Louisville Courier Journal Laments "[John] McCain's Perfidy", And I LAMENT The Paper's Comparison Of Homosexual Rights To Civil Rights Of Blacks.
McCain's perfidy
“Many white Americans (especially Southerners) responded with visceral revulsion to the idea of close physical contact with blacks. Many also perceived racial integration as a profound affront to their sense of social order.”
National Defense
Research Institute report, 1993
That's an assessment of the state of America in the late 1940s, when President Harry Truman by executive order integrated the armed forces of the United States. In 2010, it is impossible to think of any justification for a segregated military.
And so it is equally illogical now to offer justifications for retaining the military's “don't ask, don't tell” policy that blatantly discriminates against gay and lesbian Americans.
Yet that's just what Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., is doing. Challenging a Pentagon study showing overwhelming support for repeal, and dismissing the views of Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Sen. McCain threw back the same arguments segregationists used in the 1940s:
“We send these young people into combat. We think they're mature enough to fight and die. I think they're mature enough to make a judgment on who they want to serve with and the impact on their battle effectiveness.”
Mr. Gates politely responded by asking if Sen. McCain thought soldiers ought to be able to make a judgment on serving extra tours of duty, or if they want to be part of the surge in Iraq. Of course, they shouldn't.
Social change in America does not come smoothly. Court tests, demonstrations and public displays of inequity do, in time, lead to reform.
Four years ago, Sen. McCain was on the other side. He said that if the military brass came to him and said the policy should change, he would support that.
But he said that before he was blown away by Barack Obama in 2008 and challenged by the far right in his re-election battle last fall.
If Sen. McCain had not become such a complete toady to extremism and bigotry, one could feel sorry for him. He was a hero in the Vietnam War, enduring beatings and deprivation for years while in the Hanoi Hilton. And for years in the Senate, he stood for progress and change.
No longer. Some Americans have the courage to stand by their principles and become profiles in courage. Not John McCain in 2010.
Editor's comment: "McCain's perfidy" or not, I resent how some, including this paper, tries to equate the Black Civil Rights struggle to homosexual rights.
That is NOT the same, is WRONG NOT right (pun intended), and GREATLY offensive to me.
“Many white Americans (especially Southerners) responded with visceral revulsion to the idea of close physical contact with blacks. Many also perceived racial integration as a profound affront to their sense of social order.”
National Defense
Research Institute report, 1993
That's an assessment of the state of America in the late 1940s, when President Harry Truman by executive order integrated the armed forces of the United States. In 2010, it is impossible to think of any justification for a segregated military.
And so it is equally illogical now to offer justifications for retaining the military's “don't ask, don't tell” policy that blatantly discriminates against gay and lesbian Americans.
Yet that's just what Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., is doing. Challenging a Pentagon study showing overwhelming support for repeal, and dismissing the views of Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Sen. McCain threw back the same arguments segregationists used in the 1940s:
“We send these young people into combat. We think they're mature enough to fight and die. I think they're mature enough to make a judgment on who they want to serve with and the impact on their battle effectiveness.”
Mr. Gates politely responded by asking if Sen. McCain thought soldiers ought to be able to make a judgment on serving extra tours of duty, or if they want to be part of the surge in Iraq. Of course, they shouldn't.
Social change in America does not come smoothly. Court tests, demonstrations and public displays of inequity do, in time, lead to reform.
Four years ago, Sen. McCain was on the other side. He said that if the military brass came to him and said the policy should change, he would support that.
But he said that before he was blown away by Barack Obama in 2008 and challenged by the far right in his re-election battle last fall.
If Sen. McCain had not become such a complete toady to extremism and bigotry, one could feel sorry for him. He was a hero in the Vietnam War, enduring beatings and deprivation for years while in the Hanoi Hilton. And for years in the Senate, he stood for progress and change.
No longer. Some Americans have the courage to stand by their principles and become profiles in courage. Not John McCain in 2010.
Editor's comment: "McCain's perfidy" or not, I resent how some, including this paper, tries to equate the Black Civil Rights struggle to homosexual rights.
That is NOT the same, is WRONG NOT right (pun intended), and GREATLY offensive to me.
Labels: News reporting
posted by KYJurisDoctor at 11:55 AM
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