…and the senators respond

02Oct10

From Sen. Corker. Received Sept. 24

Dear Ms. Coward,

Thank you for taking the time to contact my office with your concerns regarding the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. Your input is important to me, and I appreciate the time you took to share your thoughts.

As you may know, earlier this year, President Obama stated that he supports repealing the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy which requires that a service member not be asked about or allowed to discuss his or her homosexuality. Subsequently, the Department of Defense (DoD) announced it will conduct a review of this policy in order to decide the best way to move forward. After the review is complete, DoD is expected to submit its findings and recommendations to Congress, which ultimately will have to decide whether the law governing the inclusion of homosexuals in the military should be amended.

Recently both the Senate Armed Services Committee and the House of Representatives passed provisions that would repeal the law prior to the completion of the DoD review.  I think this action is premature and still believe that the Pentagon should be given the opportunity to complete its review prior to a repeal of this law.  We need to give all components of the military the opportunity to express their views prior to making a judgment on changes to the policy.

In closing, I want to thank you for your input.  I can assure you, the insight you have given in your letter will certainly help my staff and me to more effectively consider this issue over the next few weeks and months.

Thank you again for your letter. I hope you will continue to share your thoughts with me over the course of my term.

Sincerely,

Bob Corker

United States Senator

From Sen. Alexander. Received Sept. 27 (but it was written Sept. 23 according to date at top)

September 23, 2010

Ms. Stephanie Coward

(deleted my address)

Dear Ms. Coward:

Thanks very much for getting in touch with me and letting me know what’s on your mind regarding the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy.

This policy was implemented in 1993 by then-President Bill Clinton as a compromise between the Pentagon’s complete ban on gays in the military and President Clinton’s promise during his 1992 campaign to allow all citizens regardless of sexual orientation to serve openly in the military.

“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” does not by itself prevent anyone from serving in our military. Our military leaders have their hands full right now in Iraq and Afghanistan and in defending us from terrorism. The Senate should not vote on such a dramatic change until our military leaders complete a thorough review of the policy, including how any change might affect military readiness and morale.

I’m grateful you took the time to let me know where you stand. I’ll be sure to keep your comments in mind as this issue is debated in Washington and in Tennessee.

Sincerely,

Lamar

I think their responses are hilarious. I mean seriously, first look at Lamar’s he says “thanks” instead of thank you in first graph and signs the email just “Lamar.” Is he trying to seem hip? I mean seriously, he’s 70 for crying out loud. And while I think both of their reasons are bullshit, I will say that Corker sounds a bit saner than “Lamar,” but really, they’re both just propaganda-pushing liars. I could potentially possess at least an ounce of respect for them if either one just came out and admitted their reason for voting against the repeal of DADT was because they’re homophobic republicans who only support the military when it doesn’t entail actually taking a stand. (i.e. whenever a budget increase is on the table).

Homosexuals serving in the armed services will not create more homosexuals.

Homosexuals serving in the armed services will not create sexual exploits that don’t already exist.

Never mind that men and women are serving together in Iraq and Afghanistan right now and guess what…they’re straight (gasp!) and guess what else? They’re having sex with each other. And that’s not even all of it. American soldiers are having sex with the locals as well. It’s a big fucking orgy over there, but no one is paying attention b/c the religious right views hetero-sex as OK, so they ignore the female soldiers getting knocked up by Iraqi translators. They ignore the marriage dissolutions of those soldiers who “”found” one another while deployed and in turn cheated and then divorced their spouses. They ignore the soldiers bringing home their “queens-for-a-year” and marrying them after divorcing spouses that have stuck by their side and kept the home fires burning throughout 4 and 5 deployments. (And before you try to call me out on these accusations, I know people who are part of all of these categories.)

By forbidding homosexuals to openly serve in the military, our government–the great land of the free–has not only expressed its disdain for those who are different, but also stigmatized homosexuals as second-class citizens, which they are not. If a gay man or lesbian wants to serve their country (though I really don’t understand why they would want any part of it), why can’t they? What does someone’s sexual preference have to do with their ability to take a bullet for this nation’s “freedom”? Homosexuals don’t blow up any differently than those who prefer the opposite sex. Who a soldier prefers to have sex with has no bearing on whether or not he or she is capable of protecting the unit, the civilians in the town or the land of the free. And guess what? When they’re lying in a hospital bed at Walter Reed with no legs, screaming in agony because the pain medicine isn’t enough, no one cares about their sexual preference. They’re just a soldier who fought the good fight and is forever changed because of it.

until next time…

Advertisement

Filed under: Gay Rights, Political   |  Leave a Comment
Tags: afghanistan, Army, Bob Corker, DADT, iraq, Lamar Alexander, Marines, Navy, United States Armed Services, Walter Reed