Editor:
This letter is in response to Melissa Meister's letter on Aug. 30. She was commenting on Denise Frank's column ("Faulkner broke spirit of all women," Aug. 29).
In Ms. Meister's letter she says that Ms. Frank "dissed" Shannon Faulkner. Well, some "dissing" was due. Shannon fought for over two years to go to the Citadel then she walked in there overweight and out of shape. You didn't think she was unprepared? Did you see the men cheering when she dropped out? Strange how they were all lean and in shape, huh?
Many people drop out of the Citadel every year because they can't stand up to the challenge. But Shannon was not just anybody. She was the first female cadet to be allowed into the Citadel. She fought to be allowed in. Yet she did not prepare herself for the challenge. The rigors of that program are known throughout North and South Carolina. She knew what lay ahead. She just didn't have the mettle.
American history shows us that "separate, but equal" never works. For that reason, I believe women should be allowed to go to the Citadel. And I know there are women who are up to the challenge. I have faith that one of these women will step forward. She will have the determination, preparation and strength of character to make it through the Citadel. A woman like that should have been the first.
By the way, if you got into ROTC and found that the military was not what you expected, then, yes, you were unprepared. ROTC is no mystery. Maybe you should have looked into it before you joined.
Jon Leonard
Mechanical Engineering Junior