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Also cross-posted at Daily Kos. Please recommend if you have an account.
I’ve come into possession of screen shots taken from the Department of Defense’s electronic inbox for the Pentagon’s Working Group Study. They were taken two days ago, on June 9, 2010. The study has commenced and they are collecting troop input.
I ask that everyone ask themselves, “Would You Fill Out This Form, If You Were an LGB Servicemember?”You can right click, or option click to view these images larger.
Screen 1
Please note, the way to access the inbox is to log-in with your unique Department of Defense User ID number. This becomes your fingerprint through the entire process. Just as you log in, you will be agreeing to this:
“Communications using, or data stored on, this [Information System] are not private, are subject to routine monitoring, interception, and search, and may be disclosed or used for any [United States Government] authorized purpose.”
I remind everyone a “Don’t ask, Don’t tell” investigation is still an authorized US Government purpose.
Screen 2
This screen says:
“In this Online Inbox, we ask that you provide your views on these issues, and we urge you to be open and honest with your responses. We look forward to hearing from you.
As a reminder, please don’t use your name or the names of other when post in the Inbox. The “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law is still in effect.
We will be offering a separate way for you to communicate thoughts and ideas in a confidential manner for the Working Group’s consideration, and will announce that confidential mechanism when it is available. We encourage you to use this Online Inbox to provide anonymous inputs to the Working Group.”
My Active Duty sources inside the military have told me this alternate “confidential mechanism” has not yet been made available to the troops. At the most generous assessment we can then conclude that foes of repeal have been empowered to speak freely in support of the continuation of the policy, and have been granted a head-start.
Note too, this worrisome language:
The Department must develop an implementation plan for repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”, should repeal occur.
Should? I thought we were done talking about whether or not to repeal?
Screen 3
Again with the bold disclaimer (and disincentive for repeal advocates, and DADT victims to speak freely).
NO CONFIDENTIALITY PROTECTION
And again, with the assurances that repeal advocates will be afforded an opportunity to speak. Someday (that day isn’t yet today).
Screen 4
I accept the User Agreement.
And accept by implication, anything I say can, and will, lead to a possible DADT investigation and possible expulsion from military, truncating my career, disgracing my name (or at least my country), and subjecting me to possible very heavy financial penalties and the cutting or total loss of Veteran’s benefits.
Screen 5
This is a non-confidential Online inbox. Please do not use your name or the names of others within your comments.
Screen 6
This is a non-confidential Online inbox. Please do not use your name or the names of others within your comments.
Note too “For Military Servicemembers and their families only.” The invisible families of LGB servicemembers will likely be given no input at all, ever. The partners, who receive no base housing, no official recognition at a military funeral, the non-biological children, the effect DADT has on their lives may never be heard at all by the Pentagon.
Conclusion:
Senator Claire McCaskill asked the question back in February, “How can our LGB troops possibly be heard?” Joint Chief of Staff Michael Mullen said they’d “look at that carefully,” but I’m not sure we’ve ever gotten a satisfying answer or assurances that they will be.
Thus far, the only people who are powered to input their feedback into the study are those who feel confident they are immune to possible investigation. The information collection seems biased toward those who lean toward support of continuing DADT. Those suffering from the policy are severely hampered in their effort to communicate that to the Pentagon. Those who feel for and support the victims of DADT, are too, dissuaded from sharing honestly their experiences, lest they admit insubordination.
Sympathetic commanders who have looked the other way regaring LGB troops serving under them too have been muzzled to speak freely. We know these platoons exist.
But absent expressed permission to speak freely without fear of reprisal, these commanders face the fact that they are admitting to insubordination of Military code, should they tell honestly their experience of tacitly endorsing open experience.
The answer is clear, let all troops speak freely without fear of reprisal. A time-honored “immunity from prosecution” agreement.
Initiate a policy suspending DADT investigations and expulsions for the purposes of the Working Group Study. Let them go into units where open service is actually happening in the American Military right now. Let them talk to the commanders, the soldiers freely.
The call has been made. Our allies in Congress have heard and answered the call.
Let the Pentagon hear the call. Let our LGB troops speak. Finally.
Cross-posted at The Daily Kos.
14 Comments
This is exactly as I expectedAny servicemember subject to DADT, who responds to this “study,” will be subject to expulsion. I believe the proper military term is “Catch-22.”
Should Repeal OccurThat is key statement as well. The compromise bill allowed Congress to pass the buck and let Defense Dept call the shots. Was I surprised by this. absolutely not. This also allows Fierce Advocate to hide behind the coat tails of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
So many of the supposed LGBT advocacy groups did nothing but urge us to call our reps to support compromise bill, and they are still doing that.
So firings still go on, and will continue.
I called Pelosi’s office about content listed on web site listed above,(as she urged her colleagues to vote for this POS language), and after complaining to SF staffer, was told I needed to talk to DC staff, as it was not a “constituency issue”.
Dump the parties of the rich!
Hope this makes it on to Mainstream Media soonI get so tired of the LGBTs who insist we won the repeal. Just got an email recently again stating we won. The content of this “survey to poll the troops” is not surprising, given who is on the Working Group.
Rachel Maddow, Keith Olberman, Anderson Cooper, etc., please cover this.
Thanks…
What I’d like to know is whether there are, in subsequent screens, specified “issues,” e.g., housing, about which people are asked to comment, or is it just an invitation to free-form comment about whatever they feel related?
I emailed Maddow & Keith and tweetedThe Daily Kos link to them. I recommend others do the same. The get many emails I’m sure. Repetition could break through the crowded field.
And I agree. MSM attention to this story could be an important component to seeing a satisfying outcome for our LGBT soldiers.
Really? No voice from our 66,000 LGB troops….I have been screaming this from the rooftop ever since the Feb. 2nd hearing.
This ‘study’ is bias and is weighted to achive a predetermined outcome. Also know as; ‘sucks to be us.’ Keeping the marginalized population marginalized. So we must stay VISIBLE!!
We need to get this study bias info into the main stream media, begin a post card campaign to Gates, fillabuster John McCain at his office, drop off combat boots at Jim Webbs office, get a permit to protest at the Pentagon. We need to be there and hold up a sign that says; ‘we are people too’ or ‘study group-here we are!’
No more!!
Some Active Duty ThoughtsRegarding the “we know all” monitoring notification, that is on just about every federal government computer so don’t read into it too much.
For TechBear, I am active duty, I posted on the DoD webpage and my boss hasn’t called me into his office yet. As long as someone doesn’t out themselves, they should be fine. Seriously, could you imagine the uproar that would come from people being discharged based on comments on this website? DoD could never weather that storm. I am not disputing the fact that DoD could find out who used the website but, much like the overall argument about gays in the military, there is a right way and a wrong way to do things.
If LGBT servicemembers post to the web page, they need to keep it professional, on target, and keep their sexual identity out of the comments. You can explain how gay soldiers don’t have the same rights as straight soldiers without saying you are a gay soldier. You can identify the unfairness of LGBT partners not being notified when their military partner is killed or wounded in combat but, you don’t have to say you have a same-sex partner at home and that is why you made the comment.
Who knows what will happen to the results on this DoD site but the bottom line is that if the LGBT military members don’t let their voices be heard, we are not going to be set free from the oppression of DADT.
For any military readers, or those with friends in the military, they need to read up on permissible activities. While still oppressed, gay servicemembers can and NEED TO do as much as possible to let their stories be told. See SLDN’s Survival Guide at: http://www.sldn.org/pages/surv… or talk to SLDN for legal advice. This is one fight we can’t afford to lose!!!!!!!!!!!!!
No additional questions on the websiteIt is just a comment block on this website. You get 1000 characters or something like that to make any free-form comments. There is no questionnaire about housing or showers or anything else. The actual questionnaire is still being refined and should be rolled out soon. On the website referenced in this post, people can return to the page and make additional comments.
Discretion is the better part of valorWhile LGBT members shouldn’t out themselves on the website, every LGBT military member should do everything permissible to make his or her voice be heard.
The closet kills and has suppressed our rights for too long. The LGBT community needs to speak with a unified voice. We need to let our voices be heard at every opportunity otherwise we get what the bigots deliver unto us.
I think you’re very wrong.
I disagree strongly. While DADT is in force, this will be a major source for the Perfumed Princes of the Pentagon to use in deciding who to investigate.
There will be no uproar, as there have been repeated warnings. They are not trying to trap anyone.
I think you may be too optimisticI think they have baited the trap well, then at the conclusion of the study that keeps DADT, they will spring the jaws closed on any and all who participated that might show a gay bias. ”Are you now or have you ever been a homosexual?” By turning over the names of others that are or have been gay, you can redeem yoursdelf in the State’s eye. Joseph McCarthy would be very proud!
(brought to you by the Jim Carrey movie “The Majestic”, which I watched again ast weekend, his greatest movie, at least in my opinion, as it made me cry)
Thank you for the answer.
More absurdity. After dismissing over half-a-century of professional research, the Gates Mafia comes up with this “scientific” study? It is to laugh…or cry.
After a year of smile fucking us that they were “working on” what to do about repeal, a pointless, homophobic “study” is announced February 2nd and four months later they’re still putting it together, with only five months left before the promised deadline for announcing its results?
They’ve had some in-house forums with hundreds of service members who, by every account I’ve read, tend to mostly say, “Meh. Next,” but rather than realizing [because they don't want to], “Uh, maybe this is a waste of time. Let’s just drop this and tell Congress, ‘No problem; do what you want’,” they’ve found an excuse to put nearly $5 MILLION taxpayers dollars into the pockets of an “outside consulting firm” probably owned by some Pentagon hack’s relative or college buddy.
Maybe our best strategy would be to alert the teabaggers to that price tag and let them blow it up.
SECDEF ROBERT GATES AS A CHILD.
By the byethe pocks are showing a “bandwidth exceeded” for all but the first two images.
And to think; some people thought Congress was an ally.I was among them, true. But never again. “Once burned, twice shy”. NO establishment politician is the friend of GLBT rights. Not ONE of them is willing to stick their necks one cm out of line.
As a matter of convenience, some may be allies. But NEVER friends, and this means that we need to organise (and I don’t refer to that pathetic parody, the HRC) to demand returns on donations.
Don’t Ask, Don’t Give. Not one more cent to ANY candidate, Representative or Senator until that person PUBLICLY states their desire for full repeal of DADT, and the enactment of certain other basic civil rights.
If they’re going to treat the GLBT community as a piggy bank, we need to start acting like a professional one: demand return on loans and investments.