(no subject)

[icarus]

The recruiting ads say there are 'over 200 ways to be a soldier.' Being openly gay is still not one of them.

Three students as part of "Right to Serve" challenge the military's 'don't ask, don't tell' policy:

"They said we were morally and administratively ineligible for the U.S. military," said Jarrett Lucas, 20, of South Philadelphia, a recent Drexel University engineering student.

"They were very courteous, but they said that if we were truly interested in enlisting we'd have to conceal our sexual identities," Lucas added.

Lucas, joined by Shane Bagwell, 18, a high school graduate from Wyndmoor in Montgomery County, and Marissa Cotroneo, 19, an aspiring psychology major from Scranton, spent about an hour talking with Army recruiters and taking a practice qualifying test before leaving part of an Army of none.

The commander of the Army's Philadelphia recruiting station, Sgt. First Class Bell - she refused to give her first name - confirmed the trio's account of the meeting but declined to comment further.

In WWII we relaxed the anti-gay policies and looked the other way because we needed warm bodies to join. I wonder when the U.S. military will get desperate enough, given they're 40% short of their recruitment goals in all branches?

Comments

[mad_maudlin]

Not just overall recruiting--there's been quite a few discharges under DADT who are linguists specializing in Arabic, Pastun and other languages that would be darn handy in, I dunno, Afghanistan and Iraq and stuff. There's got to be a point at which they say, "We need your skills more that we need good press;" I'm just paranoid enough to imagine someone going to extreme lengths to keep a gay specialist from being open enough to cause embarassment.

On the other hand, it does mean I have a bulletproof way to dodge the draft...

[retrofit88.livejournal.com]

Thanks for sharing this - I didn't know about the "Right to Serve" campaign. That's a pretty cool effort.

I was particularly interested in this statement:

The Right to Serve Campaign comes as a bipartisan group of 119 members of Congress has sponsored the Military Readiness Enhancement Act, which would let homosexuals serve openly in the U.S. military.

On the one hand I'm thinking, "well hell, it's about time." Such a dumb, circularly-justified policy.

On the other hand I'm thinking how utterly pathetic it is that it takes a severe shortage of volunteers during a badly mishandled "war" with no end in sight to make it seem like even an outside possibility that this policy might be repealed.

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

Arabic, Pastun and other languages that would be darn handy in, I dunno, Afghanistan and Iraq and stuff.

Ya think? *eyeroll*

I'm just paranoid enough to imagine someone going to extreme lengths to keep a gay specialist from being open enough to cause embarassment.

I imagine there are a lot of rugs around, with large lumps of information swept under there.

On the other hand, it does mean I have a bulletproof way to dodge the draft...

I'm sure I could hook up with a nice lesbian chick if need be. Oh right, I'm 38 anyway.

Icarus

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

Oh, I missed that! Kiss ass.

Of course, it doesn't stand a chance.

Icarus

[orca-girl.livejournal.com]

Oh right, I'm 38 anyway.

But they've raised the enlistment age to 42. And reduced the fitness requirements for passing basic training.

Lucky us.

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

I'm still expecting a sign outside the door with an arrow that says, "You must be at least this tall...."

They'll never get the draft through. They've been studying the option in "like hell we want to risk our careers over this" committees since January 2003.

Icarus

[iibnf.livejournal.com]

In my happy world it's because gays are too precious to go out and die. We need them!

[piplover.livejournal.com]

The sad thing is, I served with openly gay people. No one really gives a damn so long as you do your job. Even the uber red necks didn't really have a problem. I'm pretty damn certain that if the bill ever actually passes, there won't be a problem among the soldiers. It will be everyone else who has a hissy fit.

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

What branch did you serve in, and when?

It's all about the image. In reality, nobody gives a shit.

Icarus

[piplover.livejournal.com]

Regular Army, from 2002 until 2005, when I was injured and forced to take a medical discharge.
Yeah, it's all a dog and pony show. Maybe one day the higher ups will figure it out.

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

There you are. I should have realized they were protected and rare -- I mean, only a small percentage of the population. We can't lose the ones we have.

Icarus

[miladyhawke.livejournal.com]

No shit - I was actually in the Drexel ROTC program back in 99-2000. I ended up dropping out, though, and finished my 8 years as an enlisted Reservist, since my heart was on the ground with the troopies as opposed to being behind a desk. Thanks for bringing the attention to this ;)

The military's kind of funny; the hard-core, active-duty combat units (infantry, artillery, etc) are definitely all homophobic (hell, the Old School don't even want women in, let alone gays - I got in some good fights in my time), which is not to say that I didn't know a number of gay men in the combat units, albeit extremely closeted by necessity. But then the Reserve and the Guard are much more accepting of these open secrets.

The more progressive elements of the military are fairly even in comparison to the conservative ones, so my hope is that things will change before too long. Either way, they'll have to eventually; they'll have no choice.

[jaig.livejournal.com]

They're never going to be desperate enough. It's HOMOSEXUALITY, stupid. That's nasty. God.

[princessofg.livejournal.com]

"I wonder when the U.S. military will get desperate enough, given they're 40% short of their recruitment goals in all branches?"

Not during the Bush administration.

All I can say is, Vote Democratic, Y'All.

[terrie01.livejournal.com]

The bit about being "morally" ineligible is kinda creepy. Dude, you're recruiting people to go kill other people! What do morals have to do with that?