In March 2009, Daniel Choi, a linguist for the US Army, announced that he was a homosexual. In May 2009, he was informed he was being discharged from the military. Choi is an Arab linguist with a security clearance.
In 2006, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC)--a watchdog group that tracks hate groups in American--informed Donald Rumsfled that "thousands" of active duty troops appeared to be affiliated with hate groups in violation of military policy.
The problem was acknowledged by some military commanders, recruiters, and the FBI, but nothing was done. In November 2008, the SPLC sent a letter on their to Defense Secretary Robert Gates:
"Since we issued our 2006 report, the problem may have worsened," SPLC President Richard Cohen wrote to Gates.
Where are the media reports of all the soldiers being discharged for violating the military's policy on belonging to these 'dissident' groups? Nowhere, because it is not happening that often.
In a recent article in the military publication Stars and Stripes, writer Kevin Baron discusses the issue:
A Stripes reporter searched the user profiles [of newsaxon.com] listing their job category as "Military" and found 130 hits out of 7,906 total members.
A Defense Department directive issued in 1996 lays out the guidelines for "dissident" activities by service members, from publishing underground newspapers to organizing demonstrations.
"Military personnel must reject participation in organizations that espouse supremacist causes," the rule states. "Active participation, such as publicly demonstrating or rallying, fund raising, recruiting and training members, organizing or leading such organizations, or otherwise engaging in activities in relation to such organizations ... that are viewed by command to be detrimental to the good order, discipline, or mission accomplishment of the unit, is incompatible with Military Service, and is, therefore, prohibited."
But military officials gave conflicting answers this week when asked how policies governing racist behavior are being enforced.
A spokesman for the Department of the Army said the service takes seriously any allegations of membership in racist, extremist or hate groups. But he said such allegations are dealt with on a case-by-case basis at the unit disciplinary level or in the military justice system, and are not being addressed as an Army-wide problem.
The Army spokesman then referred Stripes to the Army’s Criminal Investigation Command for more information. But that office refused to comment on Army policy on hate groups, saying that the issue of extremists infiltrating the ranks was "an Army-wide issue" that should be addressed at the service command level.
Conversely, no one in the military seems to be confused about how to apply "Don't Ask Don't Tell," as any of the 619 enlisted men and women kicked out of the military last year for being homosexual can tell you:
Of the discharges [under DADT] for the fiscal year that ended September 30, 410 were male and 209 were female, according to the figures obtained by the [Boston] Globe from Pentagon personnel officials. That compares with a total of 627 discharges in fiscal year 2007; 612 in 2006; 726 in 2005; and 653 in 2004.
The SPLC describes Newsaxon.com, where several soldiers have profiles, as a community site for white supremacists. Here is a quote from one active duty soldier with a profile under "WhitePride85" at the site:
I have been in the Army for over 5 years now ... I am a SSGT ... I have been in Iraq and Kuwait ... I love and will do anything to keep our master race marching. I have been a skinhead forever.
In 2006, the SPLC documented the neo-Nazi activities of Matt Buschbacher, who became a Navy SEAL:
In 1999, he was the head of the [World Church of the Creator] Cincinnati chapter when Chicago member Benjamin Smith went on a three-day, two-state shooting spree that targeted Jews, Asians and blacks. Smith killed two people and wounded nine before committing suicide as police closed in.
Afterward, Buschbacher praised Smith as "a dedicated activist for our racial cause" in The Cincinnati Inquirer. "We have pride in our race, heritage, and culture, and we will do anything to prevent it from being destroyed," he said. "White man is the creator, the creator of civilizations."
Buschbacher joined the navy in October 2001. In August 2002, while an active duty SEAL, "Buschbacher attended the National Alliance's invitation-only "leadership conference" at the neo-Nazi group's West Virginia compound."
What's clear is that for years after becoming a SEAL, he violated military regulations without repercussions by staying active in the neo-Nazi movement.
Using the online pseudonym "Mattiasb88" [88 is neo-Nazi code for "Heil Hitler"] to hide his identity, Buschbacher designed and distributed National Alliance fliers, white power screen savers, and a photo montage of Pierce on the Internet via his website, racialpride.com, which displayed a logo of a burning swastika and this mission statement: "The purpose of this website is to provide white patriots with a large database of information for recruiting and self-improvement." Buschbacher also posted messages to the white supremacist website Stormfront and the website of Resistance Records, a hate rock music company owned by the National Alliance. In the fall of 2003, the National Alliance magazine Resistance even published a collage of "Scene Shots" that included a small photo of Buschbacher wearing a Turner Diaries T-shirt and giving a Nazi salute.
Buschbacher was never disciplined and received an honorable discharge. This is not the only case of the failure to discipline people like Buchbacher.
The Stars and Stripes article points out that this gives even more validity to the Department of Homeland Security's recent report that infuriated conservatives because it warned that returning military veterans who "fac[e] significant challenges reintegrating into their communities could lead to the potential emergence of terrorist groups or lone wolf extremists capable of carrying out violent attacks."
Can anyone explain how, in a military that has one-third nonwhites serving, having white supremacists in the ranks does not undermine morale?
How is being gay in the military a greater threat than being someone who promotes the "master race" and is affiliated with groups associated with violence and homicide?
The military clearly needs to get its priorities in order. It should not be spending a dime to force out gays and lesbians who serve honorably and with distinction and instead purge its ranks of racist cretins like Buschbacher who could become the domestic terrorists of tomorrow.
UPDATE:
Abarrenfuture noted below that Salon published an article on the subject of white supremacists in the military last month. It is an interesting article and much more indepth than this diary. I recommend a read, and a tip to abarrenfuture below.
http://www.salon.com/...