Since Don't Ask Don't Tell has been such an important issue, one in which President Obama has received criticism, I felt I should give my own perspective on the topic. I generally try to tread carefully with political statements since I'm still on active duty. But since our Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the honorable Admiral Mike Mullen, the highest ranking member of our armed forces, gave his impassioned endorsement of repealing DADT - I figure that gives me cover to speak out publicly.
- In this diary I'm going to cover my own journey in dealing with the issue.
- Why I believe many trooper still oppose repealing it.
- My opinion on President Obama and DADT.
I have a somewhat diverse military background. I spent 6 years in the Marine Corps reserves as a heavy equipment operator. I also have over 6 years active duty US Army as an airborne infantry paratrooper. During this period I spent 2 years (and a couple months) on recruiting duty.
Tracing back to my Marine days I was against gays serving in the military. I have always been for allowing gays to marry and for gay rights in every other area [except the military]. My argument had always been that we separate men from women in showers and living quarters due to sexual attraction. That, just as it's absurd to force women to shower with men, it's also absurd to force men to shower with gay men.
Later in my career my views shifted. The logical (and frankly Liberal) me felt gays should should be allowed to serve openly, but I was still uncomfortable with the idea. I never knew why I felt uncomfortable but I knew it likely had to do with social programming. Now, I think I have these contradictions within myself worked out. I think I can identify the source of them and explain them.
Let's trace back to my original objection. The men/women gay/straight men argument is still flawless in my opinion. From a logical standpoint it's difficult to argue there's no double standard if you have boundaries between men and women, but not gays and straights of the same gender. But I've come to believe that this argument is a lot like Libertarianism. It sounds great on paper, but in practice it's complete horseshit. In Jr. High and High school PE we've all showered with gays of the same sex. Going to the gym we have all showered with gays of the same sex. In the military we have all showered with gays of the same sex. Has it affected us in any way? Should we now demand our local gym ask its members their sexuality and make them use separate shower facilities? I think most people would agree that such a demand would be absurd, and such is the same with the armed forces. Demand your local gym ask people's sexual orientation and I even think most Conservatives would call you a homophope. So why should we expect less in the military?
Looking back at my original argument I, have to admit, I think it was really smokescreen. I honestly think (for me) it really came down to an image problem. There are many things I like about serving in the armed forces, and one of them is the pride in doing something many are afraid to do. That's why I chose infantry in the US Army. It was for the pride of doing something that I feel is important and necessary, and something that many dare not due. In the infantry endure physical and mental stress that is (at times) beyond comprehension. In battle you are considered the tip of the spear. The one who puts himself at the greatest amount of risk. With all of these things comes respect and an image of toughness and valor that many Soldiers strive to maintain.
Picture for a moment that battle hardened Soldier roughing it out in sand with 80 pounds on his back and an M4 carbine in his hands. Now quickly! Picture Richard Simmons!
Do you see the dichotomy? It all comes down to stereotype and image. Of course there are tons of gay military members who are physically and mentally tough, serving all over the world. By laws of math I have no doubt I have already served with gays in the Marines and in the Army, though I never knew who they were.
So this all leads me to my opinion of why other troopers don't support repealing DADT. I've had this discussion with a great deal of my peers over the years. I'm going to categorize them.
- There are some say they are for gays serving openly. In my opinion they (we) are solid minority.
- There are some who say they are against gays serving openly, but in reality they're just succumbing to peer pressure. They worry about the reaction from others if they admit they don't give a shit about someone's sexuality. This is just my opinion based on some conversations.
- [In my opinion most common] They have a problem with the "gay image" (in other words the gay stereotype) being projected on the armed forces. These guys tend to rationalize their real objection with smokescreen arguments, as I did.
- There are some who worry that gays being allowed to come out will lead to chaotic unrest, gay bashing en mass and other activity that will be detrimental to unit cohesion. This fear is actually understandable as there is a lot of gay hating in the military. But I don't think this is grounded in reality. Just because they lift DADT doesn't mean every gay guy at Fort Bragg is suddenly going to throw on assless chaps and go running down Bragg Blvd. Just because a gay person has the option to disclose his sexuality doesn't mean he's going to feel he must publicly announce it to every homophobe on base.
- Other. There are some who claim an objection for moral reasons (usually very religious Soldiers). I'm sure there are some that are so homophobic that they really do fear showering with gays. And I'm sure there are other issues I've missed.
Last, I would like to address Barack Obama and repealing DADT.
EDIT: I removed most of this section because many felt it would be a distraction due to the controversial nature of it. I will just say that I do believe President Obama is sincere in his intention to remove DADT, and leave it at that.