Nice:
The Marine Corps’ top officer said he would not force straight Marines to share rooms with gay service members if Congress repeals the “don’t ask, don’t tell” law and allows gay men and lesbians to serve openly in the armed forces.
Gen. James T. Conway, the commandant of the Marine Corps, told the Web site military.com in an interview published Friday that an “overwhelming” number of Marines would be opposed to bunking with someone of a different sexual orientation. As a result, he said, the Corps might have to ditch its double-bed rooms and offer single rooms to everyone.
“We want to continue [two-person rooms], but I would not ask our Marines to live with someone who is homosexual if we can possibly avoid it,” Conway told the Web site. The Marine Corps is the only branch of the armed services that requires its unmarried members to share rooms, a policy meant to foster unit cohesion.
Wow. Newsflash, General Conway: “Our Marines” already include gay people. You’re just too scared of that fact to admit it.
And here’s the thing, General Conway. If you’re deathly afraid of gay men, that’s fine. That’s your own personal demon to deal with, and I really couldn’t care less. But as the commandant of the Marine Corps, I really think you ought to cease broadcasting your personal Achilles’ Heel in the media. I mean, because from what I’ve heard, Marines are supposed to be really, really tough, and here you are broadcasting to our enemies that you can handle anything but a gay dude? I mean, holy hell. You’re certainly lightening our enemies’ load by broadcasting to the world that all it takes you do you in is for things to get a little bit disco up in hurruh.
Of course, I doubt an “overwhelming” number of Marines are as scared of Teh Gay as the General. All polls of servicemembers not currently living in Shady Pines Retirement Home show that the idea of DADT repeal is being met with a collective yawn by the good men and women of our military. Unless you’re saying that the Marines are somehow less equipped to deal with Big Scary Gays as the other branches, as well as most of our allies’ militaries, including the fierce Israeli army.
And I doubt you’re saying that.
John Aravosis has more.
