Commentary: Give deaf and hard-of-hearing Americans a chance to serve

Just as we have seen with African-Americans, women, and the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, an important piece of the equal rights fight in the United States is allowing people who were previously denied access to the military in — integrating troops, serving in combat and openly being able to serve one’s country. via…

Just as we have seen with African-Americans, women, and the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, an important piece of the equal rights fight in the United States is allowing people who were previously denied access to the military in — integrating troops, serving in combat and openly being able to serve one’s country.

via Commentary: Give deaf and hard-of-hearing Americans a chance to serve.

Can we just STAHP! with the social engineering for one brief moment?

The military does not exist to provide a social platform for every grievance community. It exists to fight wars.

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  1. Bill Nance

    Most stupid idea to be proposed in a while. Hey genius: If you can’t hear the guy behind you screaming “STOP!” you’re a danger to yourself and others in the kinds of hazardous situations which are commonplace even in a peace-time military.

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  2. HalfEmpty

    WHAT?
    Oh FIRE!

    Oh, wire, never mind.

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  3. jjak

    Oddly enough, many people enter the military with normal hearing and lose a fair bit along the way.

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  4. Shaun Evertson

    C’mon guys, think it through. Save a ton of money on audiograms and hearing protection.

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  5. jam2

    h8r….
    WHAT!??

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  6. Tarl

    I am totally deaf in one ear. In my view, I have no right whatsoever to endanger others by serving. Undoubtedly I could do a rear-echelon desk job and not endanger anyone else, but I see no reason to change the rules to let me do so unless there is some kind of all-out national mobilization.

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  7. Tarl

    Next up — legislation to allow the blind, quadriplegics, and toddlers to serve in the military. Because fairness and equality!

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  8. Shu

    Lost a good bit of hearing over the years and spent 23 in the Army, so I can speak with some authority here! All politicians that vote for social change should go to combat in the squad they themselves changed! The military is for combat. That is what we train for and what we do. Go play your social games elsewhere!

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  9. PatG

    Only two things matter:
    1) Setting appropriate standards for each MOS/TQ.
    2) Sticking to them.

    What doesn’t matter: The colour of your skin, what parts you have in your pants, what you do with your dick or your tits on your off hours, what god you believe in or don’t , who you vote for or don’t.

    If you can carry a full combat load in combat conditions and carry out combat duties then yes, you should get to go combat arms even if you are a black lesbian atheist democrat. If you can’t, then no combat arms for you. But there is also no reason why a deaf person cannot serve as a supply officer or other non-combat role. Frankly I have more respect for someone who genuinely wants to serve however they can than some chicken hawk politician hiding behind someone else’s kid’s bayonet.

    Liked by 1 person

  10. Pave Low John

    Did someone just suggest “setting standards and sticking to them”?

    Hah hah ahahhaha….!

    Oh…you were serious? Uh, okay. Good luck with that….

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  11. PatG

    A guy can dream……. 😉

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  12. Quartermaster

    I think we should be giving arthritic 60 year olds a chance at flight school. It’s so unfair that I should be sitting at home dreaming wistfully about this when those young know nothings get a clear shot at it. So unfair.

    Liked by 1 person

  13. diogenesofnj

    If your propensity is to stick your dick in my asshole, you don’t belong in my outfit.

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  14. Esli

    There is a good reason why a deaf person shouldn’t be in the army, even in supply. They can’t hear! After 26 years in the army, I have significant hearing loss. I can tell you that it effects my ability to do my job to the extent that if it gets much worse, I will just voluntarily get out. How does a deaf person talk on the radio? Oh, I guess he is special and doesn’t have to go to the field. Someone else can do that job. We will lock down all the rear area jobs for deaf people that will just talk in ASL to each other all day long and never answer the phone.

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  15. Casey Tompkins

    Absolutely, QM! Not only do we Olde Fartes deserve an opportunity, we’re more reliable than the kids* anyway. We’ve already worked the foolishness out of our systems.

    *Anyone under 30.

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  16. Jeff Gauch

    diogenesofnj: Of course rapists shouldn’t be part of the military, bad for morale and such.

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  17. Jeff Gauch

    Frankly, if the job can verify done by a deaf person we should seriously consider making it a civilian contractor job. If it can’t be done by a deaf person, why the hell are we having this conversation?

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  18. LT Rusty

    If the job can be done by a deaf person, chances are it’s shore duty, or whatever you call it for the other branches.

    What happens when the guys have to rotate back off sea duty? Where do you put them when you’ve filled the support billets with people not qualified for sea duty?

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  19. PatG

    Now that is a fair observation LT Rusty.

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  20. Quartermaster

    Absoposilutely!

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  21. diogenesofnj

    Jeff Gauch: So we should kick all of the men out to make the women feel safe. You boys just keep fooling yourselves. You deserve what you get.

    Like

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