ok, let me bring this back down to brass tacks:
Based on the 2003 census, there were 212,000 women in the armed forces.
(source).
Let's say, hypothetically, that 90,000 of them are in active combat. Under your argument, those 90,000 soldiers would be repositioned to non-combat roles.
But wait, there are men in non-combat roles too. And they wouldn't be repositioned to combat roles. So in other words that'd be 90,000 less troops on the ground.
Good idea. Let's
lessen the amount of support our boys get on the front. I'm sure that'd go over really well.
Initiate discovery! Fire the Machines! Throw the switch Igor! THROW THE F***ING SWITCH!