Editor, Commonwealth:
I remember that during the Vietnam War there was only a single female in the U.S. Navy flight program in Pensacola, Florida. It made big news.
Today, females are 13 percent of the military. Last year, two young women completed the U.S. Army Ranger School. Armed women are in the city police forces all across the nation now. Last month, police officer Betty Shelby shot and killed an unarmed black man in Tulsa, Oklahoma. This month, two officers were shot and killed in California. One was a Hispanic man, and one was a 27-year-old white woman. They are, in fact, equal in death. Obviously, all the women mentioned above have disproven the notion of a “helpless female.”
The polls and pundits are predicting that Hillary Clinton will be our next president. If the glass ceiling is finally broken, does she hold her gender to be equal or just herself? I would like to know. How does she view women demonstrating their patriotism?
The divorce rate is high, and the birth rate is low. Today, all healthy males, when they reach 18, are required to register with the Selective Service. It may be considered by some that the word “selective” is extreme when 51 percent of the population is excluded.
As commander in chief, will Clinton require all healthy young women to register for the draft? As a lawyer, does she support the blatant sexism of Selective Service? A young man who is a 5-foot-2, 110-pound jockey must register, but a young woman who is a 6-foot-2, 180-pound basketball player does not have to.
The rhetoric of equality is sweet in a political campaign but can be bitter in reality. Perhaps at the final debate in a couple of days between Hillary and Donald, someone could ask her, because anyone with a daughter would like to know.
Preston Cantner
McCarley
