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Christopher Paul's Professional Writing Papers

My Professional Writing Papers

Technical Writing · Exposition & Argumentation · Non-fiction Creative Essays · Grammar and Usage of Standard English · The Structure of English · Analysis of Shakespeare

Analysis of Literary Language · The History of the English Language · First Internship: Tutoring in a Writing Workshop · Second Internship: Advanced Instruction: Tutoring Writing

Visual Literacy Seminar (A First Course in Methodology) · Theories of Communication & Technology (A Second Course in Methodology) · Language in Society (A Third Course in Methodology)

The Writer's Guild

Journalism

UMBC'S Conservative Newspaper: "The Retriever's Right Eye" · UMBC'S University Newspaper: "The Retriever Weekly" · Introduction to Journalism · Feature Writing · Science Writing Papers

Advanced Professional Paper 3

Advanced Professional Paper 1 · Advanced Professional Paper 2

Berserker: an Investigation of the Effectiveness of Women in the U.S. Armed Forces

“If you think sex is exciting, try incoming!”

Sam McDermott, Lieutenant, 249th Engineer Battalion of the US Army Core of Engineers

Samantha or Sam, as she prefers to be called, was never an ordinary girl. She was born during the post-feminist revolution and her parents encouraged her to do things most girls would never do. As a baby she loved to build things with Lego’s; bridges, buildings, cars, planes, even imaginary machines. Sometimes she would play army with her Lego’s and her brother’s plastic soldiers in the dirt. As she grew older, she developed a curiosity for machines. She’d bring home almost any disposed of technology, take it apart, and tried to figure out how it worked.

By age eight, Sam was building bicycles from trashed parts. Her best friend Billy in jest suggested that she build an “upside-down” bicycle. When she asked him what that was, Billy replied, “You’re smart, you’ll figure it out.” Figure it out she did! It was her first engineering project. When she finished, her parents were proud of her because Sam solved the problem on her own.

Sam also loved mathematics and science and received straight A's all throughout high school. She was a personable girl and all the guys knew she was smart. Sam liked the same things they did. Heavy metal music, motorcycles and a hockey game with a good fist fight. The guys always came to her for help with their homework.

After high school, Sam enrolled in engineering school. She was forced to drop out in her senior year due to a lack of finances to complete her education. Still, Sam was determined to be the best damn engineer she could be. In order to earn money for tuition, she enlisted in the Army, passed basic training and in return, the Army assigned her to the Core of Engineers, based on her qualifications. Sam never dreamed she would be placed behind enemy lines constructing bridges in order to move troops, tanks and supplies into position during the Iraqi Freedom campaign.

In a brief, on the scene interview with CNN, Sam was asked what the challenges of working behind enemy lines were. Sam’s response was, “Man! You learn to think fast when you’ve got enemy shells dropping behind your ass. If you think sex is exciting, try incoming! Even so, at this point in my career, I'll never leave the Army. I have more authority as an officer than I ever would have had as a civilian engineer, no respect for women you know.”

There has been an ongoing heated controversy as to whether women should be serving in the Armed Forces. Women have served in the Armed Forces since the Civil War, but they served in the areas of support and logistics and were never deployed on the front lines. Quite often the Israeli army is cited as the exemplary model of an effective fighting force where both men and women served on the frontlines. Was this really an effective fighting force?

There are more women actively serving in the U.S. Armed Forces than ever before. When did this change occur? What roles do they serve now? Career wise, what opportunities has this opened for women in the Armed Forces? We are all aware of the “glass ceiling” in the private sector that prevents women from obtaining top executive positions. Does this problem also exist in the military? Is there greater opportunity for women in the Armed Forces than in the private sector?

Since the Vietnam War, the technology used in warfare has substantially changed. How has this changed the nature of war? Has technology opened positions for women to serve in combat roles? We now hear more reports of women being killed, more so than in previous military actions. Why is this happening? Are women actually being positioned on the front lines?

There are those in the general public that argue that women can’t psychologically deal with the horrors of war. Is this true or is this a myth? Others claim women do not posses the mechanical aptitude of men. Is there any truth to this statement? Many people in the American public continue to claim women do not possess the same physical capabilities of men. Is it that women do not possess the physical strength or is it that women require different training than the men in order to develop their strength and endurance? As a sub argument there are those that claim a woman cannot handle a weapon as well as a man? Is this possible?

In particular, men like to argue that women’s hygiene needs are different than men therefore they are not biologically suited for the rigors of war. Is this true, or is it that even though women's needs are different, are their needs being ignored or overlooked? There is also the issue of pregnancy, which is often cited. Is this another area that is not being properly addressed? What about women who claim, “I can’t do that, I’m a woman!” Does this have to do more with social training more than the ability to perform?

A woman fighting in battle is nothing new. Oral tradition is filled with stories of women warriors, but this may only be legend and not fact. The first female warrior in recorded history was Joan of Arc in May 1429. History recorded this far back in time is going to be sketchy at best and open to debate. According to the Expanded Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, “Joan’s leadership offered little in military prowess, but provided the necessary spirit, morale, and motivation to the troops to win battles. In May, 1429, she succeeded in lifting the siege of Orleans, hence the name ‘The Maid of Orleans,’ and in June, she took other English posts on the Loire and defeated the English at Patay, in the ‘One Hundred Year War’” (Expanded Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia 2003). Of significance is the fact that Joan of Arc was a successful warrior. Joan may have been a physical exception or maybe she was a psychological exception. Her fighting style may have been similar to Viking warriors who were called, “Berserkers,” by their enemies because of their ability maintain a fine psychological edge between controlled, uncontrolled rage. Two facts are clear; Joan was recorded as the first female warrior and she won several battles.

Whether or not women make effective warriors, modern history provides us with a wealth of documentation that is much more reliable than that from 1429. Quite often the Israeli military is cited as the exemplary model of a modern integrated military. The Israeli military is considered by many to be the first army with women serving in armed movements. The history of female soldier in pre-state Israel begins in the spring of 1941, when it appeared that the Germans under Rummel’s command were preparing to invade Palestine. Women were part of a full-time volunteer force known as palmach, short for plugot machats, meaning assault companies. Professor Martin van Creveld, of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, who holds a MS degree in Economics and is considered Israel's most prominent military historian said, “Women accounted for 15% of the fighting force and were between the ages of 18-19 years old. They consisted largely of kibbutz members who had been brought up not by their parents, but in communal dormitories" (van Creveld 2000). A great deal of the communal lifestyle in a kibbutz is similar to the way women soldiers lived in combat situations. Van Creveld also cites that, “Men and women trained together, lived together in adjacent tents and even showered together in shacks with only a partition made of corrugated iron to keep the sexes apart” (van Creveld 2000).

Interestingly, little has changed in our own army. Rowan Scarborough, who regularly reports on news inside the Pentagon for the Washington Times weekly feature "Inside the Ring," reported in a telephone interview with radio talk show host Dr. Michael Savage, on his program The Savage Nation, that "Men and women are housed in the same tents in Iraq with simply a screen separating the two sexes. Some married men have complained that they can see through the screen as the women undress at the end of the day and are disturbed by this" (Scarborough 2004).

According to A. Kadish, as quoted by van Creveld, "The members of the palmach - particularly the kibbutzniks among them - proudly displayed the underwear of conquered women on tent-poles and any undesirable consequences were taken care of quietly and efficiently by the countrywide network of Histadrut-affiliated clinics.” Hence, the Israeli army had its fair share of problems with men and women being housed in close proximity. As a result entire volumes of regulations were produced treating every male soldier as a potential rapist. "In order to protect women, it was necessary to create a double chain of administrative command, one for each sex, in which the end result was 20% of all women ended up with their main job being to look after other women in the army," according to van Creveld.

Sexual activity was prohibited on base, but leadership looked the other way as long as those involved did not complain. Van Creveld said, "In 1997, the Women's Lobby in the Knesset demanded that the Israel Defense Force provide women with free contraceptives, since buying them out of their salary of $90 a month was too expensive." It seems logical that the army should provide condoms in order to prevent pregnancy and an outbreak of sexually transmitted diseases. Our own military, specifically the U.S. Army, is addressing this problem by different means. Rowan Scarborough mentioned a little known fact in the interview that, "The Army is quietly providing women with RU486, the morning after abortion pill, in order to address unwanted pregnancy" (Scarborough 2004). Quietly is the key word here because the Army certainly does not wish to get caught up in the cross fire of the controversial issue of abortion, yet needs to address the problem of wanted pregnancy in order to maintain an effective fighting force.

The other problem van Creveld asserts is that the women are not held to the same standards nor do they receive the same physical training as their male comrades. This immediately creates an imbalance. The same problem exists when evaluating the U.S. Army. Unfortunately, van Creveld does not provide figures as to how their training differs in exercises such as push-ups, rope climbing, and hiking distances, all of which build upper body strength and endurance necessary for an infantry soldier to perform their basic duties. In defense of van Creveld's lack of figures, bear in mind van Creveld is examining the Israeli army during the period of 1941 to 1948. Most likely these figures do not exist because studying the effects of an integrated army was not a consideration at the time. The Israeli objective was to defend themselves in order to survive. This integration was not to perform an experiment or to create equal opportunity within the armed forces, but out of sheer necessity. Protecting their homeland was the Israeli focus, therefore, because there were not enough men to serve, women volunteered to the call of arms.

Van Creveld concludes his analysis by stating, "Contrary to legend it is simply not true that Israeli women have been allowed to enter combat" (van Creveld 2000). Those who want equality in the Armed Forces, such as NOW, the National Organization for Women, continually cite, "See, it works for the Israeli military, then it can work for us too," are drawing the wrong conclusion. Because women served in the Israeli army out of necessity does not mean that commune living also worked. It didn't work for Israel and this is why women now serve in traditional roles of support and logistics in the Israeli army.

Citing the Israeli army as an exemplary model of an integrated army has a second flaw. Dr. Eugenia Kiesling, Professor of History at the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, who studied ancient and European military history at Stanford University (Ph.D. 1988), in rebuttal to van Creveld's paper cites, "Women in the Israeli army never received the same training, duties, or respect as the men, therefore, the true story of Israeli women soldiers has yet to be written" (Kiesling 2000). Based on training alone, unless women are held to the same physical standards as men, the experiment of women being able to perform the same physical tasks as men has not been attempted. Women would have to be provided more time in basic training in order to build the strength and endurance of men. This has not been attempted; therefore without conclusive data that women can or cannot build the strength of men, this group is drawing a false conclusion. One could argue that there would be a significant difference in economic costs between men and women in training and also there would be a significant difference in combat readiness and deployment, but this is a completely different argument. This argument would be based on factors such as how much time we have to mobilize and whether the benefits outweigh the costs associated in preparing women for war. This would require time-motion studies and cost-benefit analyses which to date have not been performed.

Dr. Kiesling also attacks van Creveld's citation of casualty statistics. Kiesling claims that van Creveld manipulates these statistics in order to support his claim that, “low female casualty rates are evidence of women's uselessness and this is the primary reason why women were removed from the front lines” (Kiesling 2000). After analyzing van Creveld's statistics, Kiesling's concerns are not unfounded 1. In an era with strong data collection methods and statistical analysis, there is no reason for such errors. First, van Creveld presents the statistics in such a way that makes it very difficult to clearly understand what they mean. Second, his statistical support is second hand. He draws his statistics from Professor Emmanuel Sivan, historian of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Note that Dr. Kiesling, E. Sivan, and M. van Creveld are not qualified statisticians and that Sivan and van Creveld teach at the same university. In addition there may be gender bias in this argument and considering locating E. Sivan's original publication to verify van Creveld's claim has been futile, it is difficult to support or refute whether either claim is correct. The conclusion is that van Creveld's claims suffer from questionable statistics. Not all is lost, though; the U.S. Armed Forces are proceeding to create the definitive integrated model and are painstakingly determining how to make it work in the name of equal opportunity.

As of June 12, 2004, the DoD (Department of Defense) Directorate for Information Operations and Reports has released statistics on the war against terrorism - Operation Iraqi Freedom. Out of 831 in-theater deaths; hostile deaths were 607 and non-hostile deaths were 224 for both men and women. The Directorate for Information Operations and Reports does not break down the deaths according to sex, but this statistic was easily determined for they do provide a list of the names who died indicating whether they were male or female and whether they died in hostile or non-hostile actions. Compiling this data, it has been found that out of the 831 in-theater deaths, 12 women died as a result of hostile situations and 12 women died from causes other than hostile situations. Non-hostile deaths, according to the DoD, can be due to accidents, homicide, illness, self-inflicted means, terrorist attack or for reasons yet to be determined. Simply stated, out of 831 deaths, 807 men have died and 24 women have died in Operation Iraqi Freedom as of June 12, 2004. Out of the 12 women killed in hostile fire, only 2 were serving in arial combat roles and 1 in infantry. The other 21 killed were serving in support roles, indicating that women are not being deployed on the front lines, as the liberal media would have us think.

According to the DoD Directorate for Information Operations and Reports, as of September 30, 2002, there were 1,413,577 million men and women serving in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force (see fig. 2 appendix) 2. Of the total enlisted personnel on active duty roles, there were 212,266 women and 1,201,311 men serving in the armed forces. Through the years 1994 to 2001, the entire Armed Forces saw a significant loss in active duty military personnel (see fig. 1 and chart 2 appendix). Surprisingly, this decrease was not due to women. Women actively serving significantly rose through the period of 1998 to 2002 (see chart 1 appendix). In addition, there was a significant decline in the number of men actively serving through the years 1994 to 2001. In 1994, there were 1,410,802 men enlisted and this number declined to 1,177,928 in 2001.

After terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, experts claimed that there would be a significant increase in enrollment for the Armed Forces, based on statistics from the bombing of Pearl Harbor, but the statistics indicate that there was only a slight increase by men. It was the women who actually came forward and enlisted. Numerically, women's enlistment numbers appear insignificant, an increase of 5078 by women compared to 23,403 by the men (see fig. 2 appendix), but it is the trend that is significant. The men’s chart (see chart 2 appendix) shows only a slight increasing slope, while the women’s chart (see chart 3 appendix) shoots up almost exponentially. The reason the trend lines bear greater significance than the raw data is because there are substantially more men than women, which makes comparing the two statistical pools difficult. Even so, it’s easy to see that there are approximately one million more men than women, which places women in the position of being a minority at 20%, according to Rod Powers of US Military.com. According to Dana Priest's research, 15% of all personnel in the Armed Forces were women in 1997. Alan D. Johnson confirms this statistic in his article by stating, “As of May 31, 1999, women in the military (including the Coast Guard) numbered 194,219 - compromised 14% of the total active forces.” This establishes that there has been a 5% increase of women serving in the Armed Forces since 1997.

Why was there a dramatic increase of women active in the Armed Forces previous to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001? Dr. Gerald L. Atkinson, CDR USN (Ret.) cites the Navy Tailhook Convention incident in 91’ as the prime reason for the increase. “Due to the sexual harassment that occurred at the Navy Tailhook Convention in Las Vegas in 1991, President Clinton in 1993 ordered the Armed Forces to include women in combat roles.” Dr. Atkinson further claims, “President Clinton issued this command despite being advised through a Presidential Commission Report that strongly suggested maintaining the status quo. All the Armed Forces quickly complied in 1994.” Priest confirms this change in her article published in Newsweek, “A Trench between Women, Jobs,” where she states, “After the national outrage over sexual harassment at the Navy Tailhook convention in 1991, the Defense Department, between the years 1993 and 1994, opened about 260,000 combat-related positions to women in all services,” but does not confirm whether the order came directly from then-Commander in Chief, President Clinton. Jon Dougherty, a British reporter representing the WorldNetDaily stated, "The Bush Administration in May, 2002, put the brakes on a Clinton administration policy allowing women to be trained for land combat roles." Unfortunately active duty statistics for women are not shown for 1993 on the DoD Directorate for Information Operations and Reports web site and have been uncooperative with providing these statistics despite numerous requests, therefore it is not possible to determine what occurred between 1993 and 1994. According to the figures for 1994 to 1995, women serving decreased, but between 1995 and 1997, significantly increased (see chart 2 appendix). Speculation is that it just took some time for the new reforms to take effect.

Controversy exists as to whether then-President Clinton, commander in chief of the Armed Forces indeed did deliver this mandate to the military. What is irrefutable is that the military changed it policies in 1994, regardless as to who made this decision. The logic governing the opening of positions that were previously held by men has everything to do with recent advances in military technology. At this time, according to Priest, “then-Defense Secretary, Les Aspin rescinded the 'risk rule' that barred women from inherently dangerous jobs. Aspin's advisement was based, in part, on the deployment of high-tech weapons, such as Iraqi Scud missiles that were used during the Desert Storm campaign.” Due to the proven success of our new high-tech military hardware it was decided that reform of the Armed Forces was possible and that technology would reduce the risks associated with combat. Scientists and engineers through research and development had advanced military hardware to the point where soldiers could be placed in a position of lower risk; therefore it is these developments that made the climate for reform possible.

In discussing reform in the military, Priest cites, “The reform is billed as a major step toward gender integration of the country’s largest military branch, the U.S. Army.” This change “opened 20,000 positions to women in fields such as combat aviation, engineer bridge companies, and intelligence jamming companies” (A Trench Between 1997 A01). Note that Priest said “opened” positions for women. This is not the same as being “filled” by women. According to Priest, in 1997, only “1,367 women had ever been sent to previously off limits units.” Most women in active duty in the Army perform the jobs they have done for years: providing food, supplies, medical care, and office work. The new regulations did allow for autonomy in its own affairs as they saw fit. Nearly all Air Force positions including fighter and bomber pilots were opened to women. According to Priest the only positions not open to women in the Navy are those on submarines and special operation SEALs. The Marine Corps as of 1997, Priest states, "62% of the jobs were opened to women." In the Army, women were for the first time allowed to work at brigade headquarters of armor infantry and special operations organizations. Women were also allowed to fly combat helicopters, serve as field artillery surveyors and join division military policy companies, engineer bridge companies, air cavalry troops, and military intelligence collection and jamming companies.

The result of opening 20,000 positions will allow more women to be promoted to higher leadership ranks in the Armed Forces. According to DoD Directorate for Information Operations and Reports, the total number of female officers in all four branches of the military as of September 30, 2002, were 33,642. The Army leads the other three branches in number of women promoted to leadership roles. As of 2002, there were 11,543 women in leadership roles in the Army compared to the Air Force with 12,912, the Navy and the Marine Corps having the lowest number of female officers at 998 (see fig. 3 appendix). As of 2002, there were 212,266 women total serving in active roles and of these, 11,543 were officers. Unfortunately, the DoD Directorate for Information Operations and Reports does not provide female officer statistics before 2002, nor have they responded to numerous requests for such data. As of June 26, 2004, the DoD has not posted any further updates on the number of women serving in the Armed Forces or statistics describing the number of women serving in leadership roles.

Currently, the gains for women in the Army have been limited. According to Priest, "Job assignments in the Army are largely through a computer matching system that pairs openings worldwide with individuals due for new postings." Priest also states, "there is still wide room for discretion: Commanders routinely compete for candidates, and in some instances commanders can use subjective hiring standards, including where a candidate has trained and whether an officer or enlisted soldier has combat experience." Priest continues, “Women are still prevented from serving in units whose primary mission is engaging in ground combat and units that work directly with those organizations during wartime.” Without the ability to obtain ground combat experience, some positions will remain “off limits” to women. According to Rod Powers, writing for the Military.About.com web site, “Congressional law forbids the military from assigning women to any job whose primary function involves ground-combat.” Lending support to this claim, Jon Dougherty in his article, "Women in Combat Bad Idea," published June 4, 2002, cites, "A Pentagon spokesman told WorldNetDaily yesterday that no changes to the current rules guiding women in combat are being planned." Dougherty continues, "Under a 1994 law, women are barred from ‘direct combat roles’ involving ground warfare."

Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld and President Bush will not change the ruling on women serving direct combat roles for a second reason. Polls show that the general public opinion is split on this question. According to a Gallup poll conducted in December 2003, 16% think women should never be assigned to combat on the same terms as men. On the other hand, 45% think women should only serve in combat if they volunteer for such assignments, and 38% think women should be required to serve combat roles equal to men. This indicates the country is almost evenly split on the question. It is interesting to note that men are more likely than women to state that female soldiers should not serve in combat roles, 21% versus 11%. In addition, older Americans are more likely to think women should not serve in combat versus younger Americans: "Specifically, 22% of Americans age 50 and older say women should be barred from combat, compared with 14% of 30- to 49-year olds and just 8% of 18- to 29-year-olds" (Gallup 2003) 3. If this poll truly does represent the American opinion on this subject then the congressional law will stand as is. This dispels the myth that women are serving in ground-combat positions, but also creates a problem. If women cannot get combat experience then a "glass ceiling" has been created that prevents women from being promoted to some of the more lucrative positions.

The only way to remove the glass ceiling is through further reform. Reform would either have to occur through congressional change or psychological change of the men in decision making positions of the military. Priest quotes Lt. Gen. Fredrick Vollrath, the Army's top personnel officer, “Historically the Army's approach is more common-sense and lasting.”

"Vollrath like other top officers, compared integration of women with the integration of black and white troops that began in 1948. Historians claim it took four decades for the number of black senior non-commissioned officers to approach the percentage of African American soldiers overall." (D. Priest A Trench Between 1997 A01).

Citing black integration as a historical model, it will take time for women to be accepted into leadership roles within the Armed Forces. Priest then quotes Lt. Col. Robert Carrington, head of the Army's office responsible for overseeing women's personnel issues stating, "Until women are valued partners in the Army's first team, they will be institutionally discriminated against and have less opportunity." Retired Brig. Gen. Evelyn Foote, who was the senior Women's Army Corps adviser helping integrate women into all-male units, as quoted by Priest, said, "The Army has never undertaken a concerted effort to prepare men for the 'new social order.'" According to Capt. Krista Bonino, the first female pilot of a scout helicopter in the 1st Squadron of the 1st Cavalry Regiment, in an interview with Priest said, "The reality is, they (the higher ranking male officers making the promotional decisions) don't want to accept it...You're not going to change the way old guys think." Capt. Bonino confirms that a "Good Old Boy" mentality will continue to prevail for the time being. The only way change will occur will be either through a change in congressional law, or with time, when the men who are currently in decision making positions retire.

Even though there is a congressional law that bans women from serving in ground operations at the front lines, there has been an increase of reports of women being killed in combat zones. Priest uncovered the reasons for this and it’s quite simple. She cites, "When Command Sgt. Maj. Lyle Otineru needed medics for his combat engineer companies in Baumholder, Germany, he temporarily 'attached,' rather than permanently 'assigned' three women because it was 'the only way we could legally get them to the company.'" Priest uncovers a little known fact that the Army’s longtime practice of using women to fill critical jobs in a crunch has risen to new levels as the percentage of women serving increases and as service becomes more deeply involved in peacekeeping missions according to officers and female troops. Priest quotes Lt. Col. Elisabeth Nowack, Inspector General for the 3rd Corps Support Command based in Germany, "They battle it out philosophically in Washington, but the commander who needs water forwarded doesn't really care if that person bringing the precious commodities is a woman. It's stealthy, but we're breaking down the barriers." This was especially true in Bosnia, where women made up 10% of the 8,500 U.S. troops serving in the NATO mission to implement the Dayton peace accords. Priest also describes a situation where Lt. Col. Jill Morgenthaler, a civil affairs reservist, was accompanying Brig. Gen. George Casey Jr. on foot in the town of Gusicici in October 1996, when angry Muslim refugees suddenly surrounded him. Morgenthaler and a male soldier moved next to Casey, Morgenthaler with her hand on her pistol. As the apparent ringleader approached, Priest quotes, Morgenthaler, who yelled, "If this thing gets any closer I'm shooting you," The ringleader backed off and the crowd calmed (In a Crunch 1997). According to Col. Michael R. Thompson, commander of the 1st Infantry Division's 2nd Brigade, Priest quotes, "That women find themselves in these situations is the nature of peacekeeping." According to Maj. Gen. Morris Boyd, who commanded the 42nd Field Artillery Brigade during the Persian Gulf War, said, "High-tech weaponry has also meant that nice neat lines go away. Forward, front, rear, it all disappears" (In a Crunch 1997).

It is precisely this removal of clear lines of distinction by high-tech weaponry, the use of women in a "peacekeeping missions", and "I don't give a damn who gets it here, just get it here," necessity that have caused events similar to what happened to Pfc. Jessica Lynch. According to Rod Norland, in his article, "What Happened to Jessica Lynch," the convoy Jessica Lynch was with made a wrong turn. Pfc. Lynch was with the 507th Maintenance Company, when the unit's captain made a "single navigational error" according to reports released by the U.S. Army, on July 17, 2003. Norland reports, "Deep inside enemy territory, the captain retraced his route but was ambushed. When the 507th tried to fight off the attackers, many of its weapons jammed because of poor maintenance in the sandy conditions."

Maj. Gen. Morris Boyd's comment on high-tech weaponry leads to an extremely important factor in this argument. Historically, as time progresses, the technology used to conduct combat drastically changes. Therefore, changes in technology facilitate change in military strategy. As one examines the history of warfare, technology has changed the way in which wars are fought. Compared to the way warfare was conducted during the Vietnam War, to the way warfare was conducted Afghanistan and Iraq, technological advancements have been made in leaps and bounds. These changes have placed the soldier in a position of lower risk. Risk is the number one component that has prevented women from being placed in combat positions. The lowering of the risk factor now allows women to be promoted to combat roles. Allowing women to serve in combat roles provides the ability to gain experience in combat that is deemed necessary for further promotion and continued integration of the military. One could argue that this is not "true" combat experience in comparison to hand-to-hand combat; therefore this experience is unacceptable for promotion. The counter-argument is the men in the decision-making positions will eventually retire and more importantly, men may not have traditional combat experience at that point either, leveling the entire playing field. Therefore, in the future, there will be a dissemination of current qualifications for those to be promoted to military combat in favor of new qualifications. This will break the "glass ceiling" that prevents women from serving in combat positions. With the progression of technology and continued maturation of society, social acceptance by the general public will continue to evolve in favor of women serving in active combat roles.

Years ago there was an article in the Long Island, N.Y. newspaper, Newsday, discussing how technology was going to change the way in which wars would be conducted. Engineers, scientists, and designers employed in research and development of military combat hardware stated that possibly by 2010, soldiers would be completely removed from the battlefield. This was not speculation on their part, but was based on classified projects being funded by the Federal Government. The researchers interviewed were employed in positions that it was their job to make this a reality. They reported that their vision was to have men and women working side by side in bunkers far away from the action and they would control combat robots through "joysticks," placing the soldier out of harms way. Further support for this position can be cited by the fact that the military currently uses unmanned, remote control, "intelligence drones," operated by a joystick, in order to gather information in areas where the risk is too high to send in "special forces" for intelligence gathering. The drones have cameras and microprocessors that gather information in real time and send the information back to computers far away from the action. The information is then processed by military advisors and reported to military decision-makers in charge of the operation. Micro-helicopters are also used the same way to determine what risks may exist before sending soldiers into buildings in urban combat zones. In addition, aircraft designers have already stated that they have reached their own "glass ceiling." The only thing preventing them from making further advancements in combat aircraft is the human element. Aircraft designers have come to the point that in order to invoke the next advancements in aircraft technology; the pilot will have to be removed from the cockpit ushering in the age of unmanned fighter aircraft. When these technological advancements prove to be effective in winning military campaigns and are deemed as being morally acceptable, who flies the plane will no longer be an issue.

The general public has said women cannot psychologically handle the rigors of combat. This position is unsupported by analytical evidence from psychological experts. According to C.P. Carney and associates in the Military Medicine Journal, "Deployed men and women in the Gulf War had similar military experiences; however, men participated more often in combat." According to Carney's study, deployed women had more outpatient and inpatient care use five years after deployment and more often received Department of Veterans compensation than men. Carney and associates also claims that if these differences were important they would have to be confirmed in other studies and that optimal training and deployment readiness strategies may have to be revised in order to prepare women for the riggers of war. Carney does not cite women as being incapable of performing their duties, but rather that improper training could be a primary cause that would need to be addressed.

Other people within the general public argue that women do not posses the mechanical aptitude to handle hardware used by soldiers in their everyday operations. In the mid 70's, the U.S. Armed Forces, on orders from Congress, were preparing to recruit women into combat forces. The U.S. Armed Forces conducted large-scale psychological studies of the differences - if any - between men and women in this regard. "The studies concluded that there were no marked differences in the mental capacities of men and women - the researchers concluded that the minds of the two sexes were the same; it was only in regard to physical strength, especially upper body strength, that differences existed,” according to R. F. Priest. The studies also proved that there was no difference in regard to their mental and technical qualities as far as their capability of handling rifles, tanks, and other essential equipment.

The U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine at the Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland, conducted a study examining the injury and physical fitness outcomes in Basic Combat Training (BCT) during the implementation of Physical Readiness Training (PRT). PRT is the Army’s emerging physical training program during the nine-week BCT cycle. The way the new program differs from current training practices is the PRT “de-emphasizes running, provides a greater variety of exercises, integrates training elements resurrected from previous U.S. Army training manuals, and incorporates procedures and principles designed to reduce injuries and increase functional fitness” (Knapik et al. 2003). Knapik explains, “Injury cases were obtained from recruit medical records and physical fitness was measured using the Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT), consisting of push-ups, sit-ups and a two mile run. Injury rates were examined after control was set for initial group differences in demographics, fitness and other variables.” Knapik's study found, “men and women who were part of the experimental training had significantly fewer injuries than the standard training.” Even more significant, “10% of the women in the experimental training had fewer injuries than those in standard training. For men and women, the PRT program reduced overuse injuries and allowed a higher success rate on the APFT.” This indicates that especially for women, the experimental training is much more effective in preparing women for combat and also indicates that the U.S. Army basic training is in need of reform.

Some people argue that women cannot fire their weapons on target as well as men due to a lack of upper body strength. This is a myth. First, the weapon of choice by the U.S. Army is still the M-16 A2 and was developed during the Vietnam era by Eugene Stoner who sought to reduce the weight of weapons carried by soldiers into combat through the liberal use of lightweight metals and carbon fiber plastics. The M-16 weighs in at approximately sixteen pounds making it lighter than all weapons previously used and has been used for almost thirty years. According to studies conducted by C.P. Kemnitz, "There was no significant difference in the measure of marksmanship performance as a function of sex." In addition, Kemnitz states, "Marksmanship accuracy was significantly better with the shortest rifle stock, and marksmanship precision was significantly better with the lighter rifle." Based on the data gathered in this study, Kemnitz recommended, "Regardless of the sex of the shooter, stock length and weapon weight should be considered in any new combat rifle design as these results indicate they significantly affect marksmanship." As mentioned earlier, the M-16 has been the weapon of choice for almost thirty years. This means that newer rifle designs will inevitably replace the M-16 and will be lighter than ever before. The he statement women can't accurately fire on target under extended periods of assault is false as proven by this study.

Women's personal hygiene needs are frequently cited as reason why women should not serve on the front lines. This is a weak argument. According to a study conducted by Wardell and Czerwinski, the research team used verbatim transcripts of focused interviews from thirty-three women. The women interviewed had been deployed to combat or the field and the transcripts were subjected to content analysis. The transcripts recorded the women's personal remembrances of their experiences with hygiene issues. The questions in the interviews related to the women's experiences in cleansing the body, managing their menstrual cycles, and protecting against genitourinary infection in a hostile environment. Wardell and Czerwinski concluded, "By understanding the hygiene needs and practices of military women, changes can be made that have the potential to affect health promotion and disease prevention strategies for all women." Wardell and Czerwinski’s study indicates what is necessary are discussions with women to determine their specific needs and to make the necessary changes to accommodate them.

Last of the physical issues is the argument of unplanned pregnancy and its effect on readiness issues in the military. Many argue that women should not serve in combat, due to the fact that women become pregnant. Borsay-Trindle, Pass, and Gilzean performed a three-group comparative survey to ascertain probable reasons for unplanned pregnancy occurrence that would be useful in developing appropriate interventions directed at decreasing the incidence of such pregnancies. 112 active duty female soldiers responded to a forty-one-item questionnaire that focused on respondents' reproductive histories, beliefs and knowledge of contraception and contraception use. According to Borsay-Trindle, Pass, and Gilzean’s study, "Findings revealed that when compared to the two post-adolescent groups, the adolescent female soldiers reported: a greater number of sexual partners, greater frequency of sexual relations, less knowledge about reproductive cycle, and greater non-use of any birth control method." This indicates that the Armed Forces need to provide training in contraception and venereal disease as they have done for the men for years. In addition, the Armed Forces should provide contraception for both sexes in order to reduce the problem of unwanted pregnancy.

The general public also argues from a physical-psychological point of view that in battle, some women will fail in performing their duties as combat soldiers due to an ingrained attitude, "I can't do that, I'm a woman!" D. Belcher in the department of Kinesiology at the University of Alabama conducted what at first glance may seem as an unrelated study. His study was to determine the influence of beliefs about gender appropriateness, conceptions of ability on perceived and actual competence, and patterns of women’s behavior during practice of the hockey wrist shot. Anyone who has played hockey, regardless of whether they are male or female, will tell you that developing a good wrist shot requires special wrist exercises and is extremely difficult to master. Belcher’s analysis had more to do with the misconception that some women will say, “I can’t do that! I’m a woman,” immediately indicating that there is a learned cultural-psychological component involved that prevents her from not being able to perform. The research team formulated the tests based on the women’s beliefs about gender appropriateness and conceptions of ability. They found that, “gender appropriateness impacted the participant’s perceptions of competence and actual performance, while beliefs about conceptions of ability did not produce a significant difference.” The psychological implication is if you think you can’t do it, you won’t, and if you think you can, you will. Belcher’s study led to the fact that, “educators must work diligently to combat the stereotype beliefs many hold with respect to the gender appropriateness of physical activities."

In order to circumvent this problem, the Army has lowered the requirements for women for graduation from boot camp. Women's final exams include twenty push-ups, twenty sit-ups, and longer times to complete the two-mile run. There are various logical reasons for this. One would be the physical-psychological problem analyzed in D. Belcher's study. It has been determined that most women do not have the same stamina or physical strength as the men do upon entrance to boot camp. Lowering the standards allows more women to graduate; therefore the Army remains in compliance with congressional mandates. On the other hand, this does a disservice to the women and the men because the women aren't really ready for the physical rigors of combat. The best solution would be to work with women more diligently and also implement the experimental physical program studied by the U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine discussed earlier.

The main problem affecting whether women make effective soldiers is that there is not enough data to draw a definitive conclusion. This viewpoint could be strongly disputed as a weak position considering the wealth of studies that have already been performed indicating that women can and will make effective soldiers, but accommodations and reformation are required throughout the Armed Forces from top to the bottom. As with corporations, it is the CEO who sets the tone, or in this case, the commander in chief, the President of the United States, who will have to push Congress to pass legislation revoking the current law passed in 1994, barring women from "direct combat roles involving ground warfare." Dougherty's article states that so long as President Bush is in office, this will not happen. In addition, this change will not occur until the American public is ready for such a change. When it does happen, and it will happen, it will be the duty of the highest-ranking officers to create a climate favorable for reform to occur. Once the change is made it will disseminate through the ranks. This reform may not occur until the men in the highest positions retire one by one.

Another problem that has not been studied is the psychological effects on the men with the integration of women into the armed forces, and how to deal with preconceived notions, especially the men in the officer's ranks. Dr. Kiesling correctly points to the fact that "soldiering, admittedly is a much more complex problem psychologically." Kiesling is correct in stating that the military is one of the last strong holds of a 'fraternity of arms,' which has its own psychological aspects that need to be analyzed. No one has performed a study on the psychological effects of young men and women living in integrated accommodations. The problems seem to stem more from men than women as was alluded to in Dana Priest's article, "A Trench between Women, Jobs."

This is no longer an experiment, but a renaissance of a monumental proportion. Women will continue to enter the military seeking opportunities not available to them within the private sector. Technology will continue to change and with that change, the very nature of warfare will evolve. These changes will eventually create a position where who is serving or more likely what is on the front lines will be of no importance.

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Endnotes

1 After a great deal of analysis this is my interpretation of what Creveld said quoting E. Sivan;

‘Out of a total of 5682 dead (Sivan, 1991, pp21ff):
4520 were military personnel
4412 male soldiers dead
108 female soldiers dead
Women constituted 10.6% of the Israeli armed forces as of December 1948. Contrary to those who have used the example of the IDF to promote the cause of women in the military, relative to their share in the population, far fewer Israeli women died than men.’

Van Creveld in his paper said, ‘From spring 1941 to May 1948, 6,000 men and women served during the war.’ It is true that he states, ‘as of December 1948, 10.6% of the army were women,’ but it is not clear if there were 10.6% at the beginning of the war. In addition, the percentages must have varied during the course of the war. Van Creveld does not state out of these 6,000 soldiers, how many initially were male, how many were female. This is an extremely important statistic and it’s missing from his analysis. Once we have how many of each sex died compared to how many survived, then a proper statistical analysis might be possible but there is still another problem. In order to determine whether this data is statistically significant, either equivalent sample sizes for the two pools (male and female) are required or using the sample pools provided, statistical analysis utilizing Bayesian methods would have to be performed in order to extrapolate a probable predicted outcome. Van Creveld does not have the credentials to draw a definitive conclusion from the data presented. Thus his statistical argument is flawed and we have insufficient data to support or refute whether the Israeli model actually did work.

2 Statistics of women serving in the Department of Defense and the Coast Guard have been excluded from these figures. As of June 26, 2004, no statistics are available for the number of women enlisted in these branches.

3 The Gallup poll results are based on a sample size of 1,004 national adults, aged 18 and older. One can say with 95% confidence that the maximum margin of error is +/-3 percentage points.

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Appendix

Figure 1: Women in the military

Women have served in the U.S. armed forces since 1901, when the Army Nurse Corps was established. About 6,000 have been in involved in the war in Afghanistan. Milestones affecting women:

Courtesy of USA Today, 01/11/2002 - Updated 10:09 AM ET, www.usatoday.com/news/attack/2002/01/10/warriors-sidebar.htm

Figure 2: Figure 2: DoD Active Military Personnel 1993 - 2002