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Thomas E. Ricks' daily take on national security.

Quote of the day: The nature of combat

No matter where you stand on the issue of women in the infantry, this comment by Sgt. (ret) Reuben Darby, in the September issue of the Marine Corps Gazette, is worth pondering: Having survived two combat tours in Vietnam with Marine reconnaissance units, I can guarantee to anyone favoring gender norming that the least-used muscle ...

By , a former contributing editor to Foreign Policy.
U.S. Marine Corps
U.S. Marine Corps
U.S. Marine Corps

No matter where you stand on the issue of women in the infantry, this comment by Sgt. (ret) Reuben Darby, in the September issue of the Marine Corps Gazette, is worth pondering:

No matter where you stand on the issue of women in the infantry, this comment by Sgt. (ret) Reuben Darby, in the September issue of the Marine Corps Gazette, is worth pondering:

Having survived two combat tours in Vietnam with Marine reconnaissance units, I can guarantee to anyone favoring gender norming that the least-used muscle in ground combat is the trigger finger. Ground combat is where Marines are pulling radios, rocket launchers, M240s, ammo crates, and each other through windows or onto rooftops after sprinting down alleys and side streets.

Thomas E. Ricks is a former contributing editor to Foreign Policy. Twitter: @tomricks1

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