Letter: No need for women to be put into combat

For an apparently learned man, Carter is, in my opinion, implementing a policy that can only weaken the units that actually fight our wars.

In no way am I disparaging women or their capabilities, but are they really sure this is what they want? Have I missed a protest outside the Pentagon by women claiming to be mistreated by not being about to endure the horrors that define the essence of war? Are women to be assigned as volunteers or arbitrarily by random selection?

Is this what President Barack Obama had in mind for his young daughters? Or is it just for other people's daughters?

Carter has a doctorate in theoretical physics from Harvard and taught there as well for years. I don't believe he has ever been on the receiving end of a barrage of automatic weapons fire, nor has he ever experienced the unspeakable tragedies that define the battlefield.

The realities of combat bear no resemblance to the video games or the manner in which it is portrayed in Hollywood movies. The impressions of war are permanently etched in your mind and rarely take a day off.

Women in the military do great work in so many critical areas. I just don't believe they need to be in combat.

Kevin Baruth

Bluffton

This story was originally published December 16, 2015 at 10:19 PM with the headline "Letter: No need for women to be put into combat."