It's a potent environment, with female soldiers working - and living - under hostile conditions with their male counterparts. One soldier, who asked us to call him Robert, spent three tours in Iraq as a signal unit leader out of Ft. Lewis in Washington state. “For the female soldiers, it was far harder to adjust,” Robert told CBS News anchor Katie Couric. “Because not only did they have to deal with combat - mortar rounds, rockets, bullets - they also had to put up with male soldiers who were away from their families for a year.”

A moral waiver for someone who smoked a joint 10 years ago is one thing a moral waiver for a rapist is unfathomable. Why would the Army want someone in their ranks who has demonstrated a lack of control and a propensity towards violence against weaker people? Considering how willing the media is to crucify the military even before credible evidence is presented, it makes no sense to burden the Army's reputation with soldiers convicted of rape. Especially when these soldiers may find themselves in a situation conducive to committing the same heinous act again. There are a couple of options available to the Army, either do not provide "moral" waivers for rapists and persons found guilty of sexual assualt or do not allow women to serve on the front lines. Which should it be?

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