Again, there are closeted gay and lesbian service members who do their jobs just as well as any straight service member. These gays and lesbians clearly love our country as much as anyone else and they are not trying to impose their lifestyle upon the rest of us. Why should they run the risk of being railroaded out of a job they can on account of what they do outside of the service?
Or better yet, why should we as Americans be deprived of the protection these people want to offer us on account of their personal lives?
I personally wouldn't care about someone's sexual orientation, it's their business. I also doubt there's high-ranking officers going around doing witch hunts. But if so, anyone is entitled to keep their private habbits to themselves. How can anyone prove someone is gay unless the person in question makes a point of proving they aren't? Maybe I just don't understand.
pnh102 wrote: "Why should they run the risk of being railroaded out of a job they can on account of what they do outside of the service?"
Because the military is a 24/7 job--there's no such thing as "outside of military service" because private behaviors can have an impact on job performance and the public's perception of the military. That's why a DUI can cost you a stripe on the job as well as a fine in court--arguments that no one was harmed notwithstanding.