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Women In Combat Essay

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War has been a part of humanity almost as long as humanity itself. However, women at war have not been. History has many stories about exceptional women serving honorably on the battlefield. In many cases Women on the battlefield are liabilities. During World War II both the Soviets and Germans tried placing women on the front lines when they were desperate for fighting soldiers. Male troops forgot their combat responsibilities in order to protect the women fighting beside them. This made their units less effective and exposed them all to greater risk. Both the Soviets and the Germans later barred women from serving in combat. It is man's role to risk his life on a battlefield not a woman's. A woman's role is to support the man fighting …show more content…

It is likely that any woman POW will be raped. The military is allowing women to fly combat fighters in the Middle East. In his article, "Case Against Women in Combat" William P. Hoar states that, "allowing women to fly combat missions dramatically increases the probability the United States would have women become prisoners of war. In Vietnam and Operation Desert Storm, the great majority of POWs were combat aviators" (5). One of the most obvious reasons women should not be serving in combat is their physical limitations. A typical woman's upper body strength is not capable of withstanding the demands of sustained ground combat. Their male counterparts will be forced to help them more than they would another male soldier. In his article "Women Should Not Serve in Combat" K.L. Billingsley provides the following: "In 1993 the Marine Corps conducted a three month study with 50 women to determine whether they could be conditioned to meet male fitness standards. Official's found that they could not be. While some women can reach the lower ranges of male ability, they are operating at the peak of their performance and are therefore under maximum stress. They found that only one out of 100 women can meet the standards as

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