http://www.ocregister.com/opinion/military-232507-homo.uals-
officers.html
President Obama's promise to repeal the ban on homo.uals in
the military is causing unease among those responsible for
military discipline. Former Marine commandant Gen. Carl E. Mundy
and 1,160 of his retired flag and general officer colleagues
have spoken forcibly against it.
Adm. Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, is
struggling to get the service chiefs on board. On Jan. 15, The
Washington Times reported that "Adm. Mullen was unable to get
the full backing of other senior leaders during an unusual
meeting of the top officers from each branch of the military
.." (Adm. Mullen announced in a Senate hearing on the policy
Wednesday that, personally, he supports lifting the ban on
homo.uals in the military.)
There are sound reasons for opposition among the service chiefs,
including current Marine Corps commandant Gen. James T. Conway.
>From 1992 to 1994, I served as chief of the Army Criminal Law
Division at the Pentagon. During that time, President Bill
Clinton ignited a firestorm when he tried to force the
Department of Defense to accept known homo.uals.
A key obstacle was the Uniform Code of Military Justice and
Defense Department regulations stating that "homo.uality is
incompatible with military service." The UCMJ prohibits sodomy,
indecentaults, indecent acts, and indecent liberties with
children. Article 133 prohibits officers from .ually
fraternizing.
These rules make sense in the unique military environment. Even
as Congress wrestled with Clinton's legislation on ...s, a major
homo.ual incident occurred at Fort Hood, Texas. Homo.uals
advertised a Fort Hood restroom as a gathering spot for casual
.. In just seven days, criminal investigators observed 60 men
publicly committing serious acts on post.
Officers, NCOs and enlisted personnel participated. Many wore
uniforms displaying their insignia of rank. The Army Public
Affairs chief referred to the matter as a "potentially explosive
issue." It was "explosive" because it contradicted the
administration's portrayal of ... GIs as "perfect gentlemen – a
boon to the force."
At the Criminal Law Division, facts contradicted the party line.
Worldwide crime reports documented serious disciplinary issues
involving homo.uals who slipped unlawfully into U.S. military
forces. Troops physically restrained one homo.ual drill
instructor as he attempted to . a recruit struggling to flee
out a second-story window. Two homo.ual soldiers forcibly
sodomized a lone soldier showering at night, forcing him to
submit by strangling him with a bath towel. A master sergeant
preyed on newcomers by getting them drunk before .ually
assaulting them.
Rep. Ike Skelton (D-Mo.), Chairman of the House Armed Services
Committee, spoke firmly against dropping the ban against
homo.uals, stating that it would cause "disruption" and
"serious problems" ("Skelton opposes repeal of 'Don't ask, don't
tell,'" TheHill.com, Jan. 15). I agree with Ike Skelton.
Mixing homo.uals in showers, close quarters, and in the field
would also cause severe strains because of the lack of privacy.
And few things threaten unit cohesion like consensual .ual
interaction between homo.uals in the presence of others who
cannot walk away. The Fort Hood incident demonstrated how group
. among officers, NCOs and men destroys respect for rank. How
would men respond to such officers and noncommissioned officers
in battle? If misconduct of that severity occurred under the
stern legal proscriptions back then, how much worse might
conditions become if homo.uality were lawfully sanctioned?
I've learned the importance of discipline and unit cohesion on
the drill fields of Parris Island and with the 1st Marine
Regiment in Vietnam – slipping through enemy lines at night –
charging with fixed bayonets across rice paddies strewn with
enemy dead. In the wake of the disciplinary collapse following
Vietnam, I worked difficult years helping rebuild the U.S. Army.
I've seen how discipline wins wars – and how the lack of
discipline loses them.
President Clinton practically brought down his presidency trying
to lift the ban. Afterward, the U.S. House of Representatives
declared – in its official legislative history – that
"homo.uality is incompatible with military service." The
resulting law, Title 10 U.S. Code Section 654, explicitly states
that homo.uals are ineligible for military service. Nothing
has changed since that long national debate. And nothing should
change now.
Richard H. Black, retired from the U.S. Army, was chief of the
Army's Criminal Law Division. As a Marine pilot, he flew 269
combat missions in Vietnam and he served four terms in the
Virginia Generalembly
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