European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 29, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse Iki i 4# m a a quit in american hatred and open military to Gay Geoffrey Brown i be been following the debate about homosexuals in the military for years. It has gotten much noisier in the last couple of weeks As president elect Clinton leans toward opening the services to Gays. Full state my position clearly f want Alt restrictions against homosexuals in the military lifted and 1 want it now i think it should have happened years ago in a going to offer my arguments in favor of lifting the ban and then my reply to the arguments in favor of the ban. Why should we lift the ban on homosexuals in the military first we need Good people in the military. That has been a Given for 200 years now skilled people who adapt Well to military life Are not very common and every skilled person is an asset. Individuals arc assets a or liabilities a to the military according to their skills their dedication their temperament. 1 can think of a number of people who were liabilities to the air Force because of their sexual activities and they were straight. Their priorities were not those of the military and that s where the problem came in i can to think of anyone i worked with Gay or straight whose sexual activities had any important Impact on Mission accomplishment. Second the military exists to protect Freedom and to protect the rights of americans. All americans that includes racists jews baptists vegetarians and rastafarians and people who happen to be Gay. We done to protect them because we agree with Ihunt Tif we agreed with them they would t need Protection. We protect them so that we can protect ourselves my Freedom is bound up in the Freedom of every american and i am sworn to protect their Freedom. Anything less is dishonourable. Finally any restriction on military members Freedom must have a legitimate reason. But if you lined up the records of 10 people a five Gay and five straight a you could t Tell them apart until you came to the discharge boards. If the military were to withdraw recognition for wicca As a religious preference it could withdraw recognition for muslims a or baptists or jews. If the military can restrict sexual activities Between members of the same sex it can restrict them Between members of opposite sexes. And it has tried to do it too. It Dis honors the military to restrict its members rights without a very Good cause and it threatens All rights of All members when any of us is threatened this Way. What Are the reasons for keeping the ban the primary official reason As pronounced by Gen. Sullivan Gen. Powell and Secretary Cheney is that sharing quarters with known homosexuals would be bad for morale. I have shared quarters w Ith a known homosexual and it did t bother me very much. I refuse to believe that the military consists of raging homophobes. The second reason seen in most of the stars and stripes letters is morality. The Bible forbids homosexuality. Fine a for you. In be read the Bible and i done to believe it. I am not bound by it but by my own conscience. The United states is not a Christian nation a that s Clear in the first amendment besides the Bibb is harder on fornication and blasphemy than it is on homosexuality a but both of those arc accepted in the military. The third reason again from our official Tine of authority is that homosexuality is inconsistent with discipline. Which is Why a colonel a technical sergeant a first class Petty officer and a Pilot All were such failures that they had to announce their homosexuality. No one had figured it out there were also no press reports of problems in the Gulf War because of homosexuals. Why is this a broader Issue because the prejudice against Gays reflects the prejudice against women. Because a prejudice against women is often linked to religious intolerance. Because the same people who want to make their fighting units private cliques a Quot the cohesion of the unit would suffer if you allowed Blacks Gays women wiccan tall people Quot a have used the same arguments All along. Frankly id rather share my tent or my foxhole with a Gay a Black or someone who a Hud an abortion a maybe someone who was All three a than with someone who had a problem with those things. Someone who does no to seem to know Why we re in the tents and Foxholes. If you have a problem sharing the sky with someone else you Don t deserve your air plane. If you have a problem sharing your bunks acc with someone you be in it. If you re not in the military to serve America a including All americans the ones you done to like and the ones you do a you Don t belong in the military at All. Master sgt. Geoffrey Brown is stationed in Wiesbaden Germany 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. Opening laugh contents thai happens to be my chair from the cover .4-5 the draw Down business. Sidelights.6-7, 9 the Selling of Quot Home alone 2. Quot radio Shock from Howard Stern. Clarence Page on Malcolm x v Good Side. Odds amp ends. 10 i Nna Bosheck and the staff of holidays. In adjusting to America s color on the tube. This weeks films. 12-13 t Hack 17/n7t. Quot Jennifer a Quot a Stottl number a 1.1t7 a t ire it listing. Television radio.14-17 l of ii Cable Zintl satellite i Sci Curtin me entertainment is Quot alien Quot scary on video. To it to. Voices .21 Hie Bob Briggs shops to it Fri arts a Ioji Irig i p words amp wit .24 Janies Kilpat Nek takes on i dhum Saf no. Books. 25 Rush figures tint the right n n on Parade .27 i shot at Quot damage Quot n it. Last laugh .28 pave Barry dines bards. On arms us 20th Century f Macaulay c Lukin in Home alone 2. Page 6. Sunday to a weekly supplement of the stars and stripes editor Bucky Fox Art direction Peter Jaeger production Mon Trice Presley editorial assistance Marian Hamilton Louis Pierce a a 7 a
