In January, Sandy Tsao, an army officer, told her superiors that she is gay -- a violation of the Don't Ask, Don't Tell (DADT) law. On May 5, Tsao received a handwritten letter from President Obama stating that he is "committed to changing our current policy," but that "it will take some time to complete (partly because it needs Congressional action).".... ABC's George Stephanopoulos asked Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) about his views on DADT. McCain did not commit to changing the policy, saying, "in all due respect, right now the military is functioning extremely well" without openly-gay service members. McCain concluded that the policy "is working well"....
Silly me; I grew up believing that America was the sort of place where all people were valued. You know..."freedom", "equality", "all men are created equal", and all that other touchy-feely stuff you learn in Civics class? Well, call me naive...because what all of that might sound good, there's absolutely nothing to it. Case in point: "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"...which, simply put, Don't Work.
For some reason, we as a society have decided that it's perfectly acceptable to give in to the narrow-minded bigotry of those who run our military. In deciding that homosexuals are unfit to serve (because they're clearly second-class citizens), we have denied ourselves the talents and services of some truly first-class Americans. How many Arabic translators have been kicked out of the military since 9.11? At a time when, if there's one thing this country needs in the war against terrorism, it's Arabic translators. We profess to be willing to devote all manner of resources to hunting down those who would wish to destroy us...yet we place our fear, ignorance, and loathing over even that lofty goal. Surely, someone somewhere recognizes that DADT is compromising the military's mission to protect us? Mr. President??
Gays in the military as a concept doesn't work because we've allowed our military to create a culture of false machismo and hyper-religiosity in which Conservative values- fear and hatred of those who are "different"- are viewed as the Prime Directive. The only reason homosexuals are viewed as threats to unit cohesion is that this view has been allowed to fester. Well, that, and the fact that far too many military policy makers are apparently far too insecure about their own sexuality, thus viewing homosexuals as a threat to their own peace of mind.
"Don"t Ask, Don't Tell" was a sham from day one, a system designed and intended to treat and entire class of people as second-class citizens. "You can play in our sandbox as long as you keep your mouths shut." The problem here is not with homosexuals; it's with heterosexuals too insecure and too frightened to admit that they can learn how not to hate someone who calls themselves "gay". Hatred, discrimination, and homophbia are choices, and one that those who set policy seem to have no trouble with.
As a former Army Reserve officer, I can tell you that unit cohesion is a choice. Most soldiers don't really care about much of anything except whether the person next to them can do their job in a time of need. Soldiers, when properly educated, can deal with a lot. Our military is staffed with people who are smart, capable, and willing to serve. Why must the assumption be that exposing them to colleagues who happen to be homosexual will somehow corrupt them? Why can we not assume that soldiers can and will learn to accept others for who they are and what they can add towards accomplish the mission? Why must we force an entire class to deny who they are in order to serve the country they love?
It's time to do the right thing for ALL Americans, Mr. President. It's time to send the message that ALL Americans are welcome to serve their country. Get rid of DADT before yet another soldier (perhaps even another Arabi translator) is drummed out simply for being honest about who they are. If we truly believe that all men are created equal, there's simply no other choice. Please...do the right thing.
WE DESERVE BETTER.
