Soon the presidential debates between Barack Obama and John McCain will ensue. Servicemembers Legal Defense Network an organization devoted to overturning the military ban on gay, lesbian, and bisexual servicemembers is asking for us to send in requests to moderator Jim Lehrer for Don't Ask Don't Tell (DADT) to be one of the questions asked of them at the forum.
http://www.sldn.org/page/speakout/debate
Monday, September 22, 2008
Get DADT on the Debate Platform
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5 comments:
I think this is a hugely important issue to have asked at the debates.
Clearly, we will be better off with Obama. Forcing him to address this issue before the elections would seem to be a way to guarantee action later, however, it may chase votes away from Obama and that would put us in a worse position.
Let's wait.
i heard a rumour last week that the DOD is repealing don't ask don't tell. i don't know if that is the official position or if it's completely made up or what...i just know that i got it from someone with a partner in the military who has supposedly been briefed that the DOD is abandoning DODT because they need the personnel. again, this could be total b.s. i have no way of knowing. if it is, i'm sorry to have further spread it.
Anony,
There have been some studies made by the DoD that end up concluding that LGB integration would not adversely affect morale and combat readiness, and that recommend that DADT be repealed.
Whether or not the recommendations are followed? That's another kettle of fish. Still, we can hope!
I have mixed feelings about DADT. While I do not believe we should be dismissed from service for being gay or lesbian on the one hand, on the other when you join the military you should not be serving as a gay or lesbian person. Part of the "code" of being in the military is the discipline and structure which exist regardless of race, creed, culture, etc. There is no place for the rainbow flag, an African, Armenian or Azerbaijani flag. It's about unity and cohesion for a specific purpose. The military (think French Foreign Legion) is not about individuality or culture-those must be erased in service to the object: a cohesive unit. Perhaps on a philosophical level this is one reason why the military rejects us "out" folks: they fear the homosexualization of the military. There is no place for any kind of culture in the military gay or otherwise. Again it's about structure and discipline which gays and lesbians are perfectly capable of as well as straight folk so we can serve just as well. But I think people fear not so much gay service members as much as gay culture invading the military forces. This I can understand.
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