Don't Ask Don't Tell

 

"It may surprise some of you to learn that homosexuals are allowed to serve in today’s United States Military. They can serve, but they can’t engage in homosexual activities while in the military, nor can they tell anyone about their sexual preference. To do either is a basis for involuntary discharge. That’s the backbone of the current “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law." That is what Rod Powers, a retired Air Force First Sergeant with 22 years of active duty service said in one  article on the usmilitary.about.com website in May 2010.

"Don't ask, don't tell" (DADT) was the official United States policy on homosexuals serving in the military from December 21, 1993 to September 20, 2011. 

The policy forbade military personnel from discriminating against or harassing closeted homosexual or bisexual service members or applicants, while excluding openly gay, lesbian, or bisexual persons from military service. The policy prohibited people who "demonstrate a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual acts" from serving in the armed forces of the United States, because their presence "would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability." 

The act prohibited any homosexual or bisexual person from revealing his or her sexual orientation or from speaking about any homosexual relationships, including marriages or other familial attributes, while serving in the United States armed forces. The act specified that service members who disclose that they are homosexual or engage in homosexual conduct should be discharged except when a service member's conduct was "for the purpose of avoiding or terminating military service" or when it "would not be in the best interest of the armed forces".

The "don't ask" part of the DADT policy specified that superiors should not initiate investigation of a service member's orientation without witnessing disallowed behaviors, though credible evidence of homosexual behavior could be used to initiate an investigation. Unauthorized investigations and harassment of suspected servicemen and women led to an expansion of the policy to "don't ask, don't tell, don't pursue, don't harass."

The policy was banned in September 2011. After years of debate and months of final preparations, the military can no longer prevent gays from serving openly in its ranks.

With the lifting of the ban, the Defense Department published revised regulations to reflect the new law allowing gays to serve openly. The revisions, such as eliminating references to banned homosexual service, are in line with policy guidance that was issued by top Pentagon officials in January, after Obama signed the legislation that did away with the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy.

The lifting of the 18-year-old ban also brings a halt to all pending investigations, discharges and other administrative proceedings that were begun under the law passed during Clinton's administration.

The ban of the policy opens the path to a new way of looking at gays, lesbians or bisexuals; who are now not considered as people with fewer abilities anymore. The abolishment of the DADT freed the way for the settlement of a more gay-friendly world.

Sources :

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/18/AR2008071802561.html

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/09/20/national/main20108690.shtml
http://usmilitary.about.com/od/millegislation/a/dontask.htm

Ground Zero mosque...

Does the fact of building a mosque near Ground Zero fit into the melting pot or the salad bowl model of American culture? Do Muslims adapt to a country that is not theirs, or do they try to impose their beliefs and ways of living? Do American people put them in a "terrorist box" because of what happened on the 9/11? 

I think those are interesting questions to think about. To discuss them, I am going to analyze two very different and opposed points of view : the one from people that are non-Muslim, and the one from Muslims that live in a country with no islamic belief trend.

As far as non-Muslims are concerned, wether they are Christians or not, the melting pot model seems to be the rule, but in a bad way. Indeed, people (and by saying “people” I mean people in general, not only religious entities) often consider what is different from them as bad. The construction of the mosque near Ground Zero is considered as a personal attack to the country because, even if there are a lot of different cultures in the US, it was not a Muslim country when it was shaped and still is not. So, people are reacting very strongly to what they call an “invasion” of Islam in their country. A poll

Now, as far as Muslims are concerned, it is generally thought that, when they go to another country, they prefer sticking to their own beliefs rather than adapt. For example, women keep wearing headscarves while it is not the norm. This would fit into the salad bowl model, but again, in a bad way.

Through centuries, we have seen how cultures could melt together and adapt to each other in order to form a new one, a mix  that results in a harmonious new way of living that respects (more or less) the values of the ancient ones. Belgium is a great example of it: people from germanic and latin cultures living together in peace is something wonderful, even if sometimes difficult. That is not the case for most of Muslims, who strongly defend their own values without wanting to know more about the others’. That kind of behavior is often considered as narrowness of mind and is vividly criticized by those who think that you have to adapt to the place you go to and live in, not the contrary. 

Of course, all those things I spoke about in this post are the thoughts of many people, but not of everybody. I am sure there are citizens of the United States and of the world that are not against the building of that mosque near Ground Zero, people that are aware that Muslim is not synonym of terrorist, and that giving Muslim a place to pray will calm down the anger instead of amplifying it.

Let's imagine all the people living life in peace...

Harmony Lumeau

Sources:

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/113747-poll-public-strongly-opposes-ground-zero-mosque-

http://www.bonkersworld.net/the-ground-zero-mosque/

http://www.cracked.com/blog/3-reasons-the-ground-zero-mosque-debate-makes-no-sense/

If you're going to San Francisco... ♫

If I were to move to the USA, I would certainly go to San Francisco...

First of  all, because the weather is quite great: real seasons, not like in Belgium where it is rainy everyday of the year. There, they have chilly winters and quite hot summers, and spring and autumn are like they should be: with blossoming trees for one and crispy red leaves for the other.

Then, the sea and the beach are within reach, and it should be very funny to go there and surf after class ends. Living by the shore must be something invigorating, breathing everyday iodine from the sea. Moreover, this panorama must provide kind of an energy, a motivation to inhabitants, compared with the grayness of Belgium that often makes us grumpy... Not seeing anything but grey buildings makes me sad at times.

Also, I have to say that I grew up with an image of the USA, and specifically of California, as a place where teenagers and young people are having fun all the time, going to big, awesome parties, with thin, tanned and blonde girls and surfer boys... Tough I know this kind of representation is a huge cliché I have to admit that it was, and still is, one of my "american dream". To live my teenage years there would have been fabulous, and I still hope that I will have the opportunity to go there before turning 30 to make up for lost time!

As far as jobs are concerned, I'm really looking forward to be working as an interpreter or a translator, but I know there are quite a lot of nature reserves there, and as nature and ecology are two of my biggest passions, I think that, if I were to move to the USA, I might be looking for a job in this section.

So, I know there are a lot of things I still don't know about the USA and its culture; stereotypes to dismantle and regions to learn about, but still, I think that I would absolutely love to go live there, even if it is not "party all the time"...

Harmony Lumeau