Michael Winship: Don't Ask, Don't Care

[unhappycamper]

Don't Ask, Don't Care
Michael Winship
Senior writer at Public Affairs Television
Posted: November 17, 2010 04:58 PM

Although I grew up in a small town, I live in the West Village of Manhattan, New York City, just three blocks from Christopher Street and the Stonewall Inn, where in 1969 a police raid led to angry demonstrations that marked the start of the gay rights movement. Yet in most ways my neighborhood is just like yours. We all coexist. Kids go to school, business owners complain about the economy, everyone -- straight or gay -- is worried about jobs.

I also work in an industry -- journalism, media and entertainment -- in which men and women of diverse sexual orientation make extraordinary contributions every day, informing, delighting and annoying audiences of every age, gender, shape and hue. No problem.

Granted, a few members of that audience are bigots and pinheads, probably unaware that their favorite show or song was created by a team of imaginative people with social and personal lives unlike their own. So let's keep them out of this.

Because it's about this gays in the military thing. Listen, Congress. The majority of the people have spoken -- as many as 78 percent of them in a May CNN poll, 50 percent in a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News survey. And it's not so much "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," as simply, "Don't Care."

Don't care if homosexual men and women openly serve in the armed forces as long as they do their job and defend their country. Don't care what military men and women and men and men and women and women do in their spare time as long as it doesn't involve minors, criminal activity or abuse. Don't care because it's none of our business.

[nofurylike]

1. K&R! thank you for posting this, unhappycamper! we must all

send these facts, and our expectation that they repeal DADT, around to our senators and representatives!!


peace

[unhappycamper]

2. This DADT 'dance' is really pissing me off as well. n/t

[nofurylike]

5. i'm with you on that, unhappycamper. thanks again! nt

[racaulk]

3. I really enjoyed reading that article.

Thank you for posting it here. :hi:

K&R

[joeybee12]

4. KNR

[IrishEyes]

6. I couldn't care less if a soldier is gay

I do care that the government spent 363 million dollars to investigate 14,000 honest, hardworking people, kick them out and trained new people. I can think of a million better uses of that money. I also care that many countries including most of Europe have openly gay people in the military but our leaders think that our military will fall apart if we have gay people serving.