Do you think abolishing Don't Ask, Don't Tell was necessary?

1. 67

   SEXYLADYDEEposted 12 years ago

   Do you think abolishing Don't Ask, Don't Tell was necessary?
   
   I was worried that the abolishment of Don't Ask, Don't Tell might put soldiers at greater risk. Relaxing might out many and make them targets. As someone outside the military coming from a family legacy of service their safety was a priority for me. (I make a point to say God Bless You & thank you and your family for your service to every service person I see.)

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   AlexDrinkH2Oposted 12 years ago

   I don't think it was necessary at all - just a way for Obama to make more political capital.

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      SEXYLADYDEEposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      There seems to be a consensus here. Thanks. Dee

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   Ralph Deedsposted 12 years ago

   Yes, the action was overdue. I don't see why you would be "worried that the abolishment of Don't Ask, Don't Tell might put soldiers at greater risk and make them targets." Gays and lesbians have been serving in the military forever and in every civilian occupation as well. If memory serves, the majority of Americans supported President Obama's action. And the majority of Americans now support marriage equality. Attitudes have been changing on these issues quite rapidly.

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      SEXYLADYDEEposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Because right and wrong don't always prevail. Sometimes ignorance and fear does. Oh and so called religious piety. Dee

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4. 0

   Chelsea Heapsposted 12 years ago

   Yes. However, it was mainly a political ploy.

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   1. 67

      SEXYLADYDEEposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Possibly. Thanks. Dee

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   druhepkinsposted 12 years ago

   Don't Ask Don't Tell definitely needed to be done away with. It was really just a scheme disguised as some sort of positive compromise. What they eventually did was covertly beef up their efforts in finding out soldiers' sexual preference in other trust-able ways (like suspicious emails, rumors and hearsay) then treated people who they believed to be homosexual like criminals, and dishonorably discharged them in disgrace. The fact that it was a reprehensible transgression of some sort just to be homosexual in the military was the main issue that needed correcting. Anything else besides completely undoing that primitive ideology of yesteryear would not be solving the problem whatsoever.

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   1. 67

      SEXYLADYDEEposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you. Dee

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6. 79

   Li Galoposted 12 years ago

   I was in the military for eight years during "don't ask, don't tell."  If someone wanted you to know if they were gay or lesbian, they made it pretty obvious without actually saying the words.  What a lot of people don't know - because they never served - was that it was flat out dangerous for a person to admit they were gay or lesbian because it completely put them in a position of being bullied, outed, discharged or even sent to a hazardous position, where they were virtually guaranteed death in the mission.  Don't ask, don't tell was a policy that served it's purpose and was worth having at the time because it protected homosexuals from being asked and they could stay safer that way but it became an outdated and unnecessary policy when more young people joined who had acceptance for all.  For me, I didn't care if someone was gay or lesbian. I just wanted to know that they had my back, like I did theirs.
   
   In the military, there was the issue of same sex members showering together and whatnot. There was a whole issue of someone staring at someone in a sexual way when showering that WAS a problem when I was in the military because some homosexuals WERE overt and out of line doing that. So, at least while I was there, there were some straight people who wouldn't even shower around certain members because of the whole sex-shower thing. If they had just put in some actual shower stalls, there wouldn't have been such a big issue about it but sometimes the government doesn't use common sense solutions!

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      SEXYLADYDEEposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you for your honesty. The safety reasons you mentioned were the original concerns I had as well. Dee

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   crickette_wposted 12 years ago

   Yes, this was necessary...
   The employment rights enjoyed by all Americans in civilian life should not exclude our Service people. They are the ones fighting and protecting the rights we enjoy.  We civilians enjoy the right to work anywhere we want, no matter our sexual preference.  This issue should have never been an issue addressed by the government.  It should have never been in place to start with.
   The abolishing of the "Don't ask, Don't tell" actually made it easier on our service members to live a more productive personal life without the threat of being terminated.  Under the previous rules, if found out in anyway, a service person could be punished and probably demoted or terminated. 
   Under the new regulations, this is no longer true.  The service has become a more comfortable place for people who have same sex partners, and their personal lives can no longer threaten their job...
   Great question....Thanks for asking...

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