jgoins Report This Comment
Date: November 06, 2010 11:38AM

Just ending the DADT alone will prevent any gay person from joining the military. I assume by you posting this means you would like to see gays being able to join openly but ending the policy will not do it. Congress would have to enact legislation which would stop any discrimination against homosexual people. Add to that the change in attitude of the people to accept gays and lesbians in life which would be even more difficult than just changing the law. Even the younger generation now has little tolerance for the homosexual people so DADT is not much of an issue.

fossil_digger Report This Comment
Date: November 06, 2010 01:45PM

the only people that need to know if someone is gay, is everyone in that person's squad. if anyone has a problem, they can transfer.....easy....*facepalm*)

ORLANDO399 Report This Comment
Date: November 06, 2010 03:25PM

nah..just thought it would be some interesting convo

ORLANDO399 Report This Comment
Date: November 06, 2010 03:36PM

I believe that gays shouldn't be in the military at all but this guy was a hero so........................

shakes Report This Comment
Date: November 06, 2010 03:55PM

Unfortunately for someone who has not served in the military the answer is easy. The problems are in housing. In the military you have hundreds of men and women living in very tight quarters. When the military integrated women into combat positions it was a logistics and housing nightmare. Have you ever seen the sleeping quarters on a submarine or in forward combat position. When they integrated women it was fairly easy. Just add separate quarters for men and separate quarters for women. Now what do you do? Separate quarters for men, women, gay men, and gay women, well that won't work. So we're back to just separate sleeping and bathing areas for men and women. I don't know about you, but I would be uncomfortable with that. Have you ever seen gay men go to the bathroom at a gay bar. They all us the stall toilet and no one uses the urinal. I'm not gay but it seems they have privacy issues, too. So if you can figure out sleeping and bathing arrangements that don't offend or cause moral problems please let the military know. I'll bet it's what's causing the hold up.

Mrkim Report This Comment
Date: November 06, 2010 04:44PM

Can't see how a persons sexual preference should allow or disallow them from military service but allowing openly gay performance does represent some serious logistical issues as shakes mentioned that in a battlefield scenario would seem impractical overall

R_U_Kidding Report This Comment
Date: November 06, 2010 05:08PM

"openly gay performance"? Are you saying they're gonna march into battle wearing a mardi gras outfit singing Villiage People songs? "Housing issues"? Are the gays gonna want separate showers or are the straight soldiers who are brave enough to fight against the Taliban gonna be afraid to shower because some
gay guy will be looking at their butts? The world won't come to an end if gays can serve openly.

fossil_digger Report This Comment
Date: November 06, 2010 09:25PM

this is an army of volunteers who have signed on for one deal, you can't just change it.



Lawyers

jgoins Report This Comment
Date: November 07, 2010 11:07AM

The problem I see is a misconception about gays by heterosexuals. Have any of you straight people ever been approached or accosted by a gay person? I think not, gay people usually know who is straight and who is gay and they tend to respect others proclivities. I have been approached by a gay person before and all I did was thank them for the compliment by graciously declined and it went no farther. I served in the military and knew some gay people who served along side me. I saw no problem with it in any way. It is basically no different than have women serving along side. When one is on duty there is no public display of affection allowed between men and women so it would be no different than between men and men or women and women. As for the showers, that is a difficulty most people have anyway even without knowing there might be gays there. Even showers in high school gyms are difficult for a lot of people and carries into adult life. This is why deodorant is know as a marine shower. I guess in short the problem is not with gay people but with straight people and how secure they are in the own sexuality. Go out and meet some gay people and see for yourself that they are not sex maniacs out to rape you. I believe there are more perverts who are heterosexual than there are gay ones.

Onyma Report This Comment
Date: November 08, 2010 02:30AM

jgoins

quasi Report This Comment
Date: November 08, 2010 12:30PM

I think you said it very well, jgoins. I don't think the problem lies within the gays but within our perceptions of them. The gays I've known are well behaved, perhaps more well behaved than heterosexuals because they're ever aware of how quickly the ignorant villagers may come after them with torches, axes, and pitchforks. They aren't the danger here, it's the rest of us who present the possible danger to them. We're slowly moving to the place where it's not us and them but where it just all us, and because they've always been with us maybe doing away with the don't ask don't tell rule is a step toward acceptance. It's not an endorsement for a way of being that is different from our own, just an acknowledgement that these folks shouldn't have to be fearful and live in the shadows as long as they're not harmong anyone, just like everybody else.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/11/2010 12:36PM by quasi.

jgoins Report This Comment
Date: November 09, 2010 01:18PM

Doing away with DADT alone would allow the military to ask if one is gay and then discriminate against them. Without legislation to allow gays in the military removing DADT would just put everything back the way it was before. Bring legislation of equality before removing the only protection gays have is the only way to do it. Removing it is a valid step but it seems it is putting the cart before the horse.