One, Two, Three, What Are We Fighting For?
First:
A discharged sailor is called back to duty.
“I spent four years in the Navy, buried fallen servicemembers as part of the Ceremonial Guard, served as a Hebrew Linguist in Navy Intelligence, and received awards for exemplary service,” he wrote in a letter to Stripes. “However, because I was gay, the Navy discharged me and recouped my 13k sign-on bonus. Nine months later, the Navy recalled me to active duty. Did I accept despite everything that happened? Of course I did, and I would do it again. Because I love the Navy and I love my country. And despite Pace’s opinion, my shipmates support me.”
Those shipmates include his direct supervisors in the customs battalion.
Next, the Navy says it will fire him again.
WASHINGTON, DC — The United States Navy has informed Petty Officer Second Class Jason Knight that it intends to fire him under the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law just weeks prior to completing his one-year commitment. Knight, an openly gay sailor, was recalled to active duty in June 2006 and recently completed a tour of duty in Kuwait, where he was open about his sexual orientation with his command and fellow sailors. Knight told his story last weekend in the newspaper Stars & Stripes and was notified yesterday that he will be receiving an honorable discharge from the Navy based, in part, on his recent media interviews. Knight was scheduled to end his commitment on May 28, 2007, but will face early dismissal because he chose to go public about his experience.
“Jason Knight was an exemplary sailor who gladly returned to active duty when our country needed him,” said Sharra E. Greer, director of law and policy for Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN). “Now, despite his dedication and service, and the praise of those he served alongside, the Navy has decided to fire him because he dared to tell his story and put a public face to the courage of lesbian and gay service personnel. Our nation should be embarrassed that our armed forces are forced to respond to Knight’s selfless service with a government-sanctioned pink slip. ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ silences lesbians and gays and attempts to make them invisible. Because Knight refused invisibility, he will now be fired.”
Don’t try and make sense of the senseless. You’ll go crazy.
The fact that the military is stretched to its limits in its so-called war on terror but continues to openly and proudly discriminate against qualified gays and lesbians suggests that our leaders believe that the war against liberty for gays and lesbians is a higher priority than the war on terror.
The Muslim religious fanatics who have attacked America also hate homosexuals. In other words, the terrorists hold values that are allied with the values of our own military.
How can our military effectively fight terrorists who share its values?
Aren’t they really just fighting themselves and their own fears?
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