West Point Rugby Team Disbanded For Sending E-Mails That Are Derogatory To Women

Photo: The West Point men's rugby club, shown playing last season, was disbanded in May and some of this season's players were disciplined after an investigation. (Mike Strasser / West Point Public Affairs)

West Point Rugby Team Indefinitely Disbanded As Details Emerge Of 'Crude Sexual' Emails And 'Culture Of Disrespect Towards Women' -- Daily Mail

* 60 players punished after investigation into email chain showed lewd, inappropriate references to homosexuality, incest, and rape
* U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel spoke at the elite military academy's May 25 convocation, where he called sexual harassment a 'debilitating, insidious, and destructive force in the American military'

The rugby team of West Point military academy has been disbanded and players disciplined over an email chain involving crude sexual references and suggesting a ‘hostile team environment or a culture of disrespect towards women.’

Players on the rugby team of the elite New York institution—a veritable assembly line into the highest echelons of the American military—shared emails that have now been deemed to be in violation of the Cadet Disciplinary Code.

Shared between the entire rugby team be several players, the emails reportedly contained rankings of a sexual nature of female cadets and other women, as well as references to rape, incest, and homosexuality.

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More News On the Suspension of West Point's Rugby Team

West Point rugby team disbanded over 'inappropriate' emails -- Army Times
West Point rugby team benched over emails deemed derogatory to women -- FOX News/AP
West Point Rugby Team Disbanded for ‘Derogatory’ Emails About Women -- ABC News
West Point Rugby Team Disciplined for E-Mails Demeaning Women -- SFGate/Bloomberg
US Military Academy cadets ‘make degrade’ - men’s rugby team disbanded over derogatory e-mails -- New York Post
Future American generals sent marching over sex emails -- Toby Harnden, Sunday Times

A Look At West Point's "Goats"

At West Point, 'Goats' Are An Exclusive Bunch -- Wall Street Journal

Military Academy Honors Lowest-Ranking Cadet; Custer's Last Place

When cadet Roberto Becerra Jr. walked onstage to graduate from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 2007, the entire ceremony ground to a halt as he, before a crowd of thousands, transformed into a goat.

For this achievement, Mr. Becerra received a rousing ovation and was handed an envelope stuffed with cash.

In a 210-year-old military academy bristling with traditions, "the goat" is a curious custom that one might not expect to find at a school better known for its selectivity and high standards. Yet every year, the last-ranking cadet to make it through to graduation is anointed the goat, showered with praise, given a dollar from every other fellow graduate—amounting to roughly $1,000—and granted the biggest applause at the graduation ceremony.

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My Comment: A great story .... read it all.

Is President Obama Stacking The West Point Board With Activists?

Gay Graduate Appointed To West Point’s Board -- Army Times

WEST POINT, N.Y. — President Obama on Tuesday appointed an openly gay former Army officer to the U.S. Military Academy’s Board of Visitors.

Former Capt. Brenda S. “Sue” Fulton, a founding board member of OutServe, an association of actively serving gay military personnel, is also co-founder and executive director of Knights Out, an organization of gay West Point graduates. She graduated in 1980 with the first West Point class to include women.

After receiving her commission, Fulton served in the Army Signal Corps for five years in Germany. She commanded a military intelligence company and was honorably discharged.

Fulton is the first openly gay member of the academy’s board.

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More News On West Point's Board

Obama appoints openly gay service member to West Point board -- Washington Post
Opening Doors at West Point -- New York Times
Obama Appoints Gay Vet to West Point Board -- Bloomberg
Obama Names Openly Gay Veteran to West Point Advisory Board -- Wall Street Journal

My Comment: This is a political appointment .... President Obama can do what he wants to do. My only concern is that she is qualified for the job, and was not appointed because of her sexual orientation.

Forbes Ranks West Point As Nation's Top College

From U.S. Army.mil:

WEST POINT, N.Y. (Army News Service, Aug. 7, 200) - A report released Wednesday by Forbes magazine ranked the U.S. Military Academy as the top college in the country in their America's Best College review.

"Marked by an intense work ethic and drive to succeed on all fronts, the West Point undergraduate experience also allows graduates to leave without a penny of tuition loans to repay," Forbes stated in its release.

In the Forbes rating, West Point outpaced other highly-ranked schools such as Princeton (#2), Cal Tech (#3), Harvard (#5) and the U.S. Air Force Academy (#7).

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My Comment: Impressive .... what can I say but a very impressive accomplishment.

West Point Struggles To Fill Ranks

An upperclassman leads new cadets over the bridge from Thayer Hall to continue their training in military courtesy, discipline and marching on Reception Day in June at West Point .Times Herald-Record/TOM BUSHEY

From Record Online:

WEST POINT — While the volume of applications to the U.S. Military Academy is on the rise, the number of qualified contenders to choose from is shrinking.

The reason for the disparity isn't grades or test scores or extracurricular accolades. The problem is physical fitness: An increasing number of applicants are out of shape or taking potentially disqualifying medications for conditions such as asthma or attention-deficit disorder.

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My Comment: Obesity .... the scourge of a successful society.

West Point Puts Troops' Stories Online

From Military.com

WEST POINT, New York - Lt. Col. Paul Owen, West Point Class of '90, came back to the academy to tell his story about Iraq. Sitting before a video camera in his dress uniform, Owen described the oppressive heat, the "moon dust" sand and a string of some 300 night raids in search of insurgents.

"We were quick," he said. "If they heard us coming, they'd flee."

Owen's recorded recollections will be transcribed and posted on the Web as part of an ambitious oral history project under way at the U.S. Military Academy's new Center for Oral History. He is among some 150 Soldiers - most West Point graduates - who have so far taped interviews destined for the Web before year's end.

Stories are being solicited from old Soldiers and those just back from deployments. They are being asked about not only what happened on the battlefield, but what was going on under their helmets, too.

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