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A few weeks ago, President Trump again threw the country into a tizzy by declaring a ban on transgender people in the military. Everyone was surprised, including James Mattis, Secretary of Defense. A number of factors seemed to contribute to Trump’s decision, including contradictory ones. I’d like to explore some of those here, and also explain the reasons why his decision may actually benefit not only the military, but this nation.
That is why I predicted the first women who demanded a right to attend VMI and The Citadel would fail. It was all about them. Also, it is ROTC that gives a path to a commission, not attendance in those two schools. Air Force Academy, Naval Academy, and West Point exist to commission officers. Many colleges offer ROTC, a good choice for people trying it out to see if they are making the right choice. Folks like me who desire to serve after they have a degree (I had my Masters) can apply for officer training/candidate programs.
Nothing prevents service except the needs of the military and one’s fitness to serve. Can’t enlist with a GED at the moment, then attend a tech school for a year and reapply. Nothing lost. The military expects its people to pursue an education. Getting a semester or two under your belt before you enlist will make things easier later.
For many who can’t afford college, the military is a way to serve and become a productive member of society. Every transgender who might not be a good fit for military service displaces a kid who could have used the military to better himself (except for times when the military isn’t meeting recruitment and retention goals). People looking to feel good about themselves for supporting transgender service never look at the unseen, the people who might be denied a chance to serve.
Society needs to work out the transgender thing before it is thrust on to the military. Right now, we haven’t even agreed on bathroom policy. If you think you don’t have privacy in a civilian bathroom, wait until you deploy.
ROTC offers a valuable opportunity in high school and college and many who take the courses don’t serve afterwards. However, it offers discipline and classes in military history, something missing in the traditional liberal arts education.
The Chaplain Panda/Angel Pup would’ve served in a heartbeat, but physical realities outweighed my desires; so I support instead.
The question of there being a “right to serve” embedded within the concept of citizenship within a republic is a fair one. It certainly had applicability regarding the raising of Black regiments during the Civil War. (In the course of my PH.D studies I was challenged by one of my committee to research this concept as it relates to the question of assigning women to Infantry units. I can share more of this research of this upon request, otherwise I risk inflicting terminal boredom on everyone…)
However, I suspect that many of your quarter-wit acquaintances are simply parroting a bit of ill-understood doctrine, possibly traced back to Robert Heinlein, a very popular writer among the libertarian set, who popularized it in his 1959 novel Starship Troopers. BTW – I love the book, but am surprised how often people mis-represent it.
Had those people said “the right to be considered for service”, I’d have had no disagreement. I simply considered it to be up to the military to determine if an applicant was up to the task. I admired the instructors I met in ROTC. Most of them were decorated Vietnam veterans, and I would not want them to be forced to serve in combat with people who thought they had a “right” to be there.
Could you just give us a taste, PH? I’m intrigued about right to serve in these contexts.
Me, too, PH! Would you rather we PM you for more?
I’m a little late in the discussion, but I need to comment on this. First, this is disingenuous, since it doesn’t say say how many individuals are affected. If 1% of military members are potentially transgender, the the cost is a wash (except for # 2 below); i.e. there is no increase in cost compared to any other service member. I read through the referenced RAND report and it looks like transgenders make up about .01-.04% of military personnel; in other words they will cost 2 1/2 to 10 times as much as other service members. And the numbers are even worse if you consider that only a small percentage are actually undergoing the transition. Based on that, the actual cost is 100-500 times that of healthcare for other military personnel.
Secondly, are we gaining any increase in military effectiveness for this extra expense? It does not matter if the cost is $8.4 million or $8.40 if the military is less able to fight. I would argue that this makes the military less, not more effective.
It is hard enough for a commander to maintain good order and discipline, train troops and keep them safe, accomplish the mission, send troops into harm, handle budgets, report to higher ups, maintain morale on deployments, and ensure the troops’ families are supported. It sucks to high heaven that the PC culture has added worrying about religion, worrying about sexual harassment, worrying about offending, worrying about the environment, worrying about sexual choice, worrying about suicide from high risk transgender, and using the right pronouns to the mix. That we can field an effective fighting force with fewer people, less money, and more worries amazes me. If you think the PC culture will keep you safe, dream on. We still have fine warriors doing their best but one wonders sometimes how much we deserve them.
Well said, E. We should be doing everything we can to help them be effective; instead, we burden them with political correctness and making the right statement. It disturbs me greatly.
Yes, and I didn’t even address the crippling ROE and threat of lawsuits when one actually kills the enemy.