Serving America: Ending don't ask don't tell will draw well-qualified people into military careers

The Columbus Dispatch ^ | Saturday, February 6, 2010 | Editorial

[Comparative Advantage]

Tuesday's unequivocal statement by the Pentagon's top two officials that openly gay men and women shouldn't be barred from serving in the nation's military should be the beginning of the end of an outdated policy.

Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the Senate Armed Services Committee that repealing the Clinton-era "don't ask, don't tell" policy is "the right thing to do" because the policy forces service members to lie about themselves or abandon their careers. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said ending the prohibition is inevitable, because attitudes toward gays have changed among the public and in the military.

Unfortunately, the change likely won't come quickly. Congress must overturn the 17-year-old law, and several Republicans on the Senate committee quickly blasted the idea -- even though some, including Arizona Sen. John McCain, earlier had said they would consider a change if military leaders ever called for it.

[vc79]

One other note... It’s been sixty odd years, but maybe it is time for another REVOLT OF THE ADMIRALS. I wish some would take a stand for what is right, instead of kowtowing to liberal mandates. Yet, all I hear is nothing.

[SaraJohnson]

Actually, they turn the military into a homosexual basket case and the commies will finally be able to re-instate the draft. The volunteers will disappear quickly. No kin of mine is serving in an authoritarian homosexual organization!

[phormer phrog phlyer]

You are correct, this piece argues in static terms that great things will happen as a result of this change. There are many things which would have to be worked out, and it would be a very difficult process. I am glad that I am no longer on active duty so I don’t have to listen to some homosexual Commissar do sensitivity training for hours telling me that my entire belief system is wrong. This is moving from tolerance to acceptance to special treatment.

[Waco]

The military is supposed to make a man out of you, not a ‘’girly-man’’ of you.

[Hardastarboard]

You make an EXCELLENT point.

[Sans-Culotte]

Everything you say is true. Gays are never content to “live and let live”. Well, some may be, but the activist self-loathing narcissist types aren’t. This will mean the end of the American military as we know it. It will cease to be an effective fighting force. If gays were really only interested in fighting for the USA, they’d STFU and serve.

[highlander_UW]

Homosexuals are about 3% of the US population. Changing the policy or not is unlikely to impact the number of homosexuals in the military by significant numbers.