Posted on 07/08/2010 11:10:41 AM PDT by jazusamo
Gay rights groups are concerned about possible skewed results in the Pentagon’s massive survey of military attitudes toward the repeal of “don’t ask don’t tell,” because of the way questions are reportedly worded and the potential for a lack of privacy for respondents.
On Wednesday, the Defense Department e-mailed survey questions to 400,000 members of the active duty and reserve forces, seeking information on how they viewed the ban on gays serving openly in the armed forces.
“This is an extraordinary initiative,” said Aubrey Sarvis, president of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, saying the military didn’t poll troops when President Truman issued an executive order opening the military to blacks. Again, when women were allowed into the military academies in the 1970s, no survey was issued.
Michael Cole, spokesman for the Human Rights Campaign, agreed.
“Given that it’s happening, our biggest concern is the possibility that results could be skewed against repeal depending on how the questions are worded,” he said, adding that he has yet to actually see the poll.
Military Times reported that a draft copy of the survey leans “heavily on questions about teamwork, performance, mission completion and morale.”
Some say that could be driven by the fact that groups backing repeal have been closed out of the survey process.
“I'm shocked that DOD refused to work with the pro-repeal groups on this. That tells you something. Some of the questions appear designed to elicit negative responses,” said Richard Socarides, a senior adviser to former President Bill Clinton on gay issues.
“What the survey makes clear is that the anti-gay contingent at DOD has not given up. They don't think this is over. And they may just be able still to stop or maybe significantly delay repeal. Never underestimate the Pentagon bureaucracy when it comes to this. Just ask Bill Clinton,” Socarides said.
But if gay servicemembers opt out, the findings could be even more skewed, though that’s just what Sarvis is recommending, arguing the Pentagon needs to guarantee participants’ privacy or grant them immunity from discharge.
“It’s not fail-safe,” Sarvis said. “It’s not 100 percent certainty.”
Sarvis said technology experts have told him sensitive information could be released inadvertently the way supposedly secure bank records and credit card records have sometimes been compromised. The biggest risk, he said, is a confidential chat room, where members of the military use a government-issued identification card before providing opinions.
He wants the input of gay troops to be included and hopes the Defense Department will grant survey participants immunity from being discharged if their identity is compromised during the process.
“If they are so confident no one’s privacy will be violated … why not go ahead and issue immunity under these extraordinary circumstances,” Sarvis said. “If they’re as confident as they say they are, then this immunity position should never be used. So what’s the downside of doing this?”
The Pentagon, however, stresses that the survey is definitely confidential.
“The confidential dialog will be operated solely by Westat, a private contractor, and it will be ran on their server, which is a non-DOD server,” said Pentagon spokeswoman Cynthia Smith.
That’s true for the survey itself and for other avenues set up to solicit as many opinions as possible, she said. Troops who participate by visiting www.defense.gov/dadt for a confidential chat sign in initially with a government ID card but are provided with a personal identification number and a link to share any confidential information.
“Westat will remove any personally identifying information from the files, and they won’t share those files with anyone, including DOD,” Smith said.
Josh Gerstein contributed to this report.
Ping!
It could be false indignation to provide cover for a survey skewed in the direction of the opinions of Obama, the CJCS, the SecDef, the Rinos and liberals in congress, and generals like McChrystal (who boggles the mind)
There should be zero demographic data collected. You give me someone’s age, sex, location, and MOS, and I can narrow it down to a very few at the outside and probably to the exact person.
They will use this to persecute those they consider to be “homophobes” once DADT is repealed.
...Some of the questions appear designed to elicit negative responses,” said Richard Socarides, a senior adviser to former President Bill Clinton on gay issues.
So this faggot shows right there that he recognizes that homos in the military will have a negative impact on teamwork, performance, mission completion and morale.
If this queer crap goes through it will lower the image of the US military considerably, and not just in the eyes of the people who don't hold a good image of the military now. It will lower their image in the eyes of people like me... someone who had been as big a supporter of the military as anyone else.
I've always held a high respect for the office of POTUS, and now I find myself challenging the simpering prick of a usurper in the White Hut to a duel daily on the internet. That's exactly how the usurper wants me to feel towards the military, and this is how it starts.
Sample questions:
Would you have a problem showering, sleeping and fighting next to someone who is sexually attracted to you?
Would sexual propositions from your fellow squad members make it difficult to perform your duties?
Would you feel pressured to go along with sexual propositions in order to get along with your squad and/or receive promotions?
Would promotions for the sexual playmates of your c.o.’s create feelings of resentment and bitterness in you?
Would men having sex near you create a negative work environment?
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Woo hoo! If homosexual activists are afraid and don't like this survey, it must be okay, then. Of course those pushing homo-leninism don't want to allow any dissenting viewpoints - that's what their disgusting agenda is all about!
They are upset because the DOD didn’t let them craft the questionnaire. They know that a detailed survey will hurt them. There is not majority support for gay activism in the military. What they don’t want is a debate about it because we will win.
Exactly. The survey will show overwhelming support for NOT allowing openly homosexual troops to serve.
I believe that's precisely why they're ticked off, they couldn't skew the questions.
1. Given a choice between having a gay service member sleep in the same tent or being tortured by Iranian Revolutionary guards - which would you choose?
2. Which disgusts you more - gay sex or cannibalism?
3. Would you prefer to be called a racist or a homophobe?
Would those be called leading questions?
Preemptive strike by the sodomites.
Typical Democrat hack politics...
“The confidential dialog will be operated solely by Westat, a private contractor, and it will be ran on their server, which is a non-DOD server,” said Pentagon spokeswoman Cynthia Smith.Sheesh!
Perhaps a typo?
Perhaps a publik skool edjucashun on the part of this spokeswoman?
"do you approve of having rump rangers and limp-wristed faggots showering and bunking with you?" and
"do you think being in the same living quarters with skin flute players is good for the military readiness and morale?".
Either way it doesn’t say much for editors or proof readers at Politico. :-)
It truly is the right solution...no witch-hunts and no kissing in the fox hole.
Good point.
If this error had been caught, they could have either 1) silently corrected it or 2) inserted a "[sic]" notation after it.
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!
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