As early as 2015, women could finally start preparing for combat roles in the military. New plans, already approved by Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, lay out a timetable for female soldiers to begin training as Army Rangers and Navy SEALs and include possible changes to mental and physical standards—one for male soldiers, one for female—to qualify for certain front-line jobs. The initiative comes after the suggestion, made earlier this year, that the disparity caused by keeping women out of combat might have something to do with the military’s rampant sexual-assault problem.
