Who the hell is "humiliated" by peeing? They don't make everyone gather round the bush you choose.

Got to change that headline to "shitting" which is the focus of the article and the comments there - lots and lots of expected scatological comments you can click through to read since I won't steal that thunder here (ha).

It is extremely insulting to our servicemen and servicewomen to assume that they are so unprofessional, and so poorly trained, that they can not handle serving next to a person who is of the opposite gender, or race, or sexual orientation, or whatever.

Especially on the front lines, where they are in such danger and must rely on each other. The idea that a soldier would stop and think about a fellow soldier's gender before doing their combat duty is ridiculous.

I am having a hard time thinking of a graver insult to our soldiers than implying they would let other soldiers die, or the mission suffer due to their own personal bullshit.

Women have already effectively been involved in combat in Iraq, Afghanistan (and, I believe, Kuwait during the Gulf War.)

American women been shot and killed in combat: the only change is an acknowledgement of that courage and work, with the benefits (combat pay?) that come with that service.

When U.S. women were killed or wounded in combat, I don't recall one article about the humiliation of peeing.

Somehow that escaped my notice,

No less the notice of

Ladda Tammy Duckworth (born 1968) is an American politician and the U.S. Representative for Illinois's 8th congressional district. She is the first Asian-American woman elected to Congress in Illinois, the first disabled woman to be elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, and the first member of Congress born in Thailand...

An Iraq War veteran, Duckworth served as a U.S. Army helicopter pilot and suffered severe combat wounds, losing both of her legs and damaging her right arm. She was the first female double amputee from the war.

Go ask Congresswoman Duckworth about the humiliation of peeing in a combat zone, you lily-livered cowards at the Wall Street Journal.

I always wonder if people who write editorials like this have met any actual marines. They are not as a rule very body conscious.

Soldiers are such delicate flowers, known the world over for their picky personal manners and easily offended sensibilities. Remember that shocking scene in "The Green Berets" where John Wayne freaks out over an improperly-placed dessert spoon during the Paratroopers' Garden Brunch?

Look, anyone who spends their time watching you relieve yourself in the field is a perv.

They were before.

They still are.

Doesn't matter if they're the same or a different gender.

But, hey, that's just my observational recollection of being in the field in the Army.

Can you imagine how bad war movies are going to suck now? I mean, they'll have to show women as soldiers and not merely as nursy love interests.
*zing

"Dear N Korea:
The people of the united states are tots about to attack your country. We're only waiting for our all-lady army to sync up their menstrual cycles so they'll be really bitchy when we unleash them upon you.

Please make sure you're country is free of bears by then. You know about bears and vagina blood, right?"
*yucka yucka yucka

Man, I thought things were gonna be way worse once Susie joined the front. Now I'm glad she's here. No one bakes up rations like little Susie does. The latrines have never been cleaner. What's her secret?
*ba bump bump

Stupid.

War is hell, but could you imagine "being in the field" with W-i-S?

I don't understand how gendered restrooms are constitutional (state constitution).

But men peeing in front of each other is totally gay.

Regarding peeing, a "Sani-fem Freshette" (or similar product) enables women to pee standing up. As for taking a dump, that's equally "demeaning" (if you want to call it that) for both men and women. Either way, it's not a big deal.

Is it just me, or are these big, burly, he-man soldier-types beginning to sound like whimpering little six year-olds?

"Sergeant, I can't go Number 1, 'cuz Cpl. Ladybits might see my pee-pee!"

Have these tough-guys never been on a week-long hiking trip with a female before? Because, IME these sorts of pre-adolescent inhibitions disappear pretty fast once you get a few miles down the trail.

So is the WSJ worried that lady Marines won't be able to piss on dead enemies as easily as their male colleagues?

Sounds like the author suffers from embarrassing tiny dick syndrome and assumes everyone wants to hide their willy at all costs.

Confirmed: The Wall Street Journal is run by 12 year olds.

@6,
Brilliant!

I say that any warfighter who's going to be counting on a teammate in combat but is unable to shrug off any bad feelings about peeing in his or her presence just like that unfit for duty regardless of gender.

Remember Adam Baldwin & Dorian Harewood in Full Metal Jacket? Animal Mother "I am Become Death: The Shatterer of Worlds" would just spew this racist garbage and 8-Ball loved him. He came back with, "Under fire, Animal Mother here's one of the finest human beings around. All he needs is someone to throw grenades at him the rest of his life." That's the kind of comradeship you can and should expect of members of a fireteam.

This is a ridiculous argument, but it wasn't written by the WSJ editorial board. It was written by Ryan Smith who "served as a Marine infantryman in Iraq. He is now an attorney." [WSJ]

So...I'm a veteran. I never went to war, but I did pee in front of men. There was one bathroom in the male barracks, and I got drunk once in a while and wanted to pee, so I did (no door on the stall). :)

@17: No offense to you personally, but "warfighter" has to be one of the most bullshit euphemisms of the new army. What's wrong with soldier? Does it imply too much professionalism and ye olde rules of engagement?

There is this awesome thing I use backpacking/camping/backcountry snowboarding called a Go Girl that enables ladies to pee just like the bros. Some people need to get over themselves.

@18 look, the people who resisted women in combat the most, at least in the Canadian Army, were the oldest people. Everybody else didn't have a problem with it. People stuck in their paradigm of what "should be".

Change happens. Deal with it.

@23 I don't know what The Diva cup is, nor,as a gay man, do I particularly care to, but I will say that going on the pill full time implies a reliable supply line to get it to you.

Also, are you suggesting that service ought to be conditional on going on contraception? Not that I'm saying it would be such a bad idea, but I can imagine the political brouhaha over that one.

If you've ever run marathons or ultra marathons you know that at certain events the facilities are few or non-existent, as is cover. My M/F running group has no problem with mixed peeing.

Doesn't make a real difference, but they were referring to pooping, not peeing. Reading is fundamental.

Two words: "About...FACE!"

@24: The services started offering Norplants to female troops >20 years ago when I was in. One of my female friends, who was a cargo plane crewchief and therefore deployable, went to get it and was warned (properly) "If you go on this, you probably won't have periods for one to two years." Her response was "Where do I sign?!"

And frankly, for someone who purports to be a gay man and a veteran, you're throwing a huge hissy here and elsewhere on Slog over women being allowed into combat positions while ignoring the fact that your ostensible sexual orientation would have been grounds for immediate discharge up to a bit over a year ago. (And a General or Bad Conduct discharge prior to Clinton and DADT.)

I can't figure out if you're taking the piss or if you're actually blind to the fact that you're tossing out variations on the same bullshit arguments that barred gay people from the military for decades. And I honestly can't decide which of the two options is nastier.

@20: While I agree the term 'warfighters' is a little contrived, it's shorter than "soldiers, sailors, marines and airmen." And a bit guttier.

By "relieve yourself" they mean masturbate, right?

@24: You know they got other birth control methods other than the pill, right? Like, hormonal implants? IUDs?

Are we really talking about worrying how women's periods can be managed in a civilized manner? We've been bleeding for millennia. If we can't get tampons or pads, shit can be improvised. It's fine.

Yeah, I guess it would be kind of awkward, since women don't poop.