Gay service members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan say that the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy is "meaningless and unenforceable" and "prevents gays and lesbians from bonding with their peers," according to a new survey reported by the AP.
"All the policy meant to me...was that I still had to hide," says one former soldier, who adds, "All it does it put more stress on people." Some service members told researchers they feared that confiding in doctors or chaplains would place them at risk for being discovered and discharged. Yet many said younger service members with whom they served, on learning of their orientation, typically had no problem with it, even if the military brass did.
Neither Bush nor Kerry has shown a willingness to revisit a policy that prevents brave and able men and women from serving their country without the burden of having to lie and hide. Kerry originally made promising noises, then quickly backtracked once he encountered resistance and now speaks about the importance of "unit cohesion" (but hey, he's been promised the gay vote for free by our activist "leadership," so what the heck). As for Bush, his interest now is to placate the hard religious right in search of even more evangelical votes, although it's worth remembering that Cheney did once famously deride the gay ban as "a bit of an old chestnut."
It's certain Kerry, given the need to overcome his past stinging
criticism of the military, won't touch this hot potato. Bush
could pull a "Nixon goes to China," but there's little to suggest
he would.