Transgender Individuals Should Be Allowed To Serve Openly In The Military.

Lets start by defining the lines between prejudice and the upholding of standards REQUIRED for active military service. We have to bear in mind here that the goal of the military is not to end discrimination in America; it is to actively engage enemy forces and defeat them in battle. That is the goal of the Armed Forces, and, as simply as I can state this, there are some things that preclude service in battle, and indeed should. Things that, on the surface, may seem unfair are nevertheless best for the good of the Service and its requirements in battle. These include things like being pregnant. You cannot join the Service if you are pregnant because sending women into combat pregnant would place them at potentially severe disadvantages in face of the enemy, not too mention, I know not a single honorable serving member of the armed forces would not take tremendous and potentially tactically stupid risks to prevent injury to a pregnant woman. A single criminal conviction can also prevent you from serving, even if was an error in judgment that was singular, fully repented, time served, and your character is spotless. You are competing slots in the Service with members who do not have that blemish mark, and the goal, once again, is to field the most capable force possible. The one that is perhaps most important in defining this issue is he medical aspect. As we see, issues with genitalia are severely discriminatory when seeking to serve in the military. http://www.military.com... A fully transgender individual has, by definition, undergone a major surgery. It’s a surgery that has completely transformed a portion of the body that is, to put it mildly, incredibly important to the proper functioning of the human body. There is little sense in taking risks from competing individuals who have had major surgeries verses those who have not. That is a no brainer. Even transgender individuals who have not had surgery, nevertheless has other obstacles to overcome: http://tgmentalhealth.com... One of the major requirements for successful service is mental resiliency. The problems encountered by Bradley (Chelsea) Manning, as he struggled with his gender identity were problematic for unit cohesion and struggle for his superiors to manage. The additional assignment to combat zones in the middle of that identity crisis only made the entire issue, as well as giving Manning the support he required during such a crisis while in a war zone, were immense and complicated. “Manning eventually came out to Capt. Michael Worsley and emailed the therapist a photo of himself dressed as a woman, wearing a blonde wig and lipstick. The photo was attached to a letter titled “My problem,” in which Manning describes his problems with gender identity and his hope that a military career would “get rid of it.” Worsley testified at Manning’s sentencing hearing at Fort Meade, near Baltimore. He said the soldier had little to no support base.” http://dekerivers.wordpress.com... The military, despite popular misconception, has a finite amount of resources and, quite literally, global requirements within which to apply those resources. To create the required health care base, including hormone treatments (etc.), coupled with the potential risks of major surgery to correct the issues successfully, is simply a risk and expense that the military need not take. There are other applicants who do not require these expenses or entail these medical risks willing to serve and compete for a finite number and Congressionally limited number of slots. The entire concept that the military has to adjust to the individual rather than the individual to the service indicates a fundamental misunderstanding of what the military is there for: to fight and win wars. Everyone who enters military service is going to comply with military standards. https://www.fas.org... There is no judgment placed upon transgender individuals. The military, however, recognizes the challenges faced by such individuals, and has acknowledged that those challenges are a risk that a force committed to sending the most capable forces possible need to tangle with at this time. Is the system fair in every sense of the word? No. Its standards exist to deliberately stratify the applicants for military service and select the most capable from the pool of applicants. Transgender individuals bring with them risks that non-transgender applicants do not. As far as the military is concerned, that is all there is too it. I have an applicant with no medical requirements of issues in maintaining good order and discipline verses one that requires medical treatments like hormone therapy, possibly major surgery, and presents integration challenges to military leadership. Its not discrimination, its stratification.