Tribune Editorial: Get Rid of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’
The Tribune hits the nail right on the head. Let’s get this done–NOW. Candidate Obama made it clear that ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell’ is an untenable position for the United States armed forces and he promised that it would be changed. We must stop this foolish policy that dismisses and excludes so many people with special talents and skills. It not only discriminates against gays, but it teaches others that discrimination is okay. It is not okay in the military or anywhere. Thanks to the Salt Lake Tribune for this editorial and its consistent support of gay rights.
Get rid of “don’t ask, don’t tell,” and don’t delay. It’s as out of place in the modern military as a prop-driven fighter plane on a Nimitz-class aircraft carrier, or a Navy Seal carrying a musket.
The Pentagon policy that blatantly discriminates against U.S. service personnel because of their sexual orientation is mandated by a 1993 law, a backlash against President Bill Clinton’s attempt to allow gays and lesbians to serve openly in the armed forces. The law forbids witch hunts but requires those who out themselves through words or conduct to be dismissed — hence, don’t ask, don’t tell.
From a tactical standpoint, the policy makes no sense. We’re fighting a war on two fronts and struggling to meet recruiting goals. Meanwhile, we’re jettisoning able-bodied, talented personnel at a rate of about 700 per year since 2003 because of their sexual inclinations and spending millions of dollars to find and train their replacements.
And, from a civil rights perspective, institutionalized discrimination and official oppression have no place in our military or our society.
The Supreme Court passed on a chance to set the military straight this week, declining to hear an appeal from a former Army captain who was discharged for being gay.
Congress, despite public opinion polls that consistently show a majority of Americans oppose the ban, and a 2006 study that determined the ill-advised policy has cost the government $363.8 million in lost services, seems hesitant to act. The Military Readiness Enhancement Act has been mired for months in a House subcommittee without a hearing.
President Barack Obama, who could issue an executive order under the stop-loss provision to halt the discharges or disband the Pentagon’s kangaroo court that bounces gays from the military, has declined to take action despite a campaign promise to banish the ban.
Those who have been dismissed under the misguided measure — more than 12,500 servicemen and women since 1993 — should be reinstated without loss of rank or privilege. The estimated 65,000 gays, lesbians and bisexuals who are serving honorably today should no longer be forced to live a lie. And their partners should be accorded the same rights, privileges and benefits as military spouses.
It’s time for the government to stop snooping in the bedroom, and put this issue to rest. “Don’t ask, don’t tell” should be filed in the “big mistake” cabinet, somewhere between Jim Crow and Guantanamo.