How will we, should we, proceed on this? Transgender troops in direct combat MOSs.

COL Charles Williams I believe that the service branches will get through this issue and the concerns that have been raised on a number of different subjects (housing, Physical Fitness, MOS that women can and can't be in, medication and prescriptions necessary, the whole area of medical treatment and physicals, psychological training for professional within the medical field; disorder, razing, and discrimination complaints against transgender and the handling of these complaints, chaplain duties and responsibilities, and even right down to mandatory urinalysis (Drug Testing) Programs; and the list may go on. All of these areas and more will go through detailed scrutiny over the next 6 months and most of it will be flushed out before any band is lifted and the final regulations and decisions are released. My personal feeling is whatever an individual’s gender, if they can meet the standards of the required specialties or MOS then they should be allowed to serve no matter whether they are in gender transition or they have fully transitioned. If they have already served this country for a good number of years then they should be allowed to finish their careers with peace of mind that they will be treated with respect, no matter what their final gender is or will be. The transgender issue is much deeper than most of us really understand unless you've walked in those shoes, so it is difficult for me to even image what they have gone through their entire life growing up not understanding what was going on with their bodies, minds, and emotions. I will not judge any gender or individual indifferently and I don't think any of our fellow service members should either, especially if they truly don't understand everything about it why it happened, or how it came to transpire.

Sir,
First and foremost, we will do what we always do, make a policy and adhere to it. We did it with DADT, then with the revocation of DADT. As American Society changes, so will us, as a reflection of American Society change.

Transgender People make up a Statistically small section of American Society. As such, their impact on the Military will be very small. Just like the impact of women on the Military was small (15% service-wide, even though 50% of population). Just like the impact of Homosexuals was a "Non-issue" to quote one of our Generals.

It is my belief that "we" (the military) are making a proverbial mountain out of a molehill because we do not understand the issue. That is not to say valid concerns are not being raised, and lots of great questions are not being asked, however there are lots of extremely "poor taste" questions being asked as well, that based solely on ignorance. This statement is not being addressed at anyone in particular, however when people (in general) do not understand things, they tend to ask EVERYTHING, to come to grips as quickly as possible. There is just so much bad information out there regarding transgender, it is almost impossible to separate the wheat from the chaff.

Simply put a Transgender person, is someone who does not "identify" as their birth gender. That's it. It does not mean they want to "transition" (become) the other gender (physically). Many people link the two, but that is not necessarily correct.

As for DoD or Military policy, it will really be a matter of accommodation. What accommodation will be made? That is the question.

"If" we acknowledge that Transgender is not "Transitioning" then opening Serving is not an issue. Birth gender is used for all normal standards, whether PT, Health, Uniform, etc.

The complexities arise when "transitioning" (aka Hormone therapy) come into play. That alters "physiology" which is a Medical Issue. We already make Medical Accommodations based on Physical & Health issues. If someone is not able to run, we grant partial PFTs or use a Swim test instead. This would be no different. However, the DoD may just "prohibit" a Service Member from "transitioning" WHILE Serving. This eliminates nearly all of the (valid) issues that many Service Members have presented regarding integration.

As for quarters, and hygiene facilities, my personal take, is that we are stuck in the 1950s, and we need to move away from the "bay" philosophy, and just integrate already. We need to either provide fully individualized facilities across the board, or we need to go completely co-ed. Either will remove "gender bias" (a term which I am not fond of).

In essence, we are making this issue far more complex than we need to. We are assuming things that need not be assumed. We are falling into the same traps we fell into several times before regarding integration (Race, Gender, Sexual Preference), which have proven to be non-issues. Sooner or later, we just need to break the habit, and realize being "militant" about things isn't a 100% job.

I know this is a touchy subject for a lot of people, but what I believe is that if a woman can hold her own in a combat situation and be able to meet the physical requirements for such a situation, then they should be allowed in. Although, from a genetics stand point, women tend to be weaker than men, I would not let them in. As a firefighter, our job is physically demanding, less than a combat situation, but you are still on the fire ground, pulling of lines, dragging bodies out, staying on that hand line spitting out 150 to 200 psi, etc. Can a woman do it? Yes. Are most women physically capable? No. What everything boils down to is this: Can a woman withstand the intensity, the adversity, the physical/mental/ and emotional portion that a man can, could, or is willing to do? That is the real question I believe.