Best Defense

Thomas E. Ricks' daily take on national security.

McCoy on the Marines and women

Former Marine Sgt. Alexander McCoy, a member of the Best Defense Council of the Former Enlisted, has a good article in the New York Times on how the Marine Corps could deal better with women.

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Former Marine Sgt. Alexander McCoy, a member of the Best Defense Council of the Former Enlisted, has a good article in the New York Times on how the Marine Corps could deal better with women.

His conclusion: “If our leaders are serious about making the Marine Corps the best it can be, and if they want to avoid repeated scandals, they must change the culture. They should start by fully integrating recruit training, instituting gender-neutral standards and making clear up and down the chain of command that this kind of behavior isn’t a joke or a normal part of building cohesion but a weakness — and a betrayal of our core values of honor, courage and commitment.”

Photo credit: CORY SMITH/Flickr

Thomas E. Ricks covered the U.S. military from 1991 to 2008 for the Wall Street Journal and then the Washington Post. He can be reached at ricksblogcomment@gmail.com. Twitter: @tomricks1

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