Originally Posted by
tartare
Exactly.
For goodness sake - if a person can fly an aircraft, shoot straight or sail, and is a good team player- who cares?!
Small minds preoccupied with what others do in the bedroom or the way they think about themselves.
All I care about is whether my fellows human beings do a good job. Couldn't give a **** if they wear a skirt or speak with a lisp...
Unfortunately a lot of people care and make their feelings known. We have a trans gender PC where I work but the roles she can do are limited because of people's prejudice and attitudes. She used to be a response officer but when she tried to go back to that she lasted one shift because of vitriol from the public which tested her patience almost to breaking point. There are also problems with colleagues. I'm pretty open minded but I was surprised by the hard nosed attitude of one of my colleagues when the topic of this officer came up in conversation. There is also the practical problem of which toilet or changing room to use as female PCs don't like to share with someone who they still think of as a man. I can't imagine that these problems and attitudes are any different among the armed forces than they are among the police and general public.