Is Your Wife Considering Joining the Military?

A new discussion over in the forums asks, "What can I do to help my wife decide whether to join the military?" Click here to read the post and replies and share your own hard-won wisdom.

Women at War - Two Pieces in the New York Times

Two great articles in a series called "Women at Arms" in the New York Times, one today and one yesterday, have highlighted the roles women play in Iraq and Afghanistan: GI Jane Breaks the Combat Barrier and Living and Fighting Alongside Men, and Fitting In.

Each examines a different area of how our military has changed in recent years. Some of the changes are cultural. We, in the West, are used to women serving in the armed forces, just as we take it for granted that women work outside the home. (That's not the case for the Iraqis.)

Other changes have been forced upon female soldiers, and upon the Army and Marine Corps. The nature of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have obliterated the notion of "the front line": every time you leave the base, you're on the front line. And there is also much demand for women to perform certain operations, such as searching Iraqi women at checkpoints.

They also examine the challenges faced by female service members. There are times when they can feel very alone. And there are times when they feel very unsafe. It is an unfortunate truth that women in the United States military have to protect themselves not only from the enemy, but also from the soldiers along whose side they fight. Sexual harassment and sexual assault haven't disappeared from the battlefield, in spite of the gains we've made.

As a military husband, I found both articles very informative. Of course, I have to admit that I'm glad, once again, that my wife is in the Navy.

We're in the News

Terri Barnes over at Stars and Stripes has been really supportive of military husbands. She's written several pieces focusing on us. Last month, she published a couple more items, and we wanted to share them here:

From Stars and Stripes: These Dads Happy to Stay Home

From the Spouse Calls blog: Dads Love Being at Home

Thanks Terri!

Open Call for Ideas

I don't know if I've mentioned it here before, but I write a column for Military Spouse Magazine, and we're getting ready to make some cool changes to it (the column), and I'm looking for some ideas on what to write about.

What are some of the things you'd like to read about as male spouses? What do you wish someone had told you when you were new to the military husband life?

I'd love to read your thoughts (and steal them!). Thanks.

Where Have We Been?

Well, it's summer time, and summer time means traveling, and that's what we've been doing. In the mainstream publishing world, the old joke is that during the summer months people work short days and short weeks and take long lunches and long weekends. It would seem that we in the digital publishing fringe are also susceptible to the call of the beach, road trips, and afternoon beers.

We'll try to pick things up here. In the meantime, get going on the discussions page!