Thoughts of Obama From Bama

Week 100: “Do Tell, Do Tell”

Ah, what a joyous sight to see you in your sleep.
I believe I'm leavin'; I'm in too deep,
and that seems easy enough for a man to say.
But we would never agree if we talked all night.
Things are gettin' kind of heavy. I'm travelin' light.
Goodbye you jaded lover, you undercover queen for a day.

Well, I can see you are an angel,
Whose wings just won't unfold.
Tune up your harp; polish your old halo.
Well the only kind of man that you ever wanted
is one that you knew you'd never hold very long.
You're sittin' there cryin' like I'm the first one to go.
Think about it darlin “Jaded Lover” Jerry Jeff Walker

U.S. Armed Services are fixin to throw a coming out party the likes of which hasn’t been seen in these parts since Momma got early parole. Each and every gay and lesbian member of the military are kicking the closet doors wide open, publically declaring their sexual orientation, and giving an entirely different meaning to the phrase “the few, the proud, the Marines”.

After two years of prodding from the gay and lesbian community to keep his campaign promise President Obama and his Democrat Congressional comrades finally got around to repealing the Clinton era policy Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DADT) governing homosexuals in the military. The final vote was 65-31, drawing support from eight seriously misguided or enlightened Republicans, depending on one’s way of reckoning.

Our “Great Repealer of Discriminatory and Politically Incorrect Policies”-in-Chief remarked "It is time to close this chapter in our history, It is time to recognize that sacrifice, valor and integrity are no more defined by sexual orientation than they are by race or gender, religion or creed." Once the law is enacted gays will be openly accepted by the military for the first time in U.S. history and can go public with their sexual orientation without fear of being discharged.

All this social engineering, political correctness and sensitivity to diversity is lovely but seems to miss the point. The only real question is will gays and lesbians openly serving in the military enhance or diminish our ability to achieve victory on the battle field?

Truth be told most of us civilians are downright ignorant about the military way of life. To paraphrase General George S. Patton “they don’t know anything more about real battle than they do about fornicating”.

Military service and combat in particular is a unique and specialized endeavor that with few exceptions can’t be duplicated in a civilian environment. Barack Husain Obama, most of Congress, the media elite press and so called cultural thought leaders in New York and San Francisco simply are not qualified to make this decision.

A brief review of each service branch’s Mission Statements just might be a good starting point for all of us noncombatant civilians to conduct an evaluation of this issue:

• The Army’s mission is to fight and win our Nation’s wars by providing prompt, sustained land dominance across the full range of military operations and spectrum of conflict in support of combatant commanders.
• The mission of the United States Air Force is to deliver sovereign options for the defense of the United States of America and its global interests -- to fly and fight in Air, Space, and Cyberspace.
• The mission of the Navy is to maintain, train and equip combat-ready Naval forces capable of winning wars, deterring aggression and maintaining freedom of the seas.
• Semper Fidelis distinguishes the Marine Corps bond from any other. It goes beyond teamwork – it is a brotherhood and lasts for life.

Certainly seems to be several core values and central themes expressed here that we’d consider neutral as to the impact of homosexuals openly serving in the ranks. The jury is still out on the new policy’s influence on fighting, waging war, maintaining freedom, and victory on the battle field.

As for the Marine Corp’s Semper Fidelis, that goes way beyond teamwork to the formulation of a brotherhood and/or a true Warrior culture. Openly serving gays in this environment could certainly prove to be a major assimilation problem.

A poll issued by the Pentagon showed an overwhelming level of support of DADT’s repeal. However, the Pentagon polled all military "personnel" including their spouses, inlaws, pets and even thier no count white trash out of work third cousin on thier mother's side.

Only a small portion of the military actually does the fighting. According to the Pentagon study: "A higher percentage of service members in combat-fighting units predicted negative effects."

Bless thier hearts the Marines were the most resistant to overturning "don't ask, don't tell," with 58 percent of those in combat opposed. They simply can’t allow anything that interferes with unit cohesion, such as, dating amongst the ranks; flirting during fire fights; cooking classes breaking out; and periodic grab ass sessions.

Another interesting aspect of the DADT policy is the relatively low number of discharges for homosexuality. Only 13,500 since DADT’s implementation in 1993. That equates to an average of less than 800 discharges per year.

DADT discharges have also been extremely low in comparison to other infractions. Following are discharges for 2008 according to Defense Department records:

• Drugs: 5,627
• Serious offenses: 3,817
• Weight standards: 4,555
• Pregnancy: 2,353
• Parenthood: 2,574
• Homosexuality: 634

So, the central question still remains will gays and lesbians openly serving in the military enhance or diminish combat readiness, unit cohesion and military effectiveness? At this point hard to say.

What we do know:

1. The USO will need to line up some Broadway Show Tune artist for future tours
2. The color options for camouflage makeup will have to be expanded
3. Dress uniform will literally mean dress uniform
4. Going commando as a fashion statement will be prohibited
5. The caliber of play on the woman’s softball and golf teams will improve by leaps and bounds
6. Close Quarters Combat Training will require a chaperon
7. The number of recruits from San Francisco and Key West will dramatically increase
8. They are gonna make Congressman Barney “Freddie in the Fanny Mac” Frank a Five Star General

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.

I am, “American by Birth and Southern by the Grace of God”

Ron W. Garikes