Evidently America is still thinking small, even as women in uniform make strides.
Recent history is full of stories of women breaking new ground. The first woman to fly the F-35, the Air Force's "premier fighter," took to the skies last month. Years earlier she had flown combat missions in Afghanistan. The Navy's Blue Angels have their first female pilot this year.
Army Ranger school recently opened to women. No women made it through the first phase of the course. But 19 women qualified. And 42 percent of them made it through the grueling physical tests of the first four days, compared with 48 percent of men.
The gap between women's service and our perceptions has consequences; it makes female veterans' reentry into American society especially challenging.
Many do not self-identify as veterans and do not apply for the help and the services -- from housing to healthcare to job placement -- they could receive once they return home.
