U.S. general says repealing military gay ban would put troops at risk

U.S. general says repealing military gay ban would put troops at risk

Lifting the current military gay ban would put U.S. troops at risk, the head of the U.S. Marine Corps told reporters at the Pentagon today. Commandant General James Amos reiterated his stance against the repeal of the "don't ask, don't tell" policy since it would unnecessarily endanger U.S. servicemen in combat duty in Afghanistan and Iraq.

"I don't want to lose any Marines to a distraction," Amos said. "I don't want to have any Marines I'm visiting at Bethesda (Naval Hospital) with no legs as a result of any type of distraction. So that's where I come down on this." He cited a study made by the Pentagon saying that openly gay Marines would affect "unit cohesion" among teams. "When you life hangs on a line, on the intuitive behavior of the young man...who sits to your right and your left, you don't want anything distracting you," Amos elaborated.

Gen. Amos earlier testified before a Congressional panel about his stance against the repeal of the controversial policy. He claimed that active Marines in the field in Afghanistan conveyed their opposition to lifting the military gay ban and he said it was his responsibility to listen to his troops. But he also added that those who were not in combat were more open to the change. The "don't ask, don't tell" policy has been in effect since 1993 under a law that prevents gays in the military to be out in the open lest they be discharged. Pro-gay advocates expectedly slammed the comments made by the Marines chief saying that other military organizations around the world did not prevent gays from openly serving their countries.

Posted by James Fried on Wednesday December 15 2010, 1:26 AM EDT. Ref: CNN. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, World. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0