Straight Talk from the Sgt. Major of the Marine Corps
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2011/06/21/straight-talk-from-top-enlisted-marine-on-dont-ask-repeal/
“Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution is pretty simple,” he told a group of Marines at a base in South Korea. “It says, ‘Raise an army.’ It says absolutely nothing about race, color, creed, sexual orientation.
“You all joined for a reason: to serve,” he continued. “To protect our nation, right?”
[...]
“How dare we, then, exclude a group of people who want to do the same thing you do right now, something that is honorable and noble?” Sgt. Maj. Barrett continued, raising his voice just a notch. “Right?”
[...] And to drive the point home, he produced a pocket copy of the Constitution.
“Get over it,” he said. “We’re magnificent, we’re going to continue to be. … Let’s just move on, treat everybody with firmness, fairness, dignity, compassion and respect. Let’s be Marines.”
I'm just impressed, but not surprised, that the Sgt. Major of the Marine Corps carries a pocket Constitution.
Ooh-rah, Sgt. Major. Semper fi.
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I haven't been in for awhile, but I still know a few die-hard vets. And in my last stint, in an NG infantry unit, even the anti-woman stuff was a bit thick IMO.
I never knew anyone in the military who was actively gay, although there were some rumors about certain women. *shrug*.
Needless to say, I still agree with the Sgt. Major. There will be some adjustment, some incidents of violence and discrimination, and the military still has to figure out how to deal with relationships/base housing/family stuff, etc. (I think the Navy was taking the lead on this until Congress slapped em around a bit). I don't think it will be as easy for us as for the Brits or other Europeans, but I think it will probably be a total non-issue in less than five years.
And Sgt. Major Barrett's assertiveness is very sexy...