Written: 10/02/2010
Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, abbreviated as DADT, is still the policy of the United States, due to the asshat Sen. John McCain who led a Republican filibuster. The interviews Senator McCain gave after the Senate session revealed his level of senility and paranoia.
There may or may not be an immediate affect from the repeal of DADT on the Boy Scouts. I imagine that there will be a change, but it will not come immediately, or even very soon after DADT’s repeal.
The Boy Scouts work under an unofficial DADT, so it is in no way tied to The Pentagon, but I like to think that the end of DADT would bring workplace equality (and membership equality) to the Boy Scouts. Maybe it is hopeless wishing, but I’ll continue to dream.
The defeat of the repeal of DADT was a bit devastating to me. My workplace aside, it is the right thing to do, and I can’t remember such a vast majority of the country ever agreeing on one thing before (I believe it was 85% of the population supported the repeal of DADT).
One of my best friends is a veteran. The subject came up once, and he mentioned that someone in his unit was gay (he ran across some images on his hard drive while checking e-mail or something like that). And my friend was upset. Not that a member of his unit was gay, but that his friend was not able to trust his unit enough to share that with them. He explained that on the battlefield they had to know everything about each other, absolutely everything. All emotions had to be left behind and they knew they were there for each other, that was what mattered.
Not what was going on between people’s ears when they were having sex. Not the people they loved at home. Not the people they left behind and hoped to return to.
It was about trust.
And his unit was only hurt because they did not know everything they could about the soldiers they trusted their lives to.
Whenever I discuss politics, I freely admit that there are items I don’t understand and would rather the experts figure it out. I defer on items such as financial policy and other topics where I just don’t have the knowledge. This is one of them. Putting aside the fact that it is an issue of human rights and equality, my friend is infinitely better to understand this issue and I respect his views like no one else.
For his insight, and of course friendship, I cannot thank him enough.
All my best,
The King of Spades
