Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Translate

Army Lieutenant Dan Choi will be in military court today, facing trial for "moral and professional dereliction" under the military's Don't Ask, Don't Tell (DADT) policy. In case you can't figure it out, his "moral and professional dereliction" is being openly gay.

Lieutenant Choi will likely be found guilty, and be dishonorably discharged from the United States Army. In other words, he will be fired for being gay.

So, who will the Army ... and ultimately we Americans ... be losing?

Lieut. Cho is a West Point graduate, an Iraq combat veteran, and fluent in Arabic. It's that last point that is quite critical, considering that the United States is currently involved in several wars in countries were Arabic is spoken.

To quote New Jersey Assemblyman Rush Holt from his May 8th piece, "Choi is an Arabic linguist--exactly the kind of critically-skilled soldier and leader his infantry platoon needs if they deploy to a country in which Arabic is the common language. Bluntly stated, his dismissal from the military--and the dismissal of other gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered (LGBT) servicemembers--will put lives at risk."

DADT becomes even more disgusting when you look at the numbers. Since President Obama took office, 272 servicemembers have been discharged under DADT. The Servicemembers Legal Defense Network highlights the statistics: 12,342 discharged between 1994 and 2007. For being gay. Men and women who are willing to die for this country. Over 50 of these Americans are fluent in Arabic, equating to a huge skill loss.

The good news is that DADT is getting more negative attention since President Obama took office. We already discussed our disappointment with President Obama on this matter, but it's refreshing to know that members of Congress are beginning to take the repeal of this policy to heart. Nearly one hundred members of congress have signed a letter in support of repealing the policy; polls show that the majority of Americans are fine with openly gay people serving for this country; polls and studies show that members of the military, including those of high rank, support the repealing of this policy.

There are moments in our history that we look back and laugh at ... take Prohibition. What a failed experiment! We feel certain that in a few years we, too, will look back at DADT and judge it for what it is: a ridiculous policy, that at its very root is unamerican and unconstitutional -- a failed experiment!

Congress, get busy. Now.

Before we lose more brave Americans like Lieut. Choi.