DADT Repealed by Lame Duck Session!!!

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The current lame duck session of the Obama Administration has repealed Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DADT) policy that was formerly instituted by the Clinton administration. The policy allowed homosexuals to serve in the military as long as they kept their orientation to themselves. It seemed like a workable compromise then allowing homosexuality to run rampant in the military.

My problem with the overturning of DADT has more to do with the lack of  respect for the military than whether DADT should be allowed to stand or not. No one took into account what would truly be best for those in the military. Being that I have a nephew in the Army now, I think his voice should’ve been heard in regards to this issue. He is the one who is going to have to deal with it, not me, not the politicians, but the officers and enlisted men and women themselves.  My nephew might be for it, after all he has a lot of gay relatives in his family and is not exactly anti gay rights. However, it is one thing to be for gay marriage, for example, and quite another to have share close quarters with a man you know is gay. Either way, his input and the input of all our service men and women  should’ve been taken into account.

 People will try to equate this to when Blacks were finally allowed to serve side by side with Whites. It is nothing of the kind, personally I get sick of them throwing up my skin color whenever they want to make a point about “equality.” Being  Black is not a “behavior.” It is a genetic, inherent,  unmutable characteristic of a person. A Black person does not go back and forth on whether they want to be Black or White. There is no internal dialogue about whether they should come out or not. A Black person just is…Black. Homosexuality is a behavior. Therefore it is not equal to my skin color.

That being said it is immaterial what I think about homosexuality in the military. For all I have is my opinion. Just like all these Senators have is their opinion. Even McCain who voted for this and has served in the military honorably won’t have to serve under these new conditions they are creating, so it is easy for him to vote for it. However, the people whom this would affect were treated as though they were stupid children and not highly skilled military personnel. I find the whole handling of this insulting to those who serve our country proudly.

I found this quote from an anonymous soldier in the military on a website:

Well being a firefighter is different then being in combat. You may sleep in a room together but we may have to sleep in the same sleeping bag in certain situations. I’m in the military and I definitely agree it would affect unit cohesion. Wierd how the news always says the military supports the repeal of DADT yet everyone I talk to agrees we should keep it. Who’s taking these surveys and why haven’t I or anyone I know been given a chance to voice our concerns?

http://navycaptain-therealnavy.blogspot.com/2010/09/general-amos-confirmation-testimony-on.html

Is that really too much to ask? To let the people who serve have their say in this? Then really listen to those concerns and take them into consideration before making a decision! I am appalled! Not by whether homosexuals should be allowed to serve but with the blatant disrespect and disregard that we treat our military personnel! They deserve better!

 Related Articles

• ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ Repealed By A Lame Duck (seattlest.com)
• DADT Repeal Marks Milestone In Fight For Gay Rights (huffingtonpost.com)
• Lame Duck Hunting Revisited (volokh.com)
• DADT Repeal Passes The House (andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com)
• A Question On DADT (andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com)
• Obama Talks DADT Repeal In Lame Duck Session (lezgetreal.com)