Over 100 Military Leaders Call for Repeal of DADT

On Monday, over 100 retired generals and admirals called for a repeal of the U.S. military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy so that gays would be allowed to openly serve serve in the military, according to a statement obtained by The Associated Press.

The call from the military veterans confronts the incoming administration of President-elect Barack Obama with a political and cultural issue that proved to be troublesome for former President Bill Clinton.  The officers who participated and are encouraging the repeal stated in a letter;

“As is the case with Great Britain, Israel, and other nations that allow gays and lesbians to serve openly, our service members are professionals who are able to work together effectively despite differences in race, gender, religion, and sexuality,”

Obama expressed support for the repeal during his campaign but also said he would not make this decision on his own, but instead he would work with military leaders to build consensus on removing the ban on openly gay service members.

“Although I have consistently said I would repeal ‘don’t ask, don’t tell,’ I believe that the way to do it is make sure that we are working through a process, getting the Joint Chiefs of Staff clear in terms of what our priorities are going to be.”

Gays in the Military Will Lead to Draft

Just when you think the wingnuts can’t get any nuttier, one of them named J.D. Longstreet comes out with utter drivel the likes of the following:

“And then there is the recruitment problem, sure to come, as a result of this “social engineering” experiment by the left. Reenlistments are going to drop off and new recruits will be few and far between. Which means… what else? The military draft will return.”

But this true believer in “freedom” has an idea to help solve the problem:

“So… why not have a compromise? Why not allow those Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, Airmen, and Coast Guardsmen, whose religious faith bars them from association with known homosexuals, to apply for, and receive, an honorable discharge from the U.S. Military Services? At least show some respect for a soldier’s faith.

Of COURSE, it won’t happen. Because that is a part of the plan… to force the American people, even against their religious belief, to accept a way of life their faith teaches is an “abomination”. We have come to expect this heavy-handed approach to religion from the left in America.”

Interesting. I wasn’t aware that the “faithful” were proscribed from “associating” with “known homosexuals.” You have to wonder whether intolerant boobs like this writer have actually read the teachings of Jesus Christ.

The best part is that the tag line of the site is “Commentary, News Analysis and Opinion without a hidden agenda” - which is pretty accurate. They are pretty open about their agenda of hate.

Read the rest of the screed here.

Major Alan Rogers - Gay American Hero

In life, Major Alan Rogers was an American patriot, committed to the United States Army in which he had served for 18 of his 40 years.

His death, from a roadside bomb, which took the number of American losses in Iraq to more than 4000, robbed the service of an outstanding military intelligence officer and deprived his friends of someone they all described as a great listener and a profoundly religious man.

Rogers was also gay.

Read the rest of the story at nzherald.co.nz, or read more about his life here.

DADT Advocates Claim AIDS Will Infiltrate Infantry

If you’ve tuned in to C-SPAN recently you may have caught a glimpse of an interesting hearing. It involved bands of violent lesbians, “forced cohabitation” with gay men, the spread of AIDS and “skin to skin” contact. Oh my! What on earth was the topic of this discussion, and why was it being conducted in the hallowed confines of the people’s Congress? No, it wasn’t Sen. Larry Craig’s last conversation with Pastor Haggard. It was a House Armed Services personnel subcommittee hearing on “Don’t ask, don’t tell.”

Personally, I am surprised that this is still a point of contention. There are gays and lesbians that work in all sorts of environments. Consider that only 20 years ago AIDS was seen as a “gay disease.” Or that gay bars could be raided and people arrested for simply being gay. Our understanding of gay and lesbian sexuality has become more nuanced. The more we learn about our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters, the more people realize what was always true … they have the same aspirations and capabilities as any other group. Which makes it increasingly disgraceful and embarrassing that they are denied their basic civil rights, among them the right to serve their country.

Read the rest of this story at dailyillini.com.

Do Tell: The High Cost of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell

Capt. Joan Darrah, now retired, served the United States almost 30 years as a naval intelligence specialist. But it was only on Sept. 11, 2001, that she fully absorbed the cruelty of what the U.S. military demanded of her.

“I was at the Pentagon bus stop,” Darrah told a congressional committee recently. ” … The space I had been in seven minutes earlier was completely destroyed. Seven of my co-workers were killed. The reality is that if I had been killed, my partner of 11 years would have been the last to know, as I had not dared to list her in my emergency contact information.”

Darrah’s testimony and that of other veterans brought flesh and blood intensity to the first congressional review of the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy in 15 years.

Get the rest of this story at cron.com.

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