Posted on 04/21/2011 6:42:46 PM PDT by mandaladon
Marines serving in Afghanistan from Camp Pendleton and other bases will soon receive specially designed underwear to provide protection against the improvised explosive devices that are the Taliban's favorite weapon.
The new underwear, which look like the shorts worn by professional cyclists, will not stop bullets or shrapnel but are designed to prevent dirt and other debris from entering wounds to the genitals and causing infection. Made of sturdy silk, the so-called "ballistic boxers" are treated with antimicrobial agents to prevent such infections.
U.S. troops have suffered an increase in wounds to the genitals and urinary tract due to roadside bombs.
Though troops wear helmets, heavy boots, and protective vests with front-flaps over the genitals, there is little to stop the damage inflicted when a bomb explodes beneath a soldier or Marine on a walking patrol.
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"It's almost as if they [the Taliban] have developed these bombs to inflict the maximum damage," said Navy Cmdr. James L'Esperance, a urologist who has treated wounded Marines and soldiers.
A study conducted by doctors at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, the U.S. military hospital where serious casualties are brought from Iraq and Afghanistan, found a significant increase in injuries to the genitals and urinary tract.
In 2009, 52 personnel were brought to the hospital with battlefield injuries to their genitals or urinary tract. In 2010, that figure was 142, including 21 who lost a testicle and eight who lost both testicles.
(Excerpt) Read more at chicagotribune.com ...
#2 - hehehe.
The original ‘Abs of Steel’.
Silk was used by the mongols under their armor for the same reason. Arrows wouldn’t penetrate the silk but push it into the wound. It helped keep the wound cleaner and aided removal of the arrow.
This is not new technology. Genghis Khan’s cavalry knew about this and their silk underwear protected them against arrows:
Mongol war equipment
The Mongol warrior used to wear Chinese silk underwear, if it could be obtained. One would not normally consider underwear to be military equipment, but the fact is that silk is a very tough substance. If arrows are shot from a larger distance, they will not easily penetrate the silk. Even if an arrow penetrates the human skin, the silk may hold, so that the arrow can be drawn out from the wound by pulling the silk around. This would also prevent poison from entering the bloodstream. Outside the normal clothes, the warrior carried a protective shield of light yet effective leather armor, which was impregnated with a lacquer-like substance in order to make it more impervious to penetration by arrows, swords and knives, and also to protect it against humid weather. Very probably this lacquer was fish glue, which was the strongest and most weather resistant natural material that fits this purpose. Often their horses also carried this type of leather armor. The horses also had saddles with stirrups, because this was necessary in order to carry all the equipment and to fight from the saddle. Mongol warriors also wore helmets, the upper part of which was made of metal, the parts covering the ears and neck were in leather.
http://www.coldsiberia.org/monmight.htm
These are 21st century codpieces.
These kids don’t make enough.
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