European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 22, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Keeping Gays in the closet would keep army Strong Bruce Townsend the Debute  homosexuals in the military a amid president a acct Clinton a seeming Welcome to Gays in uniform a has recently escalated. Since the . Military was formed with general Washington s Continental army there have undeniably been homosexuals within the ranks probably at every level. There can be no reasonable argument to this fact nor do i take exception to the fact that today possibly As much As 10 percent of the army May be homosexual. They arc Here and arc very Likely to remain a Small part of the military. Those in the ranks keep their homosexuality to themselves. No one is capable of preventing anyone who is homosexual from joining and staying in the military and As Long As homosexuals keep their lifestyle to themselves they have successful careers. 1 Lowe for very practical reasons openly allowing homosexuals to join the services would be inviting disaster. Since i am in the army 1 will use it As the basis for my observations. 1 am a unit commander. Much of my responsibility in this office is for the welfare of the soldiers in my command. This responsibility covers a diverse spectrum of concerns about which i must be knowledgeable. Laving conditions Are some of the most important topics. Several regulations govern How soldiers arc expected to live in the Barracks and How i must treat them for instance i cannot knowingly allow male and female soldiers to share bedrooms in the Barracks under any circumstances. If i had two soldiers married to each other and living in the Barracks i still could not legally allow them to  visitors of the opposite sex Are strictly prohibited. If suddenly homosexuals Are allowed to join the army and openly declare themselves to be homosexual. Do i now have to prohibit overnight visitors altogether1.1 if i know a Soldier is homosexual do i then have to Billet him of her with another Soldier of the same sex the same sexual orientation or a Soldier of the opposite sex do 1 Billet All the homosexuals completely apart from the rest of the unit creating anew form of Segre gation do 1 have to respect the wishes of a heterosexual Soldier who objects to being forced to live with a homosexual Soldier More thought provoking will the army allow two homosexual soldiers to be a a married and share government living quarters on Post would the department of defense be forced to Honor such a a marriages would such a a marriages be Legal in overseas Slation Sorin cities and towns around Domestic installations the fact that there Are homosexuals in the army today who have successful careers Speaks volumes for How easy it is for a Soldier to succeed in the army just the Way it is. 1 understand that they arc forced to remain a in the closet Quot but the fact is that they arc successful. It is Only when a Soldier openly declares himself or herself a homosexual that trouble is encountered. Society on the whole simply docs not accept homosexuality As Normal or natural behaviour. Several states still have statues making homosexuality illegal and a crime. Why then should the army be forced because of the political turmoil created by a few one sided lobby groups grabbing the attention of left Wing american politicians for their self cent Rcd purposes to be at the forefront of an Experiment in socially acceptable behaviour and sexual morals these groups Are More definitely a minority but they a Unoritz because they choose to be. African an. A fans cannot choose what color they wish to be but homosexuals make a conscious decision to reveal their sexual orientations. If the theory that homosexuals Are bom and not made turns out to be True it really wont change anything because it will still be a matter of personal Choice on the part of every homosexual to reveal it publicly. In so doing they Render themselves incompatible with m Ilita Ryse Xvi cd. As a commander i will do everything i have to do legally and morally to uphold the Good order and military discipline in my unit. Homosexuality is completely against this discipline and changing the rules so that homosexuals Are allowed into the military is a mistake. Apart from some of the practical arguments i have already presented the potential for morale destruction after homophobic accusations and sexual harassment equal Opportunity investigations in any unit is incredible and such actions would be devastating to the modern military. Almost anything said or done by a person of one sexual orientation would have the potential to be seen As discriminatory by a person of the other whether male or female. Many soldiers done to fully understand what sexual harassment is now so Why convolute the problem by throwing in a new category of people whose gender is incompatible with their preference of sexual partners the likelihood of character and career assassination is unquestionable and terrifying. We have already decreased the military in size and budget yet the army must maintain its ability to accomplish a wide Range of missions from support to the drug War to rapid deployments for exercises and regional conflicts around the Globe to quelling Domestic riots like those in los Angeles last Spring. Tampering now with the moral fabric of the army that has been Woven  the past 215 years would be a cataclysmic mistake. The army obviously docs its Job very Well so we should not attempt to let political correctness transform it into a paradigm of societal change. The department of defense on the whole has been in the Lead Fory cars in racial integration and equal Opportunity for women within limits set by Congress on roles of women in combat unit while maintaining a highly ready Force to meet the needs of the nation. The Issue of homosexuals in the army need not be addressed in the same Way because it is fundamentally different and has the potential to undermine National Security by debilitating the army a combat effective Ness through morale annihilation. The homosexuals in today a military compete by the same rules As everyone else and they Are successful or unsuccessful based upon How Welt they follow those rules. There should be no change in the Way the army or the department of defense operates so that this Quot minority by choices gets unfair advantage  the hosts of heterosexuals in the military simply because it chooses to Force others to acknowledge and absolve its aberrant sexuality. Advocates of abolishing rules that prohibit homosexuals in the services postulate that no detriment to the proficiency of the army will come from these proposed revisions. As an Active member of the forces in a position to Sec How dangerous they arc i believe they arc wrong. The overwhelming majority of these advocates have never served one Day in the armed forces. On what basis do they form their viewpoints let the military a homosexuals stay successful by keeping their sexual orientation private and in the closet where it has existed relatively unmolested for years. Let the social change advocates mind their own business. The army ainu to broke so done to fix it. Cape. Bruch Townshend wa3 stationed in ludwigs Burg Gormany before his unit Rode Loyod to the United states. Send in your column plus a photo of yourself to be our guest sunday Magazine the stars and stripes Apo 09211 or Postrach 11 14 37, d-6100 Darmstadt 11, Germany. Contents from the cover .4-6 cities of steal. Sidelights. 7, 9 weeping  the goodbye veep. The education of Clarence Faye Odds amp ends to i Nna Rombeek Battles i gang Nenh it tvs in tune. Phil Donahue hits the i warier sent Ian Mark. This weeks films.12-13 Chitek i Inch on Quot Lowenger Quot .1   Lopahs a television radio.14-17  viable anti .,.v.r a . Home entertainment. Is Quot Soter n to. Of n voices .21 Linda Ellerbee on the Reagan Bush mean Streak. Words amp wit.24 William Safire bites into Clinton. Books .25 the growth of Juk. On Parade .27 7he shariah Carey connection. Cast laugh .28 am Ham on he Semaje trouble. Sunday is a weekly supplement Al the stars and stripes Zdilor Bucky Fox Art direction Peter Jaeger production Mon Trice Presley Mii orial assistance Marian Hamilton louts Pierce