What's changing? According to the Washington Post, the Marine Corps will now allow chubbier women to, so to say, slip through the cracks.

"Female Marines will be allowed to weigh five to seven pounds more than before for each inch of their height, according to new guidelines published by the service. A 5-foot-6 woman, for example, was previously allowed to weigh up to 155 pounds, but can now be 161. A 5-foot-9 woman was allowed to be up to 169 pounds, but can now be 176."

The Corps is also relaxing the rules on pull-ups. The new rule will eliminate fixed-arm hanging as an alternative choice to pull-ups for women. In place of fixed-arm hanging women, and men, will have the option to choose push-ups instead. The incentive remains skewed toward the more demanding pull-up, as Military.com explains:

"'Push-ups become an option on the PFT, but Marines are incentivized toward pull-ups, as these are a better test of functional, dynamic upper body strength and correlate stronger to physically demanding tasks,' Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Robert Neller said in an administrative message to the Corps released Friday. 'Push-ups are also a valid exercise and good test; however maximum points can only be earned by executing pull-ups.'"

Explaining the new physical fitness test requirements, Military.com went on to say:

"The hybrid pull-up option is the Marines' solution to a four-year conundrum of how to promote pull-ups for all Marines without making it impossible for women to succeed."

As we march further into a state of "gender equality" there is nothing wrong with admitting rules need to be eased but when it comes to defending a nation, is the best answer really to just relax the standards? When we observe banking institutions do that with their prequalification requirements, the results are virtually always disastrous and in the last prominent case, led to a bailout of the entire financial system.

Who will bailout the US military if pudgy push comes to shove?

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-07-06/us-marines-accept-chubbier-women