TIERRA Nº 8 | FEBRERO 2016 INTERNACIONAL the English corner Something Completely Different (V) W hen female officers were 52 first accepted into the Armed Forces, over 20 years ago, some officers and NCOs felt cut to the quick, that is, offended (the expression goes back to the Middle Ages, to describe the feeling when a hefty sword blow would cut through the armour and into the living flesh) Others thought the balloon had gone up (meaning ‘imminent trouble’; during WWI, artillery units would launch observation balloons to check their aim before an attack, and this would alert the soldiers in the trenches). But nothing could be further from the truth! The Cordoba-based 10th Mechanized Brigade (which is my own unit) welcomed these new members, who were easily integrated. Needless to say, some diehards remained reluctant to change. (The “Diehards” was a regiment led by Col. Sir William Inglis at the battle of Albuera, in Spain (1811); it was defeated by heavy French fire and Inglis lost 438 of his 579 men; he had ordered them: “Stand your ground and die hard; die hard and make the enemy pay dear for each of us.) Soon, women were not only soldiers; female NCOs and officers started to occupy important posts within the Brigade. I remember one of my artillery students telling me that a woman had been the best gunner he had ever worked with in his entire military career. Something was definitely changing! As soon as women cut the Gordian knot (this is, solved a complex problem Texto: Redacción Foto: Luis Rico (DECET)
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