The Repeal Of DADT....Not Looking Good

According to the Wall Street Journal [HERE] the move toward repealing Don't Ask, Don't Tell [DADT] looks to be dead.

Yes, equality has died once again now that the Republicans are in control of the Congress.

And even though President Obama has said, over and over and over again, that he would like to see the discriminatory practice of banning gays and lesbians the right to serve openly in the military, folks on both sides now see little chance of a repeal happening.

And it's a little bipartisan attempt at discrimination because both Democratic Senator Carl Levin and in-your-face bigot and homophobe, and dangerously cranky old man, Republican Senator John McCain, are working to strip the proposed repeal, as well as other "controversial" provisions, from a defense bill. With a repeal attached back in September, and amid Republican complaints over the terms of the debate, the defense bill failed to win the 60 votes needed to overcome a procedural hurdle, so the repeal looks doomed now.

And everyone, from Tommy Sears, executive director of the Center for Military Readiness, which opposes the repeal, to Richard Socarides, an activist and former adviser on gay rights to President Clinton, to the Obama administration don't see much hope for ending DADT.

Over the weekend, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said, "I would like to see the repeal of 'don't ask, don't tell,' but I'm not sure what the prospects for that are."

And those who support discrimination based on sexual orientation, were given a boost when, General James Amos, the new commandant of the Marine Corps said he was concerned about unit cohesion and combat readiness if the policy was overturned: "There's risk involved. This is not a social thing. This is combat effectiveness."

Yes, General, it is a social issue, because gays and lesbians have been serving in the military for decades without any fear of diminished unit cohesion or combat effectiveness. The idea is that these people enlist and serve because they want to do something for their country, and you are telling them that they are not worthy of equal treatment.

Stay hidden. Stay quiet.

And, of course, John Boehner won't work toward the repeal because it's something the president, and most democrats want, so, according to his mouthpiece, Michael Steel: "In the midst of two wars, even with one winding down, I certainly don't think this will be a priority."

Yeah, with two wars raging, let's limit the numbers of people who want to voluntarily serve. That's typical Republican dumbass thinking.

Once again, we are on the downside of equality, and equal treatment under the law, so we'll have to be more vocal, more conscious and more demanding that the rights of all Americans are equal, whether they are straight or gay.