Why transform the best military in the world into a social experiment?

If the ban on openly homosexual people in the US military is overturned, it will have a catastrophic effect on military morale, unit cohesion, recruitment, retention and readiness. When I was in the Air Force, I would have been disgusted to have to shower with or sleep with men who were sexually attracted to me. In fact, the possibility would have kept me from signing up in the first place, and I don't doubt that hundreds of thousands of potential recruits would turn away from participating in such a military.

President Obama is determined to overturn the ban on open homosexual service before a survey of rank and file members of the military is completed on December 1. Here is what the heads of the four military services think about that:

* "I...believe that repealing the law before the completion of the review will be seen by the men and women of the Army as a reversal of our commitment to hear their views before moving forward." ~ George V. Casey Jr., General, United States Army

* "[T]he value of surveying the thoughts of Marines and their families is that it signals to my Marines that their opinions matter." ~ Gen. James T. Conway, Commandant of the Marine Corps

* "My concern is that legislative changes at this point, regardless of the precise language used, may cause confusion on the status of the law in the Fleet and disrupt the review process itself by leading Sailors to question whether their input matters." ~ G. Roughead, Admiral, U.S. Navy

* "I believe it is important...that the Secretary of Defense commissioned review be completed before there is any legislation to repeal the DA/DT law. Such action allows me to provide the best military advice to the President, and sends an important signal to our Airmen and their families that their opinion matters." ~ Norton A. Schwartz, General, United States Air Force

Bear in mind that these officers are putting their careers in jeopardy, opposing their Commander-in-Chief, yet their convictions are strong enough to compel them to speak out.