John McCain Flip-Flops on Don't Ask, Don't Tell Policy -- He Now Opposes President, Military Leadership and Colin Powell

In the war over "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the battle lines have been drawn: It's Republicans vs. the military. And John McCain vs. John McCain.

Admiral Mike Mullen and Defense Secretary Robert Gates gave game-changing testimony to Congress last week. They both strongly support President Obama's effort to repeal DADT.




That isn't stopping recalcitrant Republicans like John McCain from flip-flopping on the stance he took in 2006 to follow the lead of our nation's top military brass on DADT.






Here's what John McCain said back in October 2006 on MSNBC's "Hardball":

"I listen to people like General Colin Powell, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and literally every military leader that I know... The day that the leadership of the military comes to me and says, Senator, we ought to change the policy, then I think we ought to consider seriously changing it because those leaders in the military are the ones we give the responsibility to."

Colin Powell -- the man who made DADT possible -- announced his opposition to this discriminatory policy, saying that "attitudes and circumstances have changed."







Again, we see the hypocrisy of John McCain. I remain grateful to the American people for ensuring that McCain/Palin were defeated in the 2008 presidential election. Having those two in the White House would be scary.

Miltiary Lawyers Seek to Delay Repeal of Ban on Openly Gay Military Service

This blog joined many other villagers to ask Congress to overturn the Don't Ask, Don't Tell (DADT) policy enacted by Congress in 1993 calling for the discharge of openly gay, lesbian or bisexual service members, never really impacted me one way or the other.

As such, it disappointed us to read that lawyers for Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Adm. Mike Mullen "are recommending a delay of at least a year in beginning the process to repeal the ban on openly gay military service." [SOURCE]

“Now is not the time,” the in-house legal counsel for Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, wrote recently in a memorandum obtained by The Associated Press. “The importance of winning the wars we are in, along with the stress on the force, our body of knowledge and the number of unknowns, demand that we act with deliberation.”

Mullen and other Pentagon leaders have quietly begun a new push to build consensus for the timing of a repeal that Mullen and others assume will come eventually. Strong opposition to swift repeal remains among top uniformed military leaders.

Mullen was unable to get the full backing of other senior uniformed leaders during an unusual meeting of the top officers from each branch of the military last week, U.S. officials said. He is expected to hold a follow-up session within days.

Mullen and other military leaders cautioned last year that repeal of the law must be done carefully so as not to disrupt military cohesion in wartime. Last April, Defense Secretary Robert Gates indicated the process could take years — if it ever happens.

At the time, Gates noted that it took five years for the U.S. military to racially integrate during the Truman administration.

“If we do it, it’s imperative that we do it right and very carefully,” Gates said then.

However, other Pentagon advisers "argue that lifting the ban would not cause unmanageable problems or divisions among the uniformed military."

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Villager's Voice: I'm never served in the military. I'm not gay. However, I have an opinion on this matter. It is my opinion that we already have gay people in the military. They serve with honor. They should not have to deny or hide in order to obey a DADT policy that is outdated and unnecessary.

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What say u?

Victory: Scholastic Reverses Decision to Exclude Gay Friendly Book from Fairs

Scholastic Books responded to the petition, signed by many villagers, criticizing the company for excluding a book from their popular books fairs simply because one of the characters had two lesbian mothers. Scholastic has reversed their decision to exclude the Lauren Myracle's book, Luv Ya Bunches, and has released a statement affirming the dignity of gay and lesbian parents.

We received the following message from Scholastic Books:

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Dear Electronic Villager,

Scholastic has been helping kids learn to love to read for almost 90 years. Scholastic does not censor books. The selection of books we carry in our book clubs and book fairs is the result of a careful review of thousands of titles each year, and we are committed to a review process that considers all books equally regardless of their inclusion of LGBT characters and same sex parents.

Scholastic is already supporting Luv Ya Bunches by Lauren Myracle. This book is featured prominently on both the student and teacher covers of our December 2009 Arrow Scholastic Book Clubs catalogs which are already printed and are in schools right now. On October 16 we also recorded a Book Talk Editors' Choice Video which features Luv Ya Bunches.

Scholastic editors recognize Milla's two moms as a positive and realistic aspect of the story. We offer other books with same sex couples and gay and lesbian characters in Book Clubs and Book Fairs including The Name of This Book is Secret and The Misfits, as well as the upcoming After Tupac and D Foster by Jacqueline Woodson, and others. Scholastic provides books that will appeal to the wide range of interests and reading abilities of children in the many diverse cultures and communities we serve. Luv Ya Bunches helps us fulfill our mission to do that.

In an interview with School Library Journal, Scholastic stated that we are currently carrying Luv Ya Bunches by Lauren Myracle in our school book clubs. We also said we were still reviewing the book for possible inclusion in our book fairs. Having completed our review of Luv Ya Bunches, Scholastic Book Fairs will carry the title in our spring fairs for middle schools.

Thank you for taking the time to express your opinion. Scholastic is very proud of its long history of helping children learn to love to read. We look forward to continuing to bring the best in children's literature to communities across the country and around the world as Scholastic has done for nearly 90 years.

Sincerely,
Kyle Good
Vice President, Scholastic Inc.

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Scholastic Books is one of the largest educational publishing outfits in the country, and this sends a clear message to children and parents everywhere that there's absolutely nothing wrong with two men or two women raising a child.

As Lauren Myracle herself said at the height of this controversy, "Over 200,000 kids in America are raised by same-sex parents... It's not an issue to clean up or hide away." That's the message we sent by signing this petition, and Scholastic Books heard us loud and clear.

Why Would Scholastic Book Fairs Ban Books With Same-Sex Parents in Them?

I was disappointed to learn that Scholastic, one of the largest education publishers in the world with broad influence over the reading materials of children everywhere, began down a path of homophobic censorship.

The publisher is censoring a book that depicts a girl character with two moms because they consider it inappropriate for children, preventing it from appearing in its Scholastic Book Fairs. By censoring the book, Scholastic is sending the discriminatory and harmful message to children everywhere that same-sex relationships and gay/lesbian parents are wrong and should be hidden from sight.



This is exactly the opposite of the message of tolerance we should be sending to children.

I encourage villagers to offer a hand in fighting prejudice, let Scholastic know that you think they should stop censoring gay-friendly books immediately.

NAACP Challenges Prop 8 in California Supreme Court

I see that the NAACP continues showing signs of relevance. I must admit that I have been very pleased with the activities of the organization since Ben Jealous took over last year.

Earlier this week the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund(LDF) filed a friend of the court brief challenging California's Proposition 8 on the grounds that the basic rights of a minority group cannot be taken away by a simple majority. LDF joined other civil rights groups, the Asian American Pacific Legal Center, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Equal Justice Society, and the California NAACP in calling for the invalidation of Prop 8.

"It is imperative that the Supreme Court of California recognize that by allowing Prop 8 to take effect, it is setting a dangerous precedent that allows a bare majority to strip minority groups of their fundamental rights. We are joining this challenge to ensure that the rights of all minority groups are being protected," said John Payton, LDF President and Director-Counsel.

The California Supreme Court recognized marriage as a fundamental right. To take away that right a constitutional revision requiring a two-thirds vote by the state legislature - and not just a simple majority vote - would be needed in order to bar same-sex marriage. If Prop 8 is allowed to stand the fundamental rights of all minority groups will be placed in jeopardy.

"Proposition 8 effects more than just the LGBT community. This decision will ultimately affect how the rights of all minority groups are treated in the state of California," said Anurima Bhargava, Director of LDF's Education Practice.

We haven't blogged much about the Prop 8 results in California. Do you have any thoughts or insights on the issue that you care to share?