Reviving an old sea custom, the Navy will let male sailors wear earrings - but only when they're off duty.
The policy change announced last week brings the Navy in line with the Army and Air Force.The Marines will continue to require off-duty male leathernecks to keep their lobes unadorned.
The nautical tradition of earrings was based on the belief that they would fend off evil spirits. Earrings had been permitted in the Navy until the early 1900s.