to be on the LA SWAT team?  Okay feminist readers, hold on.  I know that is a loaded question.  Let me explain before you rip my bra off and burn it (I am smiling while typing that..).  The LA SWAT team has never had a woman officer.  The elite 43 man force has always been just that men.  Not because they don’t let women apply, but because no women who have applied have been able to pass the physical requirement.  What trips them up?  The Marine obstacle course. 

Because of this–the new director of LA SWAT is trying to get the physical requirement waived for women.  Yes just for women.  The wives of the SWAT officers are up in arms–as are probably the officers and all men who fail the course as well.  The wives say it is a risk that should not be taken with anyone’s life.  The media of course pitched this story to make it sound like the wives didn’t want there to be any women SWAT officers.  That, surprisingly, isn’t so. The wives don’t want the requirements to be changed.  I happen to agree with them.  There are certain jobs that require a certain amount of physical strength and ability.  This is one of them. 

I take issue with the media for skewing the real issues of this story.  It is about something beyond adding a woman to the SWAT team.  I was thinking about this issue.  The Marine obstacle course is what the women can’t seem to conquer.  Is it really unfair?  Biased towards men?  Maybe–but last time I checked there were female Marines.  So, it must not be impossible.  FBI officers have to pass the course too (at least they use to but I am pretty sure they have to now as well)–and there are female FBI agents.  The problem is that women who are physically capable–aren’t applying.  Eventually one will, but don’t compromise the lives of others because you want a woman to be on SWAT. 

I am sure women police officers who want to be SWAT are the ones calling for change–the news didn’t cover that part of the story–just the part about the wives not wanting women on SWAT.  I don’t see any media bias there, do you?  Is it really our right to have any job we want?  If so, I want to be a taste tester for Ben & Jerry.  We think and are constantly told we can do anything we want.  We can’t be discriminated against, etc.  But you can only do anything you want if you can actually do it.  I can only be a fire fighter if I can do the actual job.  Not just because I want to be one. 

I can only be a doctor if I can do the job, not just because I want to.  I get really frustrated by folks screaming foul–not because they have really been mistreated, but because they cannot do what they want–not because someone won’t let them, but because they really can’t do it.  I wanted to be a veterinarian but suck at math and chemistry.  I had to accept that I didn’t have the ability.  I could have probably worked really hard and made it through, but I didn’t want it bad enough.  I am sad that we somehow as a people feel entitled to anything we want.  We think we deserve to have a job–that it is our right to have the job we want.  It is our right to be able to apply for any job we want that we are qualified for.  If we aren’t qualified–we have to accept that.  So, SWAT wannabes–become qualified.