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Old 09-07-2006, 07:54 AM   #1
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Post Should Openly Gay And Lesbian People Be Allowed In The Military?

In more than 30 cities across the country, including Shreveport, openly gay members of the gay-rights organization Soulforce are attempting to sign up for military service.
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Old 09-07-2006, 06:43 PM   #2
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Yeah, I think they should be allowed. Hell, it's their country too!

I cant think of any reason why they should not be allowed to join our military. During the work day or when a service member is on duty is not the time for sexual shenanigans of any sort, for anyone. All thats left is what happens after work or off duty, which is nobody's business anyway. In the past when homosexuality was stigmatized, there was a concern that a homosexual service member was perhaps more susceptable to, or at higher risk of, blackmail. In other words, an enemy intelligence service could use the service members "alternative predilections" as leverage for the purposes of espionage. In this day and age, that is no longer a concern. However, the high command will sometimes cite an "adverse effect on the unit's esprit decor". Translated into civilianese, this means that the service member's sexual orientation could potentially be detrimental to the unit's cohesiveness. However, as I stated above, there is no place for flirting or innuendo during periods of on-duty status anyway, regardless of the service member's sexual preferences. In addition, all service members are routinely tested for HIV, so that if one of them should turn out to test positive, that person is to my knowledge removed from service, or atleast removed from serving in a combat position, since if that person were to become injured on the battlefield, treatment efforts could possibly put other service members at risk of exposure.

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Old 09-07-2006, 07:17 PM   #3
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I can only comment as someone who has never served in the military. I am however forever grateful for those who do. From my point of view, they should be allowed in as well, if they are "up to the task". in other words, with them just as with any other demographic, there will be those who are not up to the task, and don't belong in the services for what ever reason. But kudos to them for giving it a try anyway.

Especially in a time when recruiters are not meeting quotas, service men and woman are being called into service when they otherwise thought they might not be. If someone is willing to serve their country, I think they should be given a chance.

Al, just wondering if your point of view comes from someone who has or hasn't served in the military ?

God Bless our troops and I hope and pray for their safe return.
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Old 09-07-2006, 11:24 PM   #4
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Bob, I served in the U.S. Army in the late 80s/early90s. In those days, they would "chapter" homosexuals out of the service. In the various stations and units I served in, there were always a few gays, and everybody knew who they were. If you'd asked me back then if I felt they should be allowed to serve, I might've given you a different answer. It was a different time, after all. But over the years, I've come to take a more tolerant view.
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Old 09-08-2006, 03:22 PM   #5
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Gays in the military

I don't believe that a person's sexual orientation should be the basis for not giving them a job, private sector or military. I grew up in a military household and I have a great deal of respect for the brave men and women who serve our country in the military. The pay is lousy and the working conditions are even worse. If any person is willing to serve, let them!
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Old 09-08-2006, 10:13 PM   #6
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I don't care if someone is gay or purple or from Mars whatever as long as they fulfull one requirement for duty in my opinion, and that is the desire to stand beside their fellow volunteers to defend our country, constitution, and way of life. If that need is met, then other details in a soldier's life are personal. This is why I am against any proposal to reinstate the draft. If I were a soldier who volunteered for duty, I would want my peers to have done the same. I wouldn't want to depend on any wimps to cover my back because they were forced to. That is not what teamwork is about. I would want peers who feel that we are all in this together and will get through no matter what.
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Old 09-12-2006, 11:47 AM   #7
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Yes!

At a time when our best and brightest are so urgently needed in the armed forces, it's shocking that we would continue to try and kick so many of them out. I heard one of the police officers at the protest this morning ask another one, "You mean, they're not satisfied with the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy? I would want that officer to consider what her life would be like if she had to go to work every day and be careful not to share some of the most basic details of her daily life: her husband's identity (forget placing that family portrait on the desk!), what she did over the weekend, etc. I would hope she could imagine for just a moment what her working life would be like, in a job already as high-stress as hers, if in addition to that stress she had to worry, every moment, who might find out about her private life, and whether or not that person would be supportive or cause the immediate loss of her job. Family support is one thing that the military often does very well. I can say this after 20 years as an Air Force wife, where I always knew I had a network of friends to look out for me. In order to be the most effective force possible, the military should be able to look out for ALL its families, without regard to their composition.

Thanks for listening,
Susan Caldwell
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Old 09-15-2006, 01:10 PM   #8
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Gays in Military

When looking for an answer to this question, you must ask questions.

Is this another attempt by the ACLU to assert that homosexuality is normal?

Will allowing gay people into the military only allow the opportunistic ACLU to direct their anti-patriotic views in another direction?

Why is it that many gay people only want to be included, but then once that happens, they want to become a distraction by promoting their sexual choices as normal?

How will they be treated by their fellow comrades and members of the armed forces?

You should understand that in saying all of this I am tolerant of their choices, but patience should not be mistaken for weakness. I happen to have two close friends who are in a same sex relationship and I care about their well being very much.

I, however, am not tolerant of the what I call liberal media constantly spotlighting and promoting gay lifestyle as a norm through the use of newscasts, sitcoms, and reality shows. I am not tolerant of schools introducing or discussing same sex relationships as a norm. I will always believe to be gay is abnormal and I want my children to understand this.
I will teach them to be tolerant and respectful of people's choices, but to realize it is not what is normal.
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Old 09-15-2006, 01:42 PM   #9
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There already are gay service members in the military. They're serving honorably. They're risking their lives. They are courageous.
I think its a shame when in America someone is not able to fight for the country they love because of sexual orientation.

BANNING GAYS HURTS MILITARY READINESS: “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) undermines military preparedness by denying the services trained personnel critical to our nation’s defense. The Pentagon has discharged 10,000 service members for being gay in the past decade, the equivalent of two Army brigades. DADT requires gay service members to lie as a condition of service, eroding the bonds of trust necessary for unit cohesion.

THERE ARE ONE MILLION GAY VETERANS; SIXTY-FIVE THOUSAND GAYS CURRENTLY SERVING.

AMERICA’S ALLIES SUPPORT GAYS IN THE MILITARY. Twenty-five nations allow gays in the military, including Israel, the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada. Studies have concluded that lifting the ban in those countries have had no effect on military readiness or unit cohesion. American troops are serving with openly gay troops from 12 countries in Operation Enduring Freedom and 9 countries in Operation Iraqi Freedom.

PENTAGON AND SERVICE LEADERS SUPPORT GAYS IN THE MILITARY. In 1993, General Barry Goldwater said that “You don’t have to be straight, to shoot straight” when he spoke in support of lifting the ban on gays serving in the military. General Wesley Clark, Former Navy Secretary and Senator John Chaffee, Assistant Secretaries of Defense Edward Dorn and Lawrence Korb, all support gays serving in the United States military.

NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCIES DO NOT DISCRIMINATE AGAINST GAYS. The CIA, DIA, FBI and NSA do not discriminate based on sexual orientation. In a post-September 11 world, these organizations’ contributions to the security of our country are paramount. Except for the military, the federal government does not discriminate based in employment on sexual orientation.


TAXPAYERS SPEND APPROXIMATELY $26 MILLION A YEAR TO TRAIN REPLACEMENTS FOR THOSE DISCHARGED AS LESBIAN, GAY OR BISEXUAL. Taxpayers have spent approximately one quarter of a billion dollars training replacements for discharged gay personnel since the passage of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”

Last edited by J-bray; 09-15-2006 at 02:27 PM.
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Old 09-15-2006, 04:36 PM   #10
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What is Normal?

Is it normal to be straight? Normal to be Christian? Normal to be conservative? I choose not to use the word normal for it always confuses me.
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Old 09-15-2006, 04:40 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by windshop
Is it normal to be straight? Normal to be Christian? Normal to be conservative? I choose not to use the word normal for it always confuses me.

No one is normal or do we just not know the defintion of normal? We all have our own issues...... skeletons......... you name it........ we have secrets

If you are gay or straight or blue or green or yellow black or white who cares if you do the job correctly that's all that counts
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