tell, they still won't ask

i heard this story on NPR today about how the u.s. military has become tolerant of homosexuality recently. the story suggested that the pentagon is so desperate to retain personnel for the ongoing wars in iraq and afghanistan, it doesn't think it can afford to discharge them for violating the "don't ask, don't tell" policy. the story interviews several soldiers who came out to their unit, but who were kept in the military to continue their service in iraq.

it struck me as a little odd. i remember the gays in the military debate back in the early 1990s. many of the justification for excluding gays involved claims that the presence of gays in a unit would be corrosive to unit cohesion in a time of war.

that debate took place during peacetime and it's wartime now. and it's interesting to see how the changed circumstances have caused the pentagon grow more tolerant, or at least willing to overlook a soldier's homosexuality because of the wartime demand for boots on the ground.

anyway, it just struck me as an odd twist on an old debate. i'd still be surprised if they officially changed the "don't ask, don't tell" policy anytime soon. not that it will matter all that much if it becomes widely ignored.

...i just realized this post is particularly appropriate today.