Uniforms: hot or not?
BY SHANA SECORY
STATESMAN STAFF WRITER
ISSUE: 78/29
Remember that famous image of Richard Gere in his crisp white uniform, walking through the steam of the factory at the end of the movie “An Officer and a Gentleman”? He walks up to Debra Winger, kisses the back of her neck and then picks her up and carries her out of the factory. They say “every woman loves a man in uniform.” But why is this? Does it have anything to do with the actual uniform itself?
“When they are in uniform, they display more power,” freshman Annie Haglund said. “They may seem more responsible and mature because of that power.” I heard a woman say once, “It’s not the uniform, it’s what’s underneath the uniform.” So is it just the muscular body that women melt over when they glance at a man in the military? “My ex is in the army,” said freshman Heather Thompson. “He had a nice body from basic [training].” Thompson also went on to explain that it is a fantasy for women to be with a man in uniform, because they have a lot more discipline and seem like more of a gentleman.
There is a lot more that goes into the soldier than just the uniform and the great six-pack abs. There is also the overall attitude and persona that comes with him. “[Women] find them to be strong and confident,” said junior Kristen Foster. “They are also clean-cut and a sign of safety for women.” With all this excitement about men in uniform, I had to get a male’s perspective about the topic. Do men that aren’t in the military find pressure
to be fit and live up to the standards of an officer and a gentleman?
“I don’t really find [not being in the military] a problem for me when I am meeting women,” said senior Luke McShane. McShane also explained that he has a couple friends in the military and they definitely play off the stereotypes that women build them up to be. “They think they are all tough,” he said. So if it is true, that there are women out there that love a man in uniform, can the same be said about men? Are there men out there that love a woman in uniform?
Sophomore Matt Djonne said that he has never had the opportunity to date a female in uniform, but if he did, it wouldn’t be the uniform exactly that turned him off. “I would be way too intimidated by a woman in uniform,” he said. Even though there are some men that find women in uniform to be too intimidating, there are some men that like the confidence that comes with a woman in uniform.
Freshman Josh Connelly said that he would date a woman in the military if he had a chance. “I like strong women,” he said. “Women in uniform tend to be very confident, they know what they want and they aren’t afraid to ask for it.” There are many movies out there even today that show the young, stud, male soldier at his finest. If you want to get your fill of hot military men and there isn’t a military banquet in your area anytime soon, I hear Ryan Philippe’s body is quite the show in the new movie “Stop Loss.”
Whether it be in popular movies or the men that women date, it seems that women are much more interested in the body and the overall persona that comes with the soldier, rather than just the uniform itself.
