According to Wikipedia:
Don’t ask, don’t tell is the common term for the policy about homosexuality in the U.S. military mandated by federal law Pub.L. 103-160 (10 U.S.C. § 654). Unless one of the exceptions from 10 U.S.C. § 654(b) applies, the policy prohibits anyone who demonstrate(s) a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual acts from serving in the armed forces of the United States, because it would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability.
While I’m an advocate for human and constitutional rights, I believe the author of that law was dead on.
When I was in college, I had the misfortune to sit between two openly homosexual males. I don’t mean two guys who just admitted to being gay. I’m talking about two blatantly open gays who felt it necessary to communicate back and forth before and during class about their homosexual activities in graphic detail. Personally, I found it offensive — as offensive as it would have been had it been two heterosexual males or females. But more important, it was distracting… to the point where I decided I’d had enough and left class after explaining to the instructor why I could no longer participate.
If you believe that our military personnel are in danger only during times of conflict or when serving in a war zone, think again. My brother has scars covering 90% of his body from the third degree burns suffered during a training exercise that resulted in a helicopter crash. Members of our Armed Forces are constantly in situations that require total concentration… all day of every day of every year, no matter where they are.
The fact is that homosexuals are a minority and most heterosexuals are uncomfortable when exposed to homosexual content. I’m not saying that’s right, but it’s just the way it is. Congress has as much of a responsibility to protect the members of the military as they do to protect the constitutional rights of all Americans. In this particular case, those two responsibilities are simply incompatible.
In his decision to repeal the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell law, President Obama has unfortunately decided to place the satisfaction of a limited few above the physical safety of the 300 million men and woman who serve in the Armed Forces, Reserves and National Guard. Why is it okay to ban a moment of silence from public schools because it makes people uncomfortable, but not okay to ban behavior that’s the subject of such an emotional debate?
It would have been better to propose amendments to the law to make it clear that homosexuals could be subject to consequences if their public behavior is deemed to be a distraction or danger to their unit.
References:
Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell
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