Shaving and Facial Hair

Being in the army, means you are part of a team. Being part of a team means you have to rely on other people, and other people have to rely on you. If you aren’t being a team player then you can let the team and your battle buddies down. By not shaving, you are letting your battle buddies and team down. The army is based on uniformity and cleanliness. When you don’t shave you begin to expire that idea. Shaving in early armies as a preventative measure. They shaved the hair to prevent the spread and outbreak of lice. According to the American Academy of Dermatology, “Many military organizations also require males to maintain clean-shaven faces because facial hair can prevent an air-tight seal between the face and breathing or safety equipment, such as a pilot’s oxygen mask, a diver’s mask, or a soldier’s gas mask”. It has practical uses as well as uniformity purposes. Uniformity is a detrimental mandation I’ve noticed, at least in the US Army. We ensure that we are all wearing the same outfit at the same time. If one item is removed, it must be a unanimous decision between the Sergeants and soldiers involved. Such control in uniform and appearance in general, make for disciplined well rounded soldiers.

They listen to their sergeants, even If they are unsure of the reason behind or don’t entirely agree with the decision. Males having their mustaches and beards kept up represent the army, sustaining the semblance and ideology on mass uniformity. The hygienic issue related to shaving is of considerable relevance. First of all, an untrimmed beard or mustache is a personal turn off to me. Nobody wants to make out with a furry bush. According to a 1991 article written in the New York Times, it is just not socially acceptable to our culture to have ungroomed facial hair, and letting it just grow. “Yet the prescription is often difficult, if not impossible, to fill because of social pressures to be cleanshaven. Some organizations, like police departments or airlines, demand that men be cleanshaven. Many other employers informally make it clear that the corporate image requires a smooth shave. Some have been criticized as harassing bearded workers.” it just isn’t acceptable to let yourself go. According to an article from dailymail.co.uk., men are spending more time worrying about grooming which is a push brought on by the media and current trends.

“Apparently, men spend 83 minutes a day on personal grooming, including cleansing, toning and moisturising, shaving, styling hair and choosing clothes.” the article is about men and how more and more men are practicing a more concerned lifestyle of metrosexuality, in which they focus on their looks and physical representation more then the regular man. These behaviors are catching on and have become the new norm. It’s quite normal for men to trim and or clean shave most if not all of their body, for the sake of looks and hygiene. Without all of the excess hair, you have a less susceptible spot for sweat to build up and bacteria to grow. I really like the way they phrased these changes in the article. “Simon Comins, of Superdrug, said: ‘Once upon a time it was cool for men to appear rough and ready, looking like they hadn’t spent more than a couple of minutes getting ready in the morning. “But these days, everyone appreciates a man who takes care of his appearance, smells nice and looks like he has made an effort.”.

As a secondary issue, I believe that the issue of male facial hair is highly based on looks. I don’t find a man with facial hair to be attrative, and our newer generation have similar preferences. The facial hair takes away from a persons natural beauty and makes it difficult to be intimate. I have heard many stories of people being turned off on a first date, simply because of facial hair. Rules are the building blocks that the military is founded on. Without these important rules we would be nothing but chaos. It is because of our discipline that we are the strongest army in the entire world, without our discipline we would be nothing. Shaving is one example of both disipline and readyness. This rule should always be followed. For one it is basically the easiest rule of them all along side with being on time. If you can not show that you can follow these simple rules, how can your superiors know trust you to send you out into the real army, and for that matter overseas to take care of our fellow soldiers. Another important reason to keep a well groomed body is for developmental reasons in soldierization. It is great for a soldier to become familiar in routines and normal occurrences.

Mornings can be very hectic for everyone, but if you have your routine in place it will make it a lot easier on everyone to get their day off to a good start. How you feel in the morning usually lays the foundation for your day. If you wake to having to rush around to find clothes, bookbags, etc. Bedtime routines can also help you in being prepared for the next day. This routine can include brushing your teeth, laying out clothes, bookbags, etc., whatever you may need to start your next day, to reading over your textbook and notes to prepare for the next days lessons. Building a bedtime routine will help you in learning how to be prepared and the importance of a good nights rest. Every person is diffrent, and should build routines that work for them.

Routines may be diffrent for each person but they all still teach our us the same thing. That is, confidence, stability, discipline, regulation, and general cleanliness in the case of grooming and shaving the body. It only takes a few minutes to shave every morning. And with newer electric razors and other inhancments in shaving technology, it is painless and virtually unmessy. I generally shave in the shower after washing my face and being I the shower for a few minutes as it opens the pores, making the, more susceptible to trimming the follicles closer. It also let’s all of the excess hair and shaving cream run down the drain instead of having to clean your sink every morning. I always apply an after shave lotion, to reduce redness and to smell sexy. I think that that is an important part of shaving. You must make the skin look good and maintain it.