There are few more polarizing issues in politics and government than the ongoing debate over women in combat. Many people feel that if women serve in the military they should be able to fight in combat if they wish. Still, it has not happened yet and the people who oppose it do so with vigor. Here are a few of the reasons why some still don’t feel women belong in combat.
1.) Women are Smaller- It’s a common argument that women simply don’t have the strength and size on the whole to carry out military combat duties. Soldiers in combat are required to run quite a great distance carrying large guns and large packs on their backs. With gear so heavy, many remain unconvinced that women can carry that load.
2.) Pregnancy- The fact that a woman can get pregnant is brought up routinely during the discussion of women in combat. Therefore, a women could be pregnant while on the battle field and perhaps not even know it. Certainly, in this case she is then dealing with not only her own life but that of her unborn baby.
3.) The Estrogen argument- Yes, this is seriously a concern of those who oppose women in combat. The prevailing thought here is that estrogen carries with it a certain amount of emotional imbalance. Indeed, the fear is that women would become emotional at a time like high violence and perhaps not be able to handle the situation as it is. This is not proven however, as women have yet to be allowed into battle. it is simply an unfounded concern.
There may come a time when we have to decided between women serving in combat or instituting a draft. It may not be before this time however that we really will see women fight. It seems it would require an overhaul in the thoughts of many Americans.