[Drew68]

This isn’t really about a groundswell of interest by gay people to serve the country,

I would amend gay "people" to gay "males". It is my unscientific observation as a current active duty Sailor in the USN that the overwhelming majority of gays serving today are female. I don't see gay men as finding the rigors of military service to be particularly attractive. Lesbians, on the other hand, tend to find the masculinity of military culture comfortable.

This whole debate over DADT has been centered around prancing, lisping "queens" turning our military into a haven for effeminate gay males while in reality, females are most affected by any policy regarding gays in the military. And while there are certainly gay males serving in the military, I know, I've served with some, there's a lot more lesbians.

[CharlesWayneCT]

I wonder if the strong opposition to gays in the military would be seen if all we were talking about was lesbians.

After all, there’s little chance that a lesbian is going to have sex with our military men; there was actually more “impact” I would think with a heterosexuai female in that regard.

Plus, it seems the offensive sex act which causes the most medical issues, is a male act.

[OldGoatCPO]

You are correct, gay males tend to remain more circumspect, they will lose the respect of their peers or their troops. Gay males are less likely to be mentored and we know how important a mentor is in the military, at least the Navy. Most of the real issues centered around gay females. That will get worse, while the males will really have to be careful about coming out openly. Despite the corrupted poll, most junior officers and men will not respect a gay leader.