Should 18yr old women now register for the draft?

[DJW]

Now that the President has withdrawn the policy which prevented women from serving in "front line" combat roles (still to be defined apparently)...should all women join all men at age 18 and register for selective service?

Understanding that most women would be 4F if ever called for "front line duty" because they couldn't meet the minimum physical standards (if they remain unchanged), just as many men today wouldn't, should they be required to register too? And those who can't meet the standard could still fill roles that they are physically fit to fill (just as men would have to).

It used to be common understanding that infantry had to have significant level of physical ability. Once described to me as "the ability to lift a fallen comrade off the ground and get him out of harms way on a battlefield." If that remains the standard (for example), and a women can meet it (and apparently some women may?) then shouldn't all women be required to register for SS and let the selectors do their selecting, if and when (not likely) the time should ever come?

While I don't think Americans are ready to start forcing their little princesses to trade in their ballet slippers and easy-bake-ovens for combat boots and and M-16, I think the decision to allow women to fill the same combat role as men, for equality's sake, also means that men have every right to demand that all women be required to register for the draft.

[Nitram_b4]

Good points, don't have a good answer, I always considered women equal but different.
There is things that most women will have a much harder time doing physically that could put them at greater jeopardy. So I have mixed feelings about that.

[Markk9]

As long as the government doesn't lower the standards, but they already have for women in other positions.

[HiAngle]

I'm not sure why it matters what jobs women are or are not allowed to do with respect to the question posed. Women have been embedded into combat patrols, fly Apaches, fly fighters, etc. Bottom line-- they've been doing jobs where they can be killed as easily as the next person. Allowing them to become an infantryman, other than the subcultural issues that's sure to raise, is not adding a new dynamic.

So the question should be, "Why haven't we already required women to register for the Selective Service?" There is already a constitutional requirement to raise an Army(military)- that's not new. As a nation, we expect our military to defend our interests. I've read many civil military theories and not one has addressed the sex of Soldiers. Therefore, I suspect this becomes a cultural issue. As a nation, are we willing to demand our females fight for out country?

I've worked with many other militaries and several of them have female conscripts. Requiring US females wouldn't be some radically new viewpoint. But personally, I don't have an issue with the requirement.

[webco2]

That all sounds good untill the bodybags start to come home filled with young women. Then you'll hear a great cry across this nation " I didn't sign up for this ".

[Fred1369]

do they need typewriters on the front lines?

[Michael Psycle]

Originally Posted by webco2

That all sounds good untill the bodybags start to come home filled with young women. Then you'll hear a great cry across this nation " I didn't sign up for this ".

That's already been happening. Women have already been serving and dying in combat in both Iraq and Afghanistan. We live in a very different world now than it has even been before regarding women's places in society. This is very different than Vietnam. It will be interesting to see how this goes.

And if there is a draft again, I don't think anyone will expect women not to be drafted for some kind of service.

[webco2]

Originally Posted by Michael Psycle

That's already been happening. Women have already been serving and dying in combat in both Iraq and Afghanistan. We live in a very different world now than it has even been before regarding women's places in society. This is very different than Vietnam. It will be interesting to see how this goes.

And if there is a draft again, I don't think anyone will expect women not to be drafted for some kind of service.

Michael my friend; In this country women walk around with a "glass shield". I don't think that will change any time soon, if ever.

[Fred1369]

the big incentive behind all this is that if you are career and you want advancement you have to have combat experience (or whatever in peace time). Some of the career women were complaining that this was holding them back.

[DJW]

I'm not arguing the case for women volunteers, I don't think that's an issue anymore, it's been decided.

The question is with conscripts and that is a horse of a different color. And in this case, all I"m questioning is if they should be required to register.

A woman friend of mine laughed and said "sure...but if it ever happens watch how many suddenly get pregnant." (being a man I hadn't thought of that)

[BOUTYM]

Originally Posted by DJW

I'm not arguing the case for women volunteers, I don't think that's an issue anymore, it's been decided.

The question is with conscripts and that is a horse of a different color. And in this case, all I"m questioning is if they should be required to register.

A woman friend of mine laughed and said "sure...but if it ever happens watch how many suddenly get pregnant." (being a man I hadn't thought of that)

In my 28 year military stretch I can't count the number of women that decided they didn't care for military service and used pregnancy as their way out. It was always within the first year, maybe two. If they lasted beyond that they usually served out their term and in some cases re upped. It was interesting in that you knew within a week or two of a new one showing up how it was going to play out. There were some that stayed on after giving birth, but that was the exception.

A buddy of mine who had a wife in the military were discussing the whole women in the military thing several years ago and I made the statement that it was my belief from a total manpower perspective I wouldn't count the women in the total because of the ever present possibility of pregnancy. He blew his stack thinking I was somehow dismissing women as being valuable to the military, which of course I wasn't saying.

What he wasn't understanding is that say you have a project that requires 10 people. 5 of those people may or may not be able to stay on through completion of the job, but you absolutely must have 10 to make sure the project is completed. Are you going to get 10 people that you know with reasonable certainty will be there through completion, or are you going to gamble on 5 of them bailing before completion?

[spdrcr137]

Let them sign up, let's treat them equal. They will want it until they get it.

[webco2]

Can you honestly say that you know of any woman who wants to be treated exactly equal to a man????????

[berserker]

Shouldn't women 18-26 register? Or whatever the upper age limit? Not just 18 year old women.

[spdrcr137]

I know women that say it. Does that mean they really want it? I think not, my point is careful what you ask for you just might get it.