Hegseth decried 'fat troops.' Then a photo of hefty National Guard soldiers went viral.

[Shipwack]

35. I really don't like this artical.

First off, it's body shaming.

Second, these are not frontline troops. To expect guardsmen/women to maintain a trim form when most of their time is spent as civilians is unreasonable.

Third, these people are volunteers to serve their country. While their motivations vary, they are willing to trade free time and comfort to serve when needed (not their fault that the current administration is misusing them).

Fourth, their physical appearance is not necessarily a good gauge of their abilities or efectiveness. As someone already mentioned, they are carrying a good bit of gear. They can't be too out of shape.

Fifth, how they look in fatigues is not necessarily an indication of what shape they are in. When I was in a service, there were people that by the standard tests had a a bodyfat measurement above 30%, when in reality they had little body fat... For example, Samoans or serious bodybuilders.

Sixth, I don't care if they can hike twenty miles carrying 80 pounds of gear; that's why we have trucks. What I want to know is can they fix a targeting computer in the field under pressure.