You remember the letter to the Chronicle that said the Hometown Proud calendar objectified women? This student seems to have made it a crusade, given her letter in the local city newspaper.

...rape and other abuses toward women in the military is an ongoing crisis. There are many American women, as well as men, who are serving in Iraq. By sending out this calendar, we are putting the women serving in Iraq at even greater risk of abuse.

This is a common statement I've heard, but I'm not sure it's borne out by the facts. Conclusive Evidence has reported on rape statistics from the scandal at the Air Force Academy, for instance, and found that the rate was less than at other colleges and universities.

...I still fail to understand how a calendar of barely clothed women boosts morale.

The short answer is, it depends on the women.

The long answer is that the calendar competes with Playboy and tons of other things sold in the military stores at any rate, so why is it a big deal. And as one woman wrote in the posts commenting on the letter, " The women in MN really do love and miss you (soldiers). We are all here waiting for your return - Moms, sisters, girlfriends, friends..." Just as it ever was.