By SARA LAWSON
Assistant News Editor

Editor’s Note: This is the second in a two-part series on women in combat positions in the military.

With the announcement that all combat positions are open to women, I have noticed a few arguments that keep popping up in conversation in regards to why women should not be in combat positions.

Having a father who was in the military, two grandfathers who were in the Navy, a mother who was a colonel in the Civil Air Patrol, the Auxiliary of the Air Force, that has several members who are military personnel, and being a member of CAP myself, I have seen and heard stories of what can happen when someone is discredited because of their gender.

For some people there are a number of reasons why women in the military should not be allowed to be in combat positions. The most prevalent being “women and men are built differently.”

Indeed they are. When you look at the population as a whole there are differences in natural strength and flexibility. The standards that people in the military are required to meet are difficult to reach for the average person.

If the entire population were to be tested against the standards required by the military for combat personnel, my estimation would be that 90 percent of them, men and women, would not make the cut. The need for these standards is apparent for the situations they operate within. Women and men alike weight-train, body-build and compete at an Olympic and global level.

To imply that all women are incapable of performing at the same level as men in the military is ludicrous.

There are some who have legitimate concerns about soldiers in combat positions in regards to violence and post-traumatic stress disorder. A concern about violence that is not often discussed about male soldiers is rape.

If a soldier is sexually assaulted while serving, on leave or retired, the fault lies with the aggressor not the victim regardless of gender or enlistment.

Rape is an issue that needs to be addressed in society, not just in the military.

One very real difference between men and women is the fact that can give birth, and men cannot. I’ve heard that this is used as an argument in favor of keeping women out of combat positions. “You know what women can do that men cannot? Childbirth.”

Yes. That is a fact of life. While the acknowledgement that pregnant women have to go through hours of labor is a credit to sex education, the statement strays into implying that women exist solely to carry children. The implication fails to acknowledge women as people.

The end game should be that opportunities for women and men should not be dictated by their gender, but rather by their ability to perform their duties or the requirements for their job.

The need to find the best person for a job should outweigh gender roles, and the discussion should be how to make the military better, not about the issues that including women supposedly bring.