Comments by "Colonel K" (@Paladin1873) on "Bantam Battalions of the Great War" video.

  1. The cruel reality of war is that height can matter, just as intelligence, strength, daring, and skill matter. It is rarely wise to form units of men who possess a unique characteristic unless the mission calls for that ability. In the case of the Bantams I've little doubt some of those men were killed by opponents who were bigger, just as some larger men died because their size made them easy targets. Audie Murphy was no Sergeant Rock or Sergeant Fury. He was underage, too small, and too light to get into the Marine Corp, and the Army was hesitant to take him, but he managed to bulk up just enough thanks to the nutrition he received during training. He volunteered for the infantry when the airborne refused him, and he went on to become America's most decorated hero of WWII.
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  2.  @TheHistoryGuyChannel  It depends upon what one considers suitable diversity. Each military unit is a team, but the team needs clear standards in order to become cohesive. If a member falls outside these standards, the unit suffers. But this does not mean everyone must be alike. As one Marine General put it, I don't want to command a squad of eggheads or a squad of dimwits. The former will waste too much time debating their best course of action, while the latter will rush forward without a plan. In a balanced organization, the leader will have sufficient intelligence and determination to quickly formulate a plan, while the team will be of sufficient skill and grit to willingly trust him and execute it. In the case of the Bantams, one gets the impression that many of them suffered from an inferiority complex which drove them to act rashly, hence the brawling to prove their mettle. This was certainly true of the 442nd Infantry Regiment of WWII which was composed mainly of Japanese-Americans (Nisei). It was highly decorated, but it suffered many casualties, and, as several veterans later admitted, they went to extremes to prove they were just as American as anyone else.
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