Tactical Concerns Essay Example

Tactical Concerns Essay Example Tactical Concerns Essay Tactical Concerns Essay The Israel defense Force have been officially prohibited female soldiers from serving in close combat military operations since 1948. In 2001 women began to serve on experimental basis. The reason for removing female soldiers from the front line is not the reflection of the performance of the female soldiers but that of the enraged male infantryman after witnessing a woman wounded. The IDF saw a complete loss of control over soldiers who apparently experienced an uncontrollable protective, instinctual aggression which would have resulted in a massacre.Australian soldiers have voiced similar concern saying these soldiers are reluctant to take women on reconnaissance or special operations, as they fear that in the case of combat or discovery, their priority will be to save the women and not to complete the mission. Thus while men might be able to be programmed to kill, it’s is not as easy to program men to neglect women. It has been noted that Islamic militants rarely, if ever, surrender to female soldiers.In modern warfare where intelligence is perhaps more important than enemy casualties every factor reducing combatants’ willingness to fight is considered. Similarly, Iraqi and Afghani civilians are often not intimidated by female soldiers. The military’s conflation of masculinity and the male body was codified into law in 1948 with the passage of the Women’s Armed Services Act, which restricted women’s participation, advancement, and benefits in the Armed Services.The official definition of close combat, or direct ground combat on land, involves deliberate offensive actions; i. e. , †¦engaging an enemy with individual or crew-served weapons while being exposed to direct enemy fire, a high probability of direct physical contact with the enemy by fire, maneuver, or shock effect in order to destroy or capture, or while repelling assault by fire, close combat, or counterattack. This description goes far beyond the experience of being in danger, or serving in a combat zone. Even if physical capabilities were objectively measured, and they are not, that would not be the only issue.Discipline, deployability, and unit cohesion are even more important in close combat units, and various kinds of friction associated with gender integration could detract from those factors and undermine mission accomplishment. Cultural values are also important Assigning female soldiers to close combat units would be tantamount to acceptance of deliberate violence against women, as long as it occurs at the hands of the enemy. The 1992 Presidential Commission on the Assignment of Women in the Armed Forces saw this as an unnecessary and unacceptable setback for American cultural values.Conclusion: These points clearly explain the reasons why women should not be allowed in combat zone: Women a are physically weaker than men and therefore standards would have to be lowered and unite effectiveness jeopardized The presence of women in units leads to fraternization, sexual harassment, and sexual assault Women lose a disproportionate share of time due to pregnancy, which would undermine unit readiness Combat would take women away from their families, which would have harmful psychological effects on the children If combat units are open to women, women would have to be drafted; and The presence of women in combat units would adversely affect unit cohesion and undermine the morale of men who do not want to work with women More than 40,000 American women served in the war against Iraq. The Marine Corps awarded twenty-three women the Combat Action Ribbon for service in the Persian Gulf War because they were engaged by Iraqi troops. Desert Storm was a huge turning point for women, much like Vietnam was for African-Americans, and it showed that modern war boundaries between combat and non-combat zones are being blurred. It makes no sense to cling to semantics (combat vs combat support) given the reality of war.Furthermore, allowing both men and women to compete for all military occupational specialties is not an equal rights issue, but one of military effectiveness. It is the matter of safety and security of millions of people which can never be compromised for the sake of equal opportunity’ in a field where the sexual orientation does count.Works cited:1. Bonnie Moradi, Perceived Sexual-Orientation based harassment in Military and Civilian contexts, Military Psychology, 2006, 18 (1), 39-60 2. Diane Sawyer, Primetime Live Interview with Jessica Lynch: An American Story,’ ABC News Transcripts, November 11, 2003.