World Affairs Brief, February 23, 2018 Commentary and Insights on a Troubled World.
Copyright Joel Skousen. Partial quotations with attribution permitted. Cite source as Joel Skousen’s World Affairs Brief (http://www.world affairsbrief.com).
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Marines to Make Training Easier to Accommodate Women: Our own military is beset with huge problems, from Navy crews asleep or distracted while on watch to a “new” Marine Corps that is desperately trying to accommodate more women into combat by weakening the former tough standards required to become a combat Marine. Dalrock wrote a scathing piece about the Marine Corps’ insistent claim that they are not changing their standards, when they are. It’s doublespeak at its best. The whole piece is better than my brief excerpt:

The USMC puts on a clinic on how to lower standards to accommodate women while denying that anything is being done to accommodate women. From Infantry Officer Course lowers requirement for hikes. Brig. Gen. Jason Q. Bohm leads the way, explaining that the goal was not to reduce the number of students who failed, but to increase the number who passed: “…it was not about lowering attrition, it was about making students more successful to complete the course.”

Inspired by the masterful work of Gen Bohm, Marine Corps Times senior reporter Shawn Snow tries his own hand. Snow explains that the changes followed a full court press by feminists to lower the standards to move women into a previously all male field. The Corps has come under criticism regarding the notoriously grueling 13-week infantry course that so far has only seen one woman successfully graduate.

The 2015 NDAA called for the service branches to draft gender-neutral standards as the services began gender integration into the combat jobs previously closed to women. That hike that was changed is the 15-km hike, which must be completed within three hours while humping 105 lbs of kit and weapons.

But the Corps has struggled to adequately explain how its changes to the IOC are not an attempt to make the course easier, especially if one of the intended goals is to increase graduation numbers.

Back to that march that was made easier as a result of the push to integrate women (but doesn’t represent a watering down of standards to accommodate women). Here the USMC has outdone itself by creating a structure where the men will have to carry the heavy gear for the women:

Previously, Marines had to conduct a single file forced march carrying heavy and medium weapon systems that could weigh anywhere from 125 lbs-150 lbs.. Now the hike is done as a tactical displacement, where Marines practice “bounding” during a simulated attack. The Marines are no longer required to single-handedly carry all 125-150 lbs, and can pass the weight off to a buddy as they tire.

Brilliant!