OPINION:
President Obama supported repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” ending 232 years of American military policy, going back to George Washington, that prohibited persons who engage in homosexual behavior from serving in our armed services.
This radical policy vote came on a small-business technology bill while Americans were Christmas shopping on a Saturday afternoon by lame-duck representatives who had been repudiated at the November elections by voters. No amendments were allowed. The vote was hailed as a victory for “tolerance.” This is a moral sea change supported by Congress.
Sen. Joe Lieberman, Connecticut independent, cited the Declaration of Independence, and Sen. Harry Reid, Nevada Democrat, said repeal of DADT represented the ideals of the Founders of the Constitution. In 1776, sodomy was a felony in all the colonies, and a felony in all the states in 1789.
The administration and Congress feigned concern for what the troops thought about repealing DADT. The Pentagon Working Group acknowledged they did not conduct a “poll of whether service members think ’Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ should be repealed … it was not our mission to conduct such a referendum of Service members.” Yet, the Pentagon Working Group conceded, “Our sense is that the majority of views expressed were against repeal.” (p. 49)
Mr. Obama spoke about “tolerating” sexual orientation, but it is the behavior rejected in the New and the Old Testaments, not orientation, which he wants us to accept. Since 1993, approximately 13,500 troops had been discharged for violating DADT policy.
The Pentagon study claims that heterosexuals opposed to repeal of DADT harbored myths about homosexuals. Peer review social science and medical literature confirms there are vast differences between heterosexual and homosexual relationships regarding duration of commitment, number of partners, violence and health risks, verified by homosexual-advocacy literature.
The delusional nature of the Pentagon report’s recommendations can be seen from the suggested repeal of Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, to decriminalize consensual sodomy. Even though the FDA prohibits men who have had sex with men since 1977 from donating blood, the surgeon generals of the military services amazingly concluded there was no additional risk from active homosexuals to American troops under battlefield conditions for blood contact and transfusions despite sodomy being a prime vector for the spread of disease, including AIDS.
The Pentagon study reported 48.9 percent of Army and 59.7 percent of Marine combat troops believed repeal of DADT would negatively affect trust; 47.5 percent of Army and 57.5 percent of Marine combat troops said repeal would negatively affect their ability to get the job done.
Fully 32 percent of ground combat Marines said they would leave the service sooner than planned. An additional 16.2 percent would consider leaving early. The report noted that 21.4 percent of Army combat arms personnel would leave sooner than planned, and 14.6 percent would think about leaving, a potential loss of 36 percent of our ground troops.
This re-enlistment decline could endanger remaining troops, compromise our foreign policy, threaten the all-volunteer force and precipitate a compulsory military draft. No foreign enemy could have delivered a more devastating blow.
The Pentagon study has stated that separate bathrooms based on sexual orientation will not be allowed, yet this would be similar to forcing heterosexual men and women to shower together.
Groups such as the Boy Scouts will be kicked off military bases because they prohibit homosexual scout leaders. DOD’s military lawyers will likely seek to overturn state Constitutions, laws banning same sex marriage and the federal Defense of Marriage Act in order to ensure “equality.” How far will “tolerance” of homosexual behavior go? Who will be favored in sexual harassment or assault accusation cases?
The world’s largest militaries preclude active homosexuals. Reversing 232 years of American military policy must be challenged. The incoming Congress must deny funds to implement the DADT repeal. States must also pass laws to deny admission of active homosexuals into their National Guard units. This has nothing to do with “homophobia” and everything to do with national security.
Former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Joseph Story noted in his Commentaries on the Constitution: “Thepower over the militia … was limited, and concurrent with that of the States. The right of governing them was confined to the single case of their being in the actual service of the United States … . It was then, and only then, that they could be subjected by the general government to martial law … . The power to discipline and train the militia, except when in the actual service of the United States, was also vested exclusively in the States; and under such circumstances was secure against any serious abuses.”
In Virginia, the National Guard denies applicants who have more than five traffic tickets or if they use drugs. States can impose tougher standards than Congress. Will state legislators and congressional Republicans listen to the troops and their constituents?
Bob Marshall, a member of the Virginia House of Delegates, has proposed banning active homosexuals from the Virginia National Guard.
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