Letters to the Editor, Thursday, April 22, 2010

I hate to burst the specialist’s bubble ("How military views female GIs," letter, April 13), but what the Army worries about is protecting its females from sexual assault in a combat zone, which is less likely to happen to a male (not just pregnancies).

All the combatives training in the world won’t matter if you are taken by surprise by someone who is much larger and stronger than you are. There is a reason fighting sports like boxing and Ultimate Fighting Championship have weight classes: You can be the greatest fighter in your weight class but, when someone who is much larger than you gets you down on the ground, where brute strength and weight come into play, your skills aren’t going to help you much.

Combatives and other defensive training is good to have, and they definitely increase a female’s chance of surviving an attack, but a single, smaller target increases the odds of something bad happening.

I know we would all love to believe it doesn’t or wouldn’t happen, but we all know it does. If I were going to walk into a rough part of town somewhere, I would want a buddy with me, because a solo target is a much easier target. A female walking alone in a dark or isolated area of a base is asking for trouble. Use common sense and be safe.

Dennis SinclairForward Operating Base Fenty, Afghanistan

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