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One small step for RAFAC, one giant leap for mankind.
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So the Mail Online are going with this as their first line:
The RAF Air Cadets have been accused of being ‘over-sensitive’ after members were ordered to stop using the term ‘marksman’ in a bid to be ‘gender-neutral’.
Again, just not true. This change only refers to the badges, moving from ‘Marksmanship badges’ to ‘Shooting badges’.
I seem to remember a debate several years ago around dropping the the term “shooting” and replacing it with “marksmanship” as it was deemed too aggressive for cadets, the biggest change that resulted was the targetry being dehumanised (figure 11 being cut & pasted with legs only to avoid the perception of shooting at people).
The use of vocabulary is fluid and some words have been confined to the history books or described as “of their time” when watching reruns of TV & films made several decades ago. I suspect in 20-30 years current phrases might be considered offensive or obsolete. We must move forward and remain committed to reflecting the society we live in, without being too puritanical or resistant to change in our approach.
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The Torygraph article above has been added to and edited. Then there’s the comments section which is full of, ironically, people calling others snowflakes for being upset at wording 
.
It really is a cesspit and some of the overt racism, homophobia, transphobia and ill-informed bigotry going unchecked is exactly why we need to be able to move towards more inclusive language.
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It’s this irony I love.
No one gets more angry and upset about pronouns and gender terms than boomers.
They have actual TV stations dedicated to getting upset about language.
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I see he is the Transport Correspondent for the Telegraph as of 8th January - seems an odd topic for him to be writing about in that capacity.
Previous to that he was their (Contract) Money writer and before that (contract) senior Technology reporter
slow news day for a minor story to be picked up by a reporter who has no experience in this space of diversity or youth/volunteer sector?
He definitely does. He used to be a cadet and I think CI, and was a very active member of these forums.
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Ironically his Alias with Marksman
Probably where he got wind of the change initially 
It’s interesting that the Telegraph article quotes a “shooting instructor” saying how they disagree with this change, and also how it’s been all over SM so they think it’s a stunt. I’ve not actually seen any of this on SM… Only seen @dazizian say that it was going to be posted? But has it actually been posted?
Also, Gaz, if you’re watching this thread, go and look at the shooting hubs situation, especially within South West. That’ll get you a nice juicy story about wasting tax payers money…
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Ive mused over this, this morning. Ive come to the following conclusion. Any naming change wont change delivery…and if it impacts your delivery, maybe your inability to change to something so small makes me question ability to change to a more complex change. So based on that id question whether an individual would be appropriate to deliver such a risk to life activity.
ooh ok i wasn’t aware of that.
Who cares? It’s not like we shoot anymore anyway.
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this topic really needs its own diversity thread imo but:
I recently took part in some diversity training in work (not because i got something wrong, my employer is very savvy when it comes to personal health including non-physical reasons to be ill and has signed up to a provider which provides monthly webinars on such subjects*) it was an open invite to attend and one of the most powerful elements of the whole hour was when the presenter told us to consider three people who are the most important in our lives, and then consider the three most important activities in our lives which could be work, a hobby, watching sport, spending time with family (i suspect as CFAVs the RAFAC would be included in our lists).
We were then told to imagine meeting a stranger, perhaps a new coworker joining the team at work, or meeting the new partner of a friend, and we had to engage in conversation explaining ourselves without mentioning the three people or three activities we enjoy most. that is what it can be like for people who are LGBTQ+ when they meet people [/]all the time[/u] not just new people as they cannot be themselves, they feel that cannot talk openly about who they are, or what is important to them because the environment isn’t welcoming.
if changing the use of “man” in some terminology we have helps people feel less oppressed then so be it. it isn’t just about the people around them and how they are treated but the whole environment that people are in that allows such individuals to feel more comfortable.
*upcoming topics include
ultra-processed food and the impact on your health
Wellbeing as a habit
financial wellbeing
relaxation and meditation
how to recognise burnout etc
Also, another vote for Sharpshooting Principles. That works well.
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not sure i’m really understanding the argument that airmanship is an understandable change but marksmanship isn’t? principles of airmanship/marksmanship, which are applied by an airman/a marksman. surely both should be reconsidered with equal respects?
Until the Army changes its terminology (they they are the lead for all things shooting) then Marksmanship will remain.
Live Firing Marksmanship Training (LMFT) is a tri-service terminology when discussing shooting activity.
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Over the years, I wonder how many kids have actually thought, " I would love to join the air cadets, but airmanship and marksmanship are stopping me from joining!"
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Would this not offend all those who identify as blunt?
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