Frontlines: The Latest from OutServe-SLDN
Radio Host Gives Skewed Report on Polling Data
Our friends at Colorado Media Matters are calling out KHOW radio host George Brauchler for his anti-gay comments during a recent interview with SLDN client, and former Navy linguist, Jason Knight.
From the Media Matters website:
During a July 6 discussion about gays in the military with guest Jason Knight (pictured), an openly gay former naval petty officer and current communications associate for the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, Caplis & Silverman Show guest co-host George Brauchler followed guest co-host Darren McKee's question about "the worst thing in the world about being gay in the Navy" by asking, "It's like putting a kid in a candy shop, isn't it?" Brauchler later stated that he was "insinuat[ing]" that "the Navy are the light-in-the-loafers service."
Additionally, Brauchler distorted a 2006 Zogby International poll that, according to McKee, found that in a "survey of military personnel who had served in Iraq or Afghanistan, three-quarters said they're comfortable interacting with gays and lesbians." Brauchler acknowledged that "75 percent of them said, 'Hey, I feel comfortable working around gays,' " but went on to claim that the "same group when they were asked this question: Do you agree or disagree with allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military? -- 26 percent agreed. Twenty-six percent. So, that's the true numbers here."
While the Zogby poll did show that 26 percent of respondents either "agree[d]" or "strongly agree[d]" "with allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military," Brauchler did not mention that 32 percent of respondents said they were "neutral" on that question and 5 percent said they were "not sure." Thirty-seven percent of military personnel either "disagree[d]" or "strongly disagree[d]" with allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military.
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SLDN is joining Media Matters in asking supporters to weigh in with Brauchler and KHOW regarding the truth about "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and changing attitudes within the armed forces. Click here for contact information for the station and Brauchler.
More than 65,000 lesbian and gay Americans are on duty today, and another 1 million gay veterans are living in the United States today. Increasingly, their service is being honored by their fellow citizens - and our men and women in uniform - who support repealing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" in larger numbers than ever before. In fact, when read correctly, the Zogby poll is clear: 73% of service personnel are comfortable with lesbians and gays and 69% either don't agree with the policy or weren't bothered enough about it to say that they supported the current ban. In truth, there is little support left for excluding qualified Americans who want to serve.
As New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd recently wrote, "America has been Will-and-Graced since Bill Clinton had his kerfuffle on the issue in 1993. Tolerance has blossomed, especially among younger Americans."
Unfortunately, George Brauchler doesn't seem to have caught up with those on the frontlines . . . but, at the very least, he shouldn't misrepresent their views by by only giving selected data - and not the whole picture - when it comes to their support for lifting the ban.
- Steve RallsLabels: in the news, media matters, take action
07-10-07 Comment (1)
Army Misses the Mark . . . Again
ABC News is reporting that the Army has missed its recruiting goal for the 2nd month in a row . . . and that military officials are beginning to worry about how they'll attract new recruits.
From the ABC report:
Already stretched thin by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Army is having a hard time finding new recruits. ABC News has learned the Army missed its recruiting goal in June for the second month in a row. It's the first time in more than two years that the Army has missed recruiting goals for two consecutive months.
The figures are especially worrisome because the summer is traditionally the peak recruiting season. Army officials are now worried that July and August will be difficult as well, raising the possibility that the Army will miss its annual goal of 80,000 new recruits for fiscal year 2007, which ends on September 30. The Army has missed an annual recruiting goal only twice in the last decade -- in 1999 and 2005.
The Army will officially release its June recruiting figures on Tuesday, but Pentagon officials tell ABC News the numbers are similar to May, when the Army recruited only 93 percent of its goal of signing up 5500 new recruits. The goal for June was 8,400. The last time the Army missed back-to-back monthly goals was April and May 2005.
The numbers will only get more difficult in the months ahead; to meet its annual recruiting goal, the Army will need to sign up more than 30,000 new recruits over the next three months.
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Of course, it's not new news that the military could attract a significant number of good recruits, were it not for "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." According to statistician Gary Gates, more than 40,000 new troops would sign up for duty if the ban wasn't in place -- far more than the 30,000 needed over the next three months. And keeping good recruiters on the job who happen to lesbian or gay -- like Sonya Contreras -- could go a long way in fixing the problem, too.
With the military stretched this thin, will we see more commands, and especially recruiters, demanding that Congress lift the ban?
- Steve RallsLabels: recruiting, williams institute
07-09-07 Comment (1)
Vote & Debate
As we reported earlier, the July 23rd Democratic debate on CNN will feature questions submitted online via YouTube videos. We asked for veterans to submit questions about repealing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," and you didn't disappoint!
To view questions about repeal, click here. And, to make sure the question makes it into the debate, please remember to vote for your favorite "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" query. Questions that receive the most votes move up on the list of those likely to be posed during the debate.
Keep submitting questions, and tune in on July 23 to see the candidates respond!
- Steve RallsLabels: 2008
-----07-09-07 Comment (0)
KRLD Takes on ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’
Dallas, Texas radio station KRLD is considered a reliable conservative voice in Lone Star media, but host Ernie Brown spoke out this week in favor of repealing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." You can listen to Ernie's remarks online here. And if you catch your local talk radio station discussing the ban, please let us know! - Steve RallsLabels: in the news
-----07-07-07 Comment (0)
Donnelly: Attack DoD & Rename DA, DT
Elaine Donnelly of the Center for Military Readiness has just posted some new 'facts' about "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" on her website. This time, though, she isn't just attacking SLDN and other repeal advocates . . . she's actually blaming the Department of Defense for being too lenient on the issue of gay service personnel!
"Activist groups and the Department of Defense should stop misleading young people about their eligibility to serve in the military," Elaine writes.
Apparently, in Elaine's world, the DoD is encouraging gays to enlist!
But wait, there's more. Elaine also wants "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" renamed the "Military Personnel Eligibility Act." She writes that "Describing the law as 'Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell' effectively slanders the statute," essentially advocating a return to 'Asking' and an even more restrictive ban on 'Telling.'
What does all of Elaine's new ranting, and her stepped up pressure on the Bush administration, mean? Simply put: She knows, despite her woefully out of touch world view, that the days of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" are numbered. The pieces are falling into place for repeal, and anti-gay groups are frantically trying to stop the momentum.
As we move closer and closer to repeal, people like Donnelly and others will begin to aggressively push their anti-gay agenda, even at the risk of denying the military they claim to love the opportunity to recruit qualified Americans for service.
This isn't the last of Elaine's stepped up vitrol that we're going to hear, but it is an early sign that we're closer than ever to lifting the ban.
Labels: elaine donnelly
07-03-07 Comment (1)
Swedes Speak Out
A Swedish gay rights organization is calling out the Finns on anti-gay animus in the armed forces, reporting that openly gay Swedish personnel may be uncomfortable serving with their allies in Finland.
From PinkNews.co.uk:
HOF, which promotes the rights of gays, bisexuals, and transsexuals in the Swedish military, says that the attitude of the Finns makes it difficult for LGBT soldiers to take part in joint operations.
Sweden still practices conscription and there has been debate in the country over the rights of gay people in the military. The country's Armed Forces are deployed in Bosnia, Afghanistan, Lebanon and Kosovo.HoF was launched in December 2001 to support serving members of the Swedish Armed Forces who are gay, bisexual or transgender - officers, civilians and conscripts.
Only conscripts who volunteer are sent on missions outside Sweden, and there is evidence that LGBT Swedes are reluctant to do so because they might face hostility. The President of HOF told Swedish radio he wants the Swedish Defence Minister Mikael Odenberg to raise the issue of "discriminatory and insulting behaviour" with the Finns, accusing them of being the most difficult soliders to work with.
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Sweden has a long history of supporting its LGBT service members. Swedish military representatives visited with SLDN in 2005, and expressed concerns about the anti-gay policies of the U.S. forces. Captain Krister Fahlstedt of HoF told reporter Stefen Styrsky that, “We have a strong tradition in Sweden to stand up for human rights and to fight for equality. That’s how we try to address the issue within the armed forces and it has been quite successful. The purpose of our armed forces is to defend democracy and human rights, and therefore it is essential to stand up for basic human rights within the organization as well."
As Swedish forces fight alongside American troops in Afghanistan, let's hope that some of their open-minded philosophy influences our own thoughts about gays in the military.
Labels: in the news, sweden
-----07-02-07 Comment (0)
Watch the Video (Part II)
The folks at Brave New Films are at it again, this time with a second installment in their series of short videos examining the issue of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."
Their first video, featuring dismissed Arabic linguist Stephen Benjamin, is a poignant reminder the harm "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" has had on America's ability to engage our enemies and the threat it poses to our national security. Their second short is a lighter look at some of the really stupid arguments made in favor of keeping "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." When television commentator, Mark Smith, throws open the door to his own fevered imagination it is enough to make you laugh -- until of course you remember what's really at stake. In the end, it’s enough to make you cry. Click here for more information on Brave New Films.
Labels: brave new foundation, linguists, YouTube; veterans
-----07-02-07 Comment (0)
