Aside from wanting Congress to pass legislation deeming me too cowardly for the military, I find it absurd that we make laws keeping willing participants out of our armed services.
As a nation, we currently have two ongoing wars and not enough soldiers to fight them yet we won't let openly homosexual people take up the fight.
Technically, we do allow gay people to join the military as long as they don't mention they are gay.
This would be like if we banned women from voting but chose to not ask any touchy questions to women dressed up as men who attempt to cast a ballot.
"Don't ask, don't tell" was a compromise forged out of political necessity.
Republicans could not be seen supporting gay rights (you know because God/the religious right would get mad) and Democrats could not be seen backing down on the issue (might anger Barbra Streisand).
So, instead of a common-sense policy based on providing equal rights for all citizens, we have one that discriminates a little less blatantly.
Like all political compromises, this one left neither side happy but it protected the status quo and did nothing to loosen any incumbent's grip on his seat in Congress.
We currently ban openly gay people from the military due to a mix of ignorance, prejudice and an overt willingness to stereotype (the Rush Limbaugh cocktail).
Those who oppose letting homosexuals serve would have you believe that gays want into the service so they can paint the foxholes pink while seducing "normal" God-fearing soldiers.
They would also have you believe that if we let gay people into the military then they would ruin our wars by constantly having sex with each other instead of doing their jobs.
Instead of attacking the enemy, our newly mixed sexual orientation army would then be distracted by Elton John songs and Broadway musicals, or so the reasoning goes.
If we're going to let stereotypes govern our nation, then why not keep blondes out of the Army because, well, everyone knows they're dumb?
Redheads are out too, because we all know you can't trust them.
I'd probably keep black-haired people out as well because they might be of Italian descent and are most likely in the Mafia.
The argument to keep gays out of the military can only be made by people that consider being gay deviant behavior.
These ignorant folks don't make a distinction between a same-sex relationship and pedophilia or other illegal behavior.
This ignores that most sex crimes get committed by straight people (by a wide volume) and being gay makes you no more likely to commit a crime.
Gays in the military - like most soldiers - would simply do their jobs. They would have no higher a percentage of sexual misconduct issues then we already have in our straight, co-ed Armed Services today.
I salute anyone willing to put his or her life on the line for our country.
I also respect that same person's ability to follow the military's regulations while in the service and to act within those parameters.
We need to let the gay people already in the Armed Services stop having to deny their true selves.
We need to stand up and welcome all Americans who want to defend our freedom the freedom to do so.
