Don’t ask, and don’t listen
Published 5:31 pm Friday, March 26, 2010
When Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced last week that the military would relax enforcement of some “don’t ask, don’t tell” rules until the whole darn thing is repealed, it brought the government’s position closer to a 2008 standard determined by a 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that says the military can’t dismiss someone simply for being gay.
The court ruled that for a gay service member’s discharge to be constitutional, the military must show it promotes cohesion or discipline in the unit. Last June, President Obama announced that the government would not appeal the ruling. In July, Secretary Gates made his first call to enforce the law more “humanely” until it is repealed.
The standard is known as the “Witt standard,” after Maj. Margaret Witt, the decorated McChord Air Force Base flight nurse who, after being “outed” by an anonymous tipster, sued after being honorably discharged two years short of full retirement.
The ruling also reinstated Witt’s lawsuit against the Air Force, which is headed for trial in federal court in Tacoma. Witt, praised by former President George W. Bush for her “airmanship and courage” during the invasion of Afghanistan, argues that her dismissal, not her presence, hurt troop morale and readiness.
In another highly publicized case, Lt. Col. Victor J. Fehrenbach, an F-15 fighter pilot from Idaho, was also discharged after being outed by a tipster. An 18-year veteran, Fehrenbach served in Afghanistan and Iraq. After the Sept. 11 attacks, he was hand-picked to protect the airspace over Washington, D.C.
Fehrenbach told the Associated Press that the Air Force refused to apply the higher standard during his discharge proceedings last year.
“If the burden of proof was on the Air Force to prove that my presence was detrimental to good order, discipline, morale and unit cohesion, there would have been a different outcome,” he said. “If the Witt standard had been followed, I would be continuing to serve with no problems whatsoever.”
So different rights currently exist among gay military members. Not a good legal spot to be in, lawyers point out.
Another change announced by Gates: Certain kinds of confidential information will no longer be allowed, including (emphasis ours) statements gays make to their lawyers, clergy, psychotherapists or medical professionals in the pursuit of health care.
Seriously? That’s how evidence is gathered?
And we wonder why military members are reluctant to seek mental health care for any reason.
So, yes, bring on the humanity. And the equality. How about ignoring sexuality and evaluating military personnel on actual job performance?
