One of the highest forms of patriotism, aside from dissent of course, is military service. As George Orwell said, People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf. But in America, if these rough men happen to love another man, they're not allowed to ensure our safety and liberty. President Obama initially said he planned on having this repealed, but changed his stance to a tentative we'll see. I'm about to say something that may shock some readers that may be faint of heart, so make sure you are sitting down. Are you ready for this? It does not make sense for the military to exclude non-closeted gays from military service. That's right; I'm coming out of the closet against Don't Ask
Don't Tell.
Think about it. Back in 1993, Don't Ask Don't Tell was created, allowing gays to serve in the military, as long as they didn't serve out of the closet. The military couldn't investigate soldiers' sexual orientations, and the soldiers couldn't be true to themselves. However, according to an unscientific survey taken by retired Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard Vincent Patton III, on behalf of Commander of the U.S. Central Command Gen. John Abizaid and the United Service Organizations, most of the younger enlisted troops really don't care if their fellow soldiers are gay or straight. And really, does it matter if the guy who has your back in the foxhole or got your six up in the clouds is sexually attracted to someone of the same gender?
According to a 2006 RAND Corporation study, 72 percent of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans polled said they were personally comfortable interacting with gays. As University of Florida psychologist Bonnie Moradi and Rand Corporation sociologist Laura Miller commented in the report, the data indicated no associations between knowing a lesbian or gay unit member and ratings of perceived unit cohesion or readiness. Instead findings pointed to the importance of leadership and instrumental quality in shaping perceptions of unit cohesion and readiness. According to that report, war veterans ranked training quality and equipment as way more important on the battlefield; to compare, knowing a lesbian/gay unit member was ranked by ex-soldiers as the least important factor, less important than the quality of the unit's non-commissioned officers. In other words, if the soldiers don't care about having a gay teammate, and it doesn't affect the unit's teamwork, then why bother with it to begin with?
Maybe you think that repealing Don't Ask
Don't Tell is a liberal position, and that I've sold out to the man. Well, you're wrong. Mister Conservative himself, Barry Goldwater, is famous for saying, You don't have to be straight to be in the military; you just have to shoot straight. A strong military is a key to a strong America, that's something I think that most people can agree on. If the best people for the job are being turned away or discharged because of who they love, then we're handicapping our defenses, all because of a difference that makes no difference. Don't Ask
Don't Tell should be repealed, but not because of civil rights. It should be repealed so that the military can operate with peak performance, not as heterosexual and homosexual divided, but as Americans united against those who would do us harm.
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Opinion
Jesse Hathaway
