Unless you live in a highly isolated environment where you don't spend too much time reading and understanding the nation you serve & live amongst others in the military in these co-ed quasi-monastic cloisters known as government quarters (yes, I'm looking at you DC GOFO community), you are well aware that the last place to look for any advice on issues of "gender" related issues is academia.
Only a fool would ask academia for advice here, or someone who was a true believer and wanted a club to beat the pagans with until they convert.
Maybe a bit of both.
Of course, just like in corporate America where the weakest senior leadership fears their HR department more than the board of directors or shareholders, most of the senior uniformed and civilian leadership fear no one more than the embedded commissars from the diversity industry that infect our N1/personnel shops from Millington to The Pentagon.
Especially over the last 20-years, the nomenklatura has been focused on nothing more than increasing the numbers of their co-religionists in GS/SES billets - it helps their either convert, promote, or destroy uniformed leadership who do or do not align with their diktat.
With the increasing numbers of these otherwise unemployable people - mostly from academia - absorbing billets and funding, their self-reinforcing power structures are making it almost impossible for all but the best bureaucratic irregular warfare experts to avoid, delay, or say "no" to their latest agenda item.
Like a well placed mine, they wait for the moment to be just right to make a recommendation to send money to their co-religionists to further support their evangelism.
Just another reminder this week, as it seems a story is breaking above the background noise days that has been around for a few years. Let's give it a quick review because it is just another example to reference in the future.
First of all, some background.
The USMC was looking for some advice after getting tired of the knife in their back and the lack of top-cover from DOD/DON in the Trump Administration, so what did they do?
As well covered by our friend Hope Hodge Seck;
The independent study was commissioned in 2020 as the Marine Corps faced a directive from Congress to make boot camp training fully coed at both Marine Corps recruit depots within eight years.
University of Pittsburgh’s Neuromuscular Research Laboratory and Warrior Human Performance Research Center was tasked, under a $2 million contract, to “analyze combinations of gender-integrated training and make recommendations for models that integrate genders to the greatest extent possible while continuing to train Marines to established standards,” the service announced at the time. Marine Corps Times obtained the study, completed in June, through a public records request.
Remember, much of what you need to know in life you should have learned from "The Lost Boys;"
The USMC invited the vampires, what did they expect would happen?
Of course, what did the USMC get for their trouble?
“Employing gender-neutral identifiers eliminates the possibility of misgendering drill instructors, which can unintentionally offend or cause discord. By teaching recruits to use gender-neutral identifiers for their drill instructors, Services underscore the importance of respecting authoritative figures regardless of gender.”
Hall said the Marine Corps was working to change the training materials highlighted by the University of Pittsburgh study, but expressed concern about making any moves that would put boot camp practices out of step with fleet ones.
“All of a sudden, we change something at recruit training, and recruits start coming in and using a different identifier. It’s not something we would change overnight,” he told Marine Corps Times following the advisory committee meeting. “Again, we’ve got a history of ‘sir, ma’am, sir, ma’am. If we change something at the root level, how do we make the corresponding change at the Fleet Marine Force? So it’s not ours to implement alone.”
Over two+ years and $2-million dollars sent to support, expand, and justify - I am sure - no small number of the least value added Pitt employees to give you a result I could have told you they would give you in 2-days of email exchanges for free.
The left is so predictable ... but they are also quite good at what they do.
As is their tradition, they know very well how people who will engage in battle with the enemy with their lives on the line with style and verve will melt in the face of a determined commissar.
On top of 1980s vampire movies, most of what you need to know about life can be found in Dr. Zhivago - as Comrade Razin reminded us all;
Liberius:
[Liberius and Razin are debating whether or not to allow Zhivago's release]
I command this unit!
Razin, Liberius' Lieutenant:
We command jointly! The Party Bulletin expressly states...
Liberius:
Bah!
[knocks bulletin out of Razin's hands]
Liberius:
I could have you taken out and shot!
Razin, Liberius' Lieutenant:
And could you have The Party taken out and shot? Understand this: as the military struggle draws to a close, the political struggle intensifies. In the hour of victory, the military will have served its purpose - and all men will be judged POLITICALLY - regardless of their military record! Meanwhile, there are still White units in this area - the Doctor stays.
You are either a fool or a co-religionist if you are outsourcing your personnel decisions to academia in this century. Remember, these are the people who are trying to decolonize light.
It is so weird, when I was a kid the creationist goobers all had bibles. Now they have "genders," and as far as I can tell, said "genders" consist of what we used to call "sexist sterotypes" about haircuts, clothing, and behaviors. those choices of hair and clothes and hobbies being what we referred to as "having a personality" back in the olden days before TikTok.
You're not wrong to call it a religious cult, either. "Gender" has filled several gaps where religion used to inhabit American liberalism. A "gender identity" is a kind of soul, nonbelievers are shunned and punished like the Amish, people who leave the cult are treated as paraiahs like Scientology, and a whole new special priest class is elevated above the rest of us mortals, protected by the new blasphemy rules.
Why would anyone listen to fools such as these? To grab their loyalty, and those of their students, would be my guess. Get their loyalty, get their votes.
For the students, I should think that listening to mythology is much easier, and more entertaining than learning physics.
This is not going to turn out well.