As the government crawls toward what seems like an inevitable shutdown, GOP members called an emergency hearing yesterday to try to stall the plans to allow openly gay soldiers to serve in the American military.
Nice try, guys!
Most of the Pentagon officials who testified at the hearing admitted that their feelings toward the DADT repeal had changed. Especially James Amos, commandant of the Marine Corps and, formerly, one of the most outspoken opponents of the repeal.
“We’ve not seen issues,” said Amos. ”There’s not been anxiety over it from the forces in the field. There hasn’t been the recalcitrant pushback. Young Marines, quite honestly, they’re focused on the enemy.”
DADT was repealed in December. The Pentagon said that repeal could be fully implemented by June, depending on when all soldiers receive the requisite training.
—Photo AP/Alex Brandon
About Ryan O'Hanlon
The Army is investigating, with overtones of at least career-ending discipline, if not more serious charges, nine officers who should have stopped Maj. Hasan’s progress through the ranks to Ft. Hood.
The rumor is that these guys, seeing Hasan’s appalling performance and demonstrated Muslim nutcasery, forbore to say anything, even in official Efficiency Reports, that might bring on them charges of Islamophobia.
The day of the shooting, Gen. Casey said it would be a shame if this damaged diversity, “which is our strength”. In other words, the next time you see a Muslim demonstrating appalling performance and demonstrated Muslim nutcasery, Gen. Casey doesn’t want to hear about it.
The first two women graduating from F14 flight training did so with failing grades. One blew a trap and was killed and the other was grounded for unsafe flying. The F14 is a two-seater, so the Navy was taking two people who’d never done it any harm that we know of and putting them in high-performance aircraft flown by unqualified pilots.
The point here is that society, including the military, has Accredited Victim Groups. Standards are different for AVGs.
Those members of AVGs who do well do well.
Those who do not get breaks, passes, third and fourth chances, double standards, group-normed (which is to say lowered) standards.
Will gays become an AVG in the military? Will a gay soldier’s substandard performance or disciplinary problems be passed over without a look for fear of accusations of homophobia?
Will gays who perform well have to worry about being lumped with those for whom poor performance is excused?