Comments by "Orbital_Inclination" (@Orbital_Inclination) on "Has the gas mask problem for those with beards been fixed?" video.

  1. Why? It happened for hundreds of years prior to WWI
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  2.  @ivancho5854  exactly, because the gas masks of the time were primitive, thus we had to make personnel shave to ensure their safety. Now, thanks to advances in materials and technology, we don't require our personnel to shave because kit like this exists, so there is no need to enforce a facial hair ban, except to appease those with sensitive feelings over what another man grows on his face.
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  3. ​ @co8498 that's the same for UK forces. This is just a development to allow those with religious reasons not to need to.
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  4. Yes, but every new bit of kit needs certifying. "This is how we've always done it previously" when applied to newer equipment hasn't always worked out very well
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  5. No reason people should have to go against one of the core practices of their religion, that realistically doesn't affect anyone else at all, in order to serve their country.
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  6. In your opinion. In any case, it makes zero difference to a person's operational effectiveness nowadays, except in a few limited cases where being clean shaven is still mandated, such as when wearing an aircrew oxygen mask. As for being unprofessional, nothing about maintaining a neat beard according to regs is unprofessional.
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  7. Because there's no valid reason to ban them 99.9% of the time, that's why. If your role or the situation demands you be clean shaven, you still have to do it.
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  8. ​ @ivancho5854 because the technology of the time necessitated that. It no longer does, so I don't know what point you're trying to make.
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  9. Easy if it isn't an integral part of your religion
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  10. How do you feel about catholics in our armed forces, given the UK is a CofE (protestant) nation? I'm guessing your problem isn't with all religions, just those primarily practiced by people who look different to you. What exactly does 'western life' look like to you?
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  11.  @williamlocklear1283  it's cute you believe that. There is a whole lot of "we've always done it like that" with no decent justification, in the military. Luckily a lot of that is being re-examined, and a lot of the dinosaurs have retired. The armed forces is already struggling for numbers, so why would it not try and make its kit more accommodating to a broader demographic? Also, just because we already have kit that does the bare minimum doesn't mean we shouldn't keep on improving its utility.
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  12. The NASA story is false. Graphite shavings from pencils cause signficiant damage to electronics in zero G. Both the US and Russians used pens designed for zero G conditions.
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  13. The only reason people needed to be clean shaven previously was because the kit available was technically limited.
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  14. ​ @MrSatyre1 there's no reason beards are not okay anyway 99.9% of the time
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  15. That's what the current policy is
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  16. Why would we not design kit that better meets our troops needs? Should we also stop offering clothing in different sizes, and make larger or thinner troops wear kit that doesn't fit them very well?
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  17. ​ @ivancho5854 luckily, respirator technology has now reached a sufficient standard that WWI grooming standards are no longer required
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  18. ​ @user-buck-b7j so are you saying that the military pre-WWI, when facial hair was commonplace and actively encouraged in many cases, had low standards? Do you have any metric for the measurement, or is it purely a "back in my day" assessment?
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  19. We can't address anything but the top issue at any given time?
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  20. ​​ @williamlocklear1283 so is your issue with the development of new kit that works more effectively across a broader range of conditions, thus removing the need for archaic facial hair rules which were only introduced due to the limitations of previous kit? Bit of an odd thing to somehow think that advancements in respirator technology that remove previous safety limitations are somehow 'woke'. If someone having a beard is that triggering to you, perhaps you don't have the required constitution for military service. We don't really need the armed forces to be filled with people who get upset at the sight of a beard.
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  21. Or get kit which works well enough that you don't need to shave
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  22.  @sandrafer7393  Because if we can make kit that better fits the needs of the individuals who serve in the armed forces, they'll be more likely to stick around longer, feel valued and won't have to go against their religious beliefs in order to serve their country. In the meantime, they'll still have to shave in times of war in a CBRN environment and wear existing masks. Why continue to force people to shave, against the rules of their religion, if we can accommodate it with basic changes to kit? It's the same kind of reason we are developing female flying suits, because whilst the current ones are fine and do the job to the minimum safety standard expected, they are far from ideal for female bodies.
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  23. Or develop respirators like this that aren't technically limited, meaning they can be used across a broad range of circumstances
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  24. If there's no need to with the new kit, why bother sticking to old rules that no longer serve a purpose?
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  25.  @ivancho5854  who said they did? This kit just makes the whole debate irrelevant because people no longer have to choose between observing their religion or having good CBRN protection, they can do both.
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  26. ​ @user-buck-b7j now you're getting to the actual crux of the issue. The reason for the clean shaven rule was due to the technical limitation of respirators, not 'standards'. This kit removes that limitation, so there's no issue with returning to the pre-WWI grooming standards
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  27. They're not looking at making it the standard, just another option
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  28. Telling someone to contravene their religion, when we have the resources and knowledge not to need to, is pretty poor
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  29. If anything, these hoods will be better for those drills because you can lift the mask portion and still remain under the cover of the hood portion whilst carrying out the drills, preventing any falling chemical agent from landing on your face or infiltrating round the sides of the mask
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  30. Shaving is currently still mandatory in high threat CBRN environments or other times they are required for a seal, but otherwise there's no reason for personnel to be clean-shaven as long as it is maintained as per regs. If this kit works, it will remove the need to shave in cbrn environments for those that wish not to do so, which is their choice.
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  31. You're free to continue shaving, but with this kit others will get a choice not to
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  32. ​ @Synystr7 the problem was issuing kit that was technically limited, resulting in a requirement to shave to mitigate against it's deficiencies
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  33. The whole point of this clip is that you would no longer need to choose, because you could have a beard and effective protection
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  34. Nothing to do with being dirty
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  35. Or use kit which means you don't have to, in case you end up in a situation where you can't
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