Battle of sexes

Lieutenant-Colonel Stuart Crawford (Letters, 10 May) makes it clear that women make excellent armed forces personnel. Those who object to their having a front-line role are letting down the movement for reducing the inequality that is still perceived relative to men across society as a whole. Further narrowing of the male-female gap should be welcomed.

Or perhaps the possibility that the “gentle sex” – in addition to killing the enemy at a distance from airplanes and ships – will actually have to shoot or even bayonet the foe at close quarters and be shot at or bayoneted themselves is the issue? Such combat still seems unavoidable, as the Defence Force march through Elgin recently emphasised – the servicemen having held off a vicious ground-attack in Afghanistan. Our servicewomen have already been killed there – by IEDs, which take out people regardless of their sex.

Joe Darby

Cullicudden
Dingwall, Ross-shire