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Right To Bare Arms: U.S. Soldiers Get OK To Roll Up Sleeves

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

Many people count on the U.S. Armed Forces to roll up their sleeves, but, in fact, U.S. Army regulations often prevent a soldier from rolling up his or her sleeves in uniform. The Army News Service reports that commanders may now authorize their troops to roll up the sleeves of their combat uniforms, presumably in hot weather in places like Iraq and Afghanistan or maybe on maneuvers in North Carolina and Texas.

But U.S. soldiers can't just roll them up like guys on a street corner. New U.S. Army regs say sleeves must be rolled three inches above the elbow with the camouflage combat pattern showing. Army Times even features a sleeve-rolling instruction video and a Q and A for soldiers. Ready to commence sleeve-rolling? Sir, yes, sir. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

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