"Unit Cohesion" My Ass!

This is a response to U.S. House Representative and former Marine Duncan Hunter (R-CA, pictured) who wrote this editorial today defending the indefensible, and that would be the ban of gays in the military (with “don’t ask, don’t tell” serving as barely a fig leaf for the sake of intolerance), reflected by Gen. Peter Pace’s comments about gays being “immoral.” Hunter also states that it’s wrong to make our troops face this argument at this time because we’re at war, and it’s an unfair burden to them.

No. Sending our troops into battle without proper armor or proper training, or sending them back to battle when there is a question of how fit they are to serve from prior injury in wartime, or raising fees for their medical care while cutting budgetary funds…these are all unfair burdens. I would venture that the issue of gays in the military isn’t even on the radar, so to speak, for our service people (unless they themselves are serving while trying to hide their orientation).

I’m not saying Gen. Pace isn’t entitled to his beliefs, however wrongheaded they may be. But as this country’s highest ranking Marine, he should know better than to spew them for the whole world to see.

And as the USA Today editorial Hunter responded to originally noted, the first U.S. Marine wounded in Iraq was Eric Alva (editorial does not mention his rank), who lost a leg when he stepped on a land mine. The editorial also mentions that Alva “came out of the closet” last week, subsequently beginning a whole new fight.

I would ask that Hunter read prior posts here and here on this subject (assuming he’d ever read this blog, which is wishful thinking I know). Also, this prior post notes that there are other countries that do not have a problem with gays in the service, as well as additional countries that do (the USA Today editorial notes this also).

Yes, I know this is hypocritical because I didn’t serve myself. But this notion that our workplaces and other areas of interaction with each other will become automatically contaminated if we accept gays is reprehensible.

Silly me – I always thought each of us were Americans, not to be judged by physical appearances or guided in our judgment of others by prejudice acquired over time, but instead by assessment of each other’s character, intelligence, and compassion.