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And comparing it to urinating/defecating while in uniform? Bit of a stretch there!
Some people have too much free time and not enough brains to figure out how to use it productively.
Especially since nobody is advocating for urinating and defecating in public. The fact this was used as a comparable bodily function just shows how twisted conservative minds have become.
Some people have been taught to be ashamed of their bodies and this whole issue is just a reflection of that. What can be more natural than a mother feeding her children?
Breastfeeding in uniform freaks out a lot of people because it lets people realize there is a person inside the uniform. When I was in the Navy back in the days of oars we were told to respect the UNIFORN and do what we were told without question. This was to keep us enlisted cannon fodder from ever judging the competence of any officer. We were taught to assume every officer was competent. It mostly worked with me until I pulled duty on the riverboats on the Mekong. Mostly the officers stayed away but at least one of them effectively suicided because he was too indoctrinated to listen to mere swabbies about how to survive. Luckily he got offed before his pride got the rest of us killed. We lost two more killed and another wounded in that 30 second fight.
Back to the quandary. So long as we have women in the military some are going to become pregnant and have babies. Those babies have to be fed and that is why their breasts provide milk. As women are excluded from planned combat (our planning anyway. the Charlie’s like to pull ambushes set off mines) they should take care of their duties and their babies. Not necessarily in that order.
I just made my point. And you failed to address it. Here, let me quote it for you:
"The uniform is supposed to assure everyone that this female soldier is just like a man. But she isn't. She's a vulnerable mother with a still-more-vulnerable infant. Breastfeeding exposes that vulnerability, which is not exactly the image we want our military to project."
Tell me what's untrue about that.
Quote:
Originally Posted by pamelaBeurman
Should a woman have to give up a career that's she's worked hard for? No!
Hey, lady, men have to do this ALL THE TIME. Why should women be exempt?
Quote:
Originally Posted by pamelaBeurman
Should a woman's ONLY career choice be hearth and home? No
I agree. Who said otherwise? Why don't you try talking to me instead of the Archie Bunker caricature in your head.
Quote:
Originally Posted by pamelaBeurman
I get where you're coming from, you feel threatened. I just fail to see why.
You failed to get my point in the first place. And you fail to understand that I'm not threatened at all, just disgusted and appalled.
I'm for breastfeeding, 100%. Even in public when discreet.
But mothers of infants don't belong in uniform in the first place. That's what makes the picture so incongruous and bizarre.
The uniform is supposed to assure everyone that this female soldier is just like a man. But she isn't. She's a vulnerable mother with a still-more-vulnerable infant. Breastfeeding exposes that vulnerability, which is not exactly the image we want our military to project.
And a man traveling around the world, possibly getting killed, is responsible parenting? No parent should be in uniform. But that doesn't change the fact that they are. And they should be parents to the best of their limited ability while in service - and that includes breast feeding.
chlarolastra00 - You have that right. War is a young person's game and anyone with family responsibiites should be discharged or confined to stateside posts without the risk of combat. Male or female.
And a man traveling around the world, possibly getting killed, is responsible parenting? No parent should be in uniform. But that doesn't change the fact that they are. And they should be parents to the best of their limited ability while in service - and that includes breast feeding.
Actually, I agree with you with respect to short-term enlistments. (Men with military careers are in a different category.)
If we're too stupid to discharge mothers of young children, we ought to allow them to make motherhood their top priority while in uniform. It's the right thing to do. Of course this goes completely against the ethos of military life, and in large numbers would compromise our security - but such is the price of stupidity.
Does a female soldier have to change her uniform when SHE eats her dinner? Does she have to change her uniform when she gives her child a BOTTLE dinner? If not, then it should be no difference for feeding her breastfeeding baby dinner.
And a man traveling around the world, possibly getting killed, is responsible parenting? No parent should be in uniform. But that doesn't change the fact that they are. And they should be parents to the best of their limited ability while in service - and that includes breast feeding.
But let's be clear about one thing: the needs of infants and young children, and the demands they place on the mother (especially breastfeeding mothers), are unique. Motherhood and fatherhood are not interchangeable. And there is enough of a difference to justify discharging mothers and retaining fathers in this situation.
That is not say that new mothers are unsuitable for employment of any kind. There are many non-dangerous civilian jobs that can more easily accommodate the demands and priorities of motherhood. But soldiering isn't one of them.
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