THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, September 29, 1995 TAG: 9509290012
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A14 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: Short : 40 lines
Hilary Wynne contends (``Women are men's equals,'' letter, Sept. 19) that it is the fault of the military, and men in general, that Shannon Faulkner quit The Citadel.
However, U.S. Army form DA 705 is the Army physical-fitness scorecard. This form sets the standards all soldiers must meet to be considered fit to serve. The Army Physical Fitness Test consists of three events: the push-up event, the sit-up event and the two-mile run. In each event, the soldier has a specific time limit to do the required minimum. The standards are set according to the soldiers' age and sex. A female soldier is required to do 18 push-ups to get a minimum passing score. In the sit-up event, a female soldier must complete a minimum of 50 reps. A female soldier must complete the two-mile run in 18:54. To my understanding, Miss Faulkner could not meet any of the minimum standards that thousands of female soldiers meet every day.
In a recent interview with Barbara Walters, Miss Faulkner admitted to being too overweight to meet Army standards. If Miss Faulkner could not meet the basic Army physical-fitness requirements, what made her believe that she could meet the harsh physical demands of The Citadel?
Recently, a group of buddies and I were discussing the bad press the Army has been getting due to the Faulkner debacle. One soldier, who is Airborne qualified, said, ``If a person doesn't have the intestinal fortitude to join our ranks, he or she should get out. It's a real cheap shot to blame your fellow soldiers because you can't hack the lifestyle.''
This statement impressed us greatly. You see, the soldier who made the statement, the one who is qualified to wear the Airborne tab, was female.
Spc. RICK MOLITAS
Norfolk, Sept. 20, 1995 by CNB