Sestak wrote a commentary in the Philly Inquirer calling for the repeal of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell”.

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/opinion/20090713__Don_t_ask__don_t_tell__must_go.html

He’s pretty much on point. However, whether or not it should have been enacted is a trickier question. In 1993, discrimination against gays was much more tolerated and ignorance was high. At the time, something like 70% of the military was against gays serving. Since then, that number has reversed. The majority of servicemen accept gays and realizing the error of a policy crafted when they were toddlers (and had no say).

While the policy is more than just flawed, it was probably the best that could have been done at the time. It has allowed many gays to serve without a witch-hunt trying to root them out. Some commanders have probably used it as an excuse to avoid “asking” so they could keep valuable soldiers whose private life was inadvertently revealed. I’m sure in many units, who was gay/straight was an open secret.

Had Gore or Kerry been elected, the policy would have overturned already.

Sestak is on the right side of this issue, and I this would be a good use of his military “street cred”.

As a Philadelphian, and a mammal with opposable thumbs, I’m embarrassed by some of the anti-gay bigotry in the comments on the Philly Inquirer online site in response to Joe’s commentary.