I think the biggest reason against having gays in the military is the one about how it infringes on the bond between military members (“unit cohesion”) who have to serve effectivley as a unit. Gays now have to keep themselves in check, that is repress their attractions to fellow members. That is a stress. Those who are straight may feel their privacy is infringed upon in some situations, sleeping arrangements, showering. Would any straight man or woman ever feel comfortable dressing and showering in the company of the opposite sex? The problems with male/female sexual harassment in the military so often involve a more senior person taking advantage of a junior person. That same problem would extend to gays. It already does. There has been many a court-martial involving a more senior person getting a junior person drunk and taking advantage or him/her. I was a military JAG officer and have seen the records of trial. When that happens it’s a huge disruption to the unit, causes fear, resentment in others, makes the compliant gay people feel more in the closet than ever. Then there’s the emotional/social problems of gay sex shared between service members. Some may be seen to be getting favors, or simply getting some when the straight folks are left out. That’s how young men think. An how about the disrespect some service members feel toward a superior who is gay due to their own legitamate religious beliefs? When there are homosexual breakups, there’s more resentment, rumors in the unit, more disrespect for the person who caused the breakup. Young gays I think are more immature and apt to go wild with their homosexuality just as young straight men go wild when they become sexually active. These all contribute to a constant social problem with undercurrent fears, resentments, infringes on privacy, repression of homosexuals’ desires. That’s the unit cohesion problem. It’s big. Also there is a huge fear that open gays in the military would turn into what looks like a San Francisco gay parade. This is so hard to communicate to people because it’s nebulous but it is real. It causes emotional tension int he whole unit. Yes, there’s a significant decrease in social prejudice but the feelings I’ve discussed are still there. Just as the unspeakable sadness young college women especially feel after “hookups”; just use and move on. There is a lot of societal guilt behind the push to have gays become “equal” to heterosexuals. The lobbyists have found an effective tool. But the reality of seeing how cramped quarters people live on a submarine or ship at sea, for example day in and day out leave one with a thought that perhaps it makes sense to have don’t ask dont’ tell. It is NOT just a job. There are many problems still with women on ships for example that no one ever hears about because it isn’t PC. Women get pregnant by the dozens on purpose to get out of sea duty, they get involved with men on ships and it causes the same kind of problems I’m talking about. But the sexuality of young gay men, especially, openly practicing would be unbelievably detrimental. Many others who might have come into the military would just stay out --as many have done with the priesthood, afraid of not being left alone in the seminary. This is not bigotry; it is real pragmatism.
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