GO ARMY

The U.S. Army commander in northern Iraq who prohibited pregnancy in his ranks defended his decision Monday, saying his female soldiers are "invaluable" and that he can't afford to lose anyone under his watch at a time when U.S. forces are already drawing down.

Maj. Gen. Anthony Cucolo insisted that those who violate the new rule would not face court martial, even though his new order lists pregnancy under a section of violations punishable by prosecution. So far, the punishments have been in the form of written letters of reprimand.

But he said the order is critical to the goal of keeping his "combat power together."

"I've got a 22,000-man task force and I need every soldier I've got. We are facing a drawdown and anyone that leaves earlier than the expected 12 months creates a burden on their teammates," Cucolo, head of Multi-National Division-North, told Fox News. "My female soldiers are invaluable -- many of them hold high impact jobs. In general, my troops are few in number and I need them all."

Cucolo told Fox News the new rule applies equally to men. "It's not in step with the warrior ethos," he said. "We have to keep an eye on every soldier and so men who break this rule are subject to the same punishments."

Cucolo's 22,000-person task force includes 1,682 women.

Since the rule was implemented Nov. 4, Cucolo said four women have gotten pregnant, leading to reprimands for seven people -- four women and three men. The fourth male was not identified and so was not punished. All of the violators got a written reprimand, but one of the men had that letter entered into his permanent record because he was married.

"That was adultery," Cucolo said.

Well done, ARMY.

I completely agree with this for no less than three reasons:

1) Women can't do everything a man can do.....and I don't think they should be in combat. If you are going to be in combat, don't get mad when you have to give up certain things, like getting pregnant.

2) WTF are you doing banging your comrades anyway??!! That is not part of "loyalty, duty, and selfless service." That's called, "I can't go a few months, or even a year, without thinking about getting off."

3) I absolutely LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that Maj. Gen. Anthony Cucolo had the balls to call out someone for adultery. In our effed-up moral compass kind of world that is a proclamation that needs to be heard. We should question what kind of authenticity and loyalty a man (or woman) will have within battle lines if they are willing to squash the most sacred and simple commitments that remains in our country.

4) There is a standing general order regarding sex among soldiers. The Major General is simply adding a real-life consequence to violating this order, promoting "thoughtful and responsible behavior among...soldiers."

Those liberal left-wingers are probably going to be screaming about this. "You can't tell a woman what she can do." "Who are you to restrict people to when and where they can get pregnant?"

Really, this issue has very little to do with women's lib or freedom. Being in and on the front lines (or close to them) is NOT a time when you should be contemplating your family size or lack their of. And how many of these random acts of sex are happening between married couples that are deployed together anyway? Hmmm? I'm guessing none.

I say, GO ARMY. I hope more commanders have the moral integrity to stand up for what is right.