European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 11, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Paula Ettelbrick of the Lambda Legal defense and education fund and Joseph Steffan discuss his Case in 1992. Foes testing military s Gay policy in court by Michael Kirkland United press International s it constitutional to keep people out of the military because they acknowledge they Are homosexual or must the military accept fiem even though senior officials believe their presence would cripple the effectiveness of the armed forces despite the political. Compromise of the White House the Congress and the Pentagon r resulting in the Quot Don t ask Don t Tell Don pursue Quot policy in effect since feb. 23 a those questions Are slowly making their Way to the supreme court. A a the United states and Britain Are the Only nato countries that keep declared homosexuals out of the armed forces. France Italy Denmark Belgium and Finland have policies that Call for discharge Only if a Soldier s homosexuality interferes with duty. Under Quot Don t ask Quot a Gay y. Service member can stay in the military As Long As he or she does t admit or practice homosexuality. One Day the Issue May be before the supreme court. Among the options it May consider Are sweep aside Quot Don t ask Quot and prohibit the military from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation or assert that individual rights take a Back seat to National a Security interests. But before then three cases in the lower courts Bear watching a today the . Court of appeals. For the District of Columbia is scheduled to hear the Case of Joseph Steffan. Keith Meinhold waging Legal Battle. A midshipman at the naval Academy in 1987, Steffan was six weeks away from graduation when he was forced out after he admitted to a fellow student that he was Gay. Steffan sued and lost twice in Federal. District court. Then a three judge panel for the District s court of appeals ruled unconstitutional the military s. Discrimination against homosexuals. The panel ordered the Navy to commission Steffan the officer rank he would have achieved upon graduation. The Clinton administration appealed Quot on  30, and the full court of appeals voted to hear the Case Quot in Banc Quot a All 19 circuit judges will hear arguments and vote for a verdict. 1. The . Circuit is one of 12 circuit courts of Appeal across the country which Are the next to last judicial Stop. Before the supreme court. A spokeswoman for the new York based Lambda Legal defense and education fund which is providing \ Legal help to Steffan said the Issue boils Down to simple human rights. Quot the ultimate Gist of the argument is that the. Successive bans on Gays in \ service Are unconstitutional Quot said Beatrice Dohrn the fund s Legal director. Quot it is unconstitutional to ,. A punish someone. Based on the statement i am Gay Quot a. A court documents filed by the Justice department said the three judge panel exceeded its authority and violated the principle of separation of Powers when it ordered Steffan commissioned because Only the president has the constitutional Power to appoint military a officers. A. A a however the department did not defend the old policy of Banning homosexuals from the military. A a second Case concerning the. Constitutionality of Banning Gays from the military is before the 9th . Circuit court of appeals in san Francisco. In the Case involving Navy Petty officer 1st Glass Keith Meinhold a Federal judge ruled the ban unconstitutional but the Clinton administration appealed. Arguments took place in december and a verdict is pending. A a in Able is. The United states in new York a District court judge issued an injunction ordering the military not. To discharge six plaintiffs while their Case is ongoing. Lambda s Dohrn said the plaintiffs from All five service branches Are. Challenging the constitutionality of any ban and directly targeting Quot Don t ask Don t Tell Don t  subject creative gis and their words of War by Mike Feinsilber the associated press along with blood sweat and tears War produces words. A new dictionary records the words . Doughboy do faces gis and grunts thought up in every War they fought 1 the list goes beyond terms that have crept into civilian vocabularies a jeep awol Gizmo and snafu a to others whose military origins May not be As obvious a scuttlebutt Gold Brick baptize by fire bite the dust big wheel and dear John for example. War Slang american fighting words and phrases from the civil War to  War by Paul Dickson shows that As Long As americans have gone to War they have also taken a sardonic View of the environment of Battle a the mud the food the enemy the Petty rules and the chances of survival. A a food death disfigurement and discharge this dictionary shows have been Soldier preoccupations forever. Yvo c Quot Chow and Quot grub Quot Date Back to the civil War. But the gis of world War ii came up with the most slighting terms for food. Fried liver was a Alligator bait Quot corned beef was a mgl  prunes were a army strawberries a and were also known As  sausages were a bags of mystery Quot Beans were a commissary bullets Quot spinach was a a Marsh grass Toast was a a shingles sauerkraut was a shrubbery Quot in the Vietnam War canned beef patties in Gravy were called  in the persian Gulf War any unappetizing entree was a Camel  in , Are stood for meal ready to eat the successor to the a ration of world War ii. Those forced to consume res said the name consisted of three lies. They also said the initials stood for meal rejected by ethiopians or meal refusing to exit. Death spawned a vocabulary. Quot kick the bucket Quot was used in the civil War in world War ii it was a to Check out Quot and in Korea it was a to buy the farm or Quot to go to the big pm in the  in Vietnam a to waste Quot was to kill but to be killed was a to be greased Quot As in a anything you do can get you greased including doing  american soldiers have been adept at assimilating French terms. In world War i doughboy said hello by saying a barn door Quot a play on the French Bonjorn goodbye was Quot Bonwar Quot from Gonsoir. And Many still say a boo Coop when they mean Many it comes from Beaucoup. A Quot Short timer Quot is a Soldier whose tour of duty is nearing an end. A getting Short Quot is another Way of putting it. In Vietnam the Quot Short timer Quot became a a single digit midget when he or she got below 10 Days to go. The last Day of the tour was known As a Wake up Quot As in Quot in be got five Days and a  Quot then the Soldier would Fly Home on the a Freedom  the greatest War cliche in recent years was generated by Saddam Hussein who vowed to win a the Mother of All Battles Quot in . Defense Secretary Dick Cheney said Saddam instead fathered a the Mother of All  the Boston Globe said he had painted himself into a the Mother of All Corners Quot and Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf crowed Over the wars end at a session that became known As the Mother of All briefings. Wednesday May 11,1994 the stars and stripes 17