Remember the Gaypocalypse that swept away US military capability once the end of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell allowed the pink hordes to overrun our defenses?
Me either.
Hence, this fine news (via GOS):
Army reserve officer Tammy Smith calls her recent promotion to brigadier general exciting and humbling, saying it gives her a chance to be a leader in advancing Army values and excellence.
What she glosses over is that along with the promotion she is also publicly acknowledging her sexuality for the first time, making her the first general officer to come out as gay while still serving. It comes less than a year after the end of the controversial “don’t ask, don’t tell” law.
“All of those facts are irrelevant,” she said. “I don’t think I need to be focused on that. What is relevant is upholding Army values and the responsibility this carries.”
But Smith’s pinning ceremony on Friday marks an important milestone for gay rights advocates, giving the movement its most senior public military figure. She has already been assigned as deputy chief at the Office of the Chief at the Army Reserve, and spent much of 2011 serving in Afghanistan.
Congratulations to General Smith, and to the institution that has made this civil rights step pass so smoothly that this news is mostly an afterthought.
Also:
Stars and Stripes interviewed Smith last summer before the “don’t ask, don’t tell” repeal was finalized. Speaking under a pseudonym, she said she had no plans to come out to her colleagues, but was looking forward to the relief of knowing that her career wouldn’t be threatened if she was found out.
“Finally my partner and I will be able to go out and have drinks together without worrying,” she said then.
Imagine! The nerve of those gay folks! Presuming to hope for a stress-free evening with one’s family. Clearly the reckoning must be upon us.
Image: Jan Steen, Tavern Garden, c. 1660
lamh35
Anyone catch Joe Biden this morning. I heard he was on fire as usual. No surprise Joe has this blue-collar thing down. Ryan vs Joe, no contest
prufrock
My lesbian sister has been in the Air Force for eighteen years. Repeal of DADT removed a huge burden from her shoulders.
On that basis alone, I vote for Obama without reservation.
Violet
This is indeed excellent news. I wonder if Republicans will boo her in public, like they did that gay soldier who asked a question during one of their debates.
Scott S.
“Just words.”
Face
I’d love to see the Phelps clan try to protest this pinning ceremony. Of course they dont have the stones to shove technicolor bigotry into the face of well-trained GIs. But it would be fun to watch them try, and likely pick up pieces of their bodies off the ground.
Bulworth
Have no fear. President RomneyRyan will repeal the DADT repeal so that FREEDOM!! //
Violet
In other military-related news, did anyone see that nine Nobel Peace Prize winners are pressing NBC to cancel the reallity show “Stars Earn Stripes”–you know, the show Todd Palin is on.
Redshift
OT: via TPM,, McCain has finally spoken out about Romney’s tax returns, and it’s the same kind of weird non-denial that Mitt himself has made:
How convenient, another statement that is technically true even if Reid’s allegation is also true. But what about federal income taxes, Senator, which is what the allegation is actually about?
I find it morbidly amusing that this lie is the mirror image of the standard conservative lie about the percentage of people who “don’t pay taxes.”
mk3872
Any reference to Lennon’s “Beautiful Boy” makes me wanna cry. It’s not supposed to be a sad song, but now that I have a young boy, I sing him this song at night and think about the despair of him losing his father like Sean did.
Michael G
We’re coming up on a year since DADT was repealed. For all the bluster about this thing, has there even been a single problem? I did a quick search, and I can’t find anything. (I expected at least some made-up Breitbartesque manufactured story, but not even that.)
Because otherwise if this was a just universe all those jackasses who were against the repeal would be seen as idiots now.
John M. Burt
When I was in the Navy, I saw an officer approaching, and my mind scanned her as she drew near: “Officer…Captain…Captain of the Line (i.e., not a lawyer or nurse, but a “real” officer)” It occurred to me that she must have been one of the first women ever commissioned as a Line Officer, which meant she was a woman of conspicuous accomplishments. I gave her a very smart salute.
I wish I had the opportunity to salute General Smith literally, as well as figuratively here and now.
NancyDarling
And yet. On an AR blog I read, a veteran posted this.
FWIW, he got very heavy push back. But then it is a liberal blog. Some days I despair of the South.
RoonieRoo
This story made me tear up and also makes me intensely proud of our military.
WereBear
That is so touching.
I am beyond proud that we have a woman general. The fact that she’s a lesbian is awesome, too.
elmo
@John M. Burt:
Out of curiosity, how could you tell that she was a line officer instead of JAG or medical?
NonyNony
@Face:
From the sound of this, I’d assume that you don’t know that the Phelps clan also protests the funerals of soldiers. not gay soldiers, just dead soldiers. Because God Hates America or because their “get hit, file a lawsuit, get paid” business model wasn’t working when they were protesting just “teh gayz” take your pick.
The Phelps clan is hated by everyone. Which is fine because they hate everyone too. Their basic theology is “God Hates Everyone”, though he apparently hates the Westboro Baptist Church slightly less than he hates everyone else.
I hope the Phelps clan stays away for her sake – she deserves the quiet ceremony that most folks get if that’s what she wants (and it sounds like it is).
LanceThruster
When society makes progress such as this, it reminds me of the quote from Kurt Vonnegut’s “Timequake.”
“You were sick, but now you’re well, and there’s work to do.”
Way to go, General Smith!
There’s work to do.
AxelFoley
Wait, we were told by the likes of Dan Choi that President Obama was going about the repeal of DADT the wrong way!
scav
To General Smith, Partner and all: Cheers and Sláinte!
Cassidy
@elmo: Back in the day, Officers in all the Services wore rank on one lapel and their branch affiliation on the other and rank on their hat. I can’t speak for the other services now, but the Army moved to the rank in the middle of the chest, which really sucks for a guy if you’re trying to figure out a females rank, the rnak on the hat, and no branch affiliation.
I read this a few days ago and am really proud of my Army. Hooah.
@Violet: Those commercials disgusted me.
Speaking of disgust, wasn’t Choi supposed to go back in?
Kane
Does this mean we have to go through another one of Mike Huckabee’s public craving for a chicken sandwich?
Mike in NC
@elmo:
Line officers wear a gold embroidered star above their rank stripes. Non-line or staff officers (lawyers, doctors, dentists, etc.) wear distinctive branch insignia indicating their specialty.
RaflW
It is pretty amazing how now that DADT is gone, the Repubs have, for the most part, STFU.
Now, the GOP still has the absurd platform plank of opposing DADT and the “homosexualizing” of the military. I cannot even really imagine what that means. Pink caps and accessories for the guys?* High-heel Fridays? Saying “hey girlfriend” instead of “yes, sir!”?
Its such utter bullshit and rampant homo-hatred. (Homophobia means fear, these people are jerks and haters).
*(Yes, I’m stereotyping my clan – for silliness sake)
Marilyn Merlot
Now we can get back to the important business of killing Middle Easterners.
LanceThruster
@Marilyn Merlot:
And we civilians must get back to the business of bringing the troops home so they can stop being cannon fodder for imperialist adventures in the name of national security.
elmo
Cassidy and Mike: Thanks!
John M. Burt
@elmo: Navy line officers wear a five-pointed star next to their gold bands, rather than any of the “specialty” emblems: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Navy_officer_rank_insignia
gbear
I went to Wendy’s for lunch today and I was wearing my ‘I Voted’ sticker from voting in the primaries this morning. The woman behind the counter had no idea that there was an election today but, out of the blue, she told me that she’s really looking forward to voting in November so she can vote to support gay marriage in Minnesota. I had to talk with her for a while to get her to realize that she had to vote ‘no’ if she supported gay marriage, but I thought it was cool that this is the issue that is motivating her more than anything else.
elmo
@John M. Burt:
Oh, neat. Thanks for the link. Shame on me, as a Navy brat I should know this. My Dad retired after 19.5 years as an E-7 CPO. He used to joke that he made E-5 three times: twice from the bottom and once from the top.
Ivan Ivanovich Renko
@elmo: She was wearing a white beret.
peorgietirebiter
@NancyDarling This is the most disgusting event in the proud history of the U.S. Army since the
Mai Lai massacreTuskegee Airmen were permitted to protect white bomber pilots.Chief Warrant Officer, U.S. Army retired (and damn glad of it) p.s. keep gov’t hands off my veteran benefits.
The Bobs
@John M. Burt: As a former line officer, I salute you, sir.