Military fires gay linguists - what's next?

WASHINGTON — Lawmakers who say the military has kicked out 58 Arabic language experts because they were gay want the Pentagon to explain how it can afford to let the valuable specialists go.

Seizing on the latest discharge, involving three specialists, House members wrote the House Armed Services Committee chairman on Wednesday that the continued loss of such "capable, highly skilled Arabic linguists continues to compromise our national security during time of war."

Former Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Stephen Benjamin said his supervisor tried to keep him on the job and urged him to sign a statement saying he was not gay. Benjamin said his lawyer advised against signing because the statement could be used against him later if other evidence surfaced.

source

of all the things to be concerned about with everything going wrong with the war on terror, you would think they would have a sense of priority. If only they could have kept how he felt a secret, then they wouldn't have been fired.

Originally posted by ebayitup

WASHINGTON — Lawmakers who say the military has kicked out 58 Arabic language experts because they were gay want the Pentagon to explain how it can afford to let the valuable specialists go.

Seizing on the latest discharge, involving three specialists, House members wrote the House Armed Services Committee chairman on Wednesday that the continued loss of such "capable, highly skilled Arabic linguists continues to compromise our national security during time of war."

Former Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Stephen Benjamin said his supervisor tried to keep him on the job and urged him to sign a statement saying he was not gay. Benjamin said his lawyer advised against signing because the statement could be used against him later if other evidence surfaced.

source

Also from the same source:

"In an interview with The Associated Press, Benjamin said he was caught improperly using the military's secret level computer system to send messages to his roommate, who was serving in Iraq. In those messages, he said, he may have referred to being gay or going on a date".

Perhaps Petty Officer Benjamin should have paid attention to the DoD Warning Banner that appears on each military computer system:

"Use of this or any other DoD interest computer system constitutes a consent to monitoring at all times. This is a DoD interest computer system. All DoD interest computer systems and related equipment are intended for the communication, transmission, processing, and storage of official U.S. Government or other authorized information only. All DoD interest computer
systems are subject to monitoring at all times to ensure proper functioning of equipment and systems including security devices and systems, to prevent unauthorized use and violations of statutes and security regulations, to deter criminal activity, and for other similar purposes.

Any user of a DoD interest computer system should be aware that any information placed in the system is subject to monitoring and is not subject to any expectation of privacy. If monitoring of this or any other DoD interest computer system reveals possible evidence of violation of criminal statutes, this evidence and any other related information, including identification information about the user, may be provided to law enforcement officials. If
monitoring of this or any other DoD interest computer systems reveals violations of security regulations or unauthorized use, employees who violate security regulations or make unauthorized use of DoD interest computer systems are subject to appropriate disciplinary action. Use of this or any other DoD interest computer system constitutes a consent to monitoring at all times".

A. It seems that there is more to this case than meets the eye.

B. Lesson learned: don't talk about gay activities on a military use computer.

C. Marty Meehan will use any excuse to try to overturn the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy for the US military. I know, I've met the man more than once....

You beat me to it Pyros...

as always.... two sides to every story... ALWAYS!

Break the rules, get caught then cry foul... I love it.

Talk about cutting off your nose to spite your face!

At a supposed time of National Crisis, the military, apparently gripped in the throes of an adolescent homophobic psychosis, is willing to risk the lives of its members, the Iraqi civilian population, and possibly the citizens of the US, their own friends and families, by purging people with desparately needed skills.....because those people are honest about ONE aspect of their lives!

In this action, by knowingly and willfully denying a vital resource to troops actively engaged in combat, could not the military itself be held guilty of providing at least the "aid" portion of "providing aid and comfort to the enemy"?

Is that not the short definition of Treason, in a time of war?

also from same source:

. . . the military has kicked out 58 Arabic language experts because they were gay . . .

and

He said he was among about 70 people investigated at Fort Gordon in Georgia for using the computer to send personal notes. He said others who are not gay kept their jobs even though they were caught sending sexual and profane messages.

Originally posted by Pyros
C. Marty Meehan will use any excuse to try to overturn the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy for the US military. I know, I've met the man more than once....

is there something wrong with that?

Originally posted by elevatedone
You beat me to it Pyros...

as always.... two sides to every story... ALWAYS!

Break the rules, get caught then cry foul... I love it.

did you read the source, or just pyros? other straigh men broke the rules too and didn't get fired. the point is that these people are needed, and really they are getting fired for being gay. the problem really is with the "don't ask don't tell" rule. i mean, this is 2007 isn't it.

I read both.

As I said two sides to every story... we really need to know what was in ALL the personal messages. Maybe some were worse than others and had information in them that justified the firings and the other messages didn't justify termination? We don't know.

Originally posted by elevatedone
I read both.

As I said two sides to every story... we really need to know what was in ALL the personal messages. Maybe some were worse than others and had information in them that justified the firings and the other messages didn't justify termination? We don't know.

Fair enough. In the article though, Benjamin said he was "caught improperly using the military's secret level computer system to send messages to his roommate, who was serving in Iraq. In those messages, he said, he may have referred to being gay or going on a date." Hardly seems fair considering that 70 other people had also improperly used the sytem for writing dirty jokes, profanity and explicit sexual references. They kept their position and simply recieved administrative punishments.

But, that being said, ofcourse we have to first believe that Mr. Benjamin's account is the way it actually happened.

[edit on 30-5-2007 by ebayitup]