Comment & Debate
President Barack Obama said in a January 2009 statement to the Stars and Strips military newspaper, “The key test for military service should be patriotism, a sense of duty, and a willingness to serve [,not sexual orientation].”[1]
David Saranga, a former IDF officer and now Israel’s consul for media and public affairs in New York said about the effect gays in the military have on military efficacy, “It’s a non-issue… You can be a very good officer, a creative one, a brave one and be gay at the same time.”[2]
A white female US military officer said, according to “Gays and lesbians in the military”: “I feel as long as they can perform the jobs required of them, they should be allowed in the military. What goes on behind closed doors is none of the military’s business. As long as gays and lesbians keep their private lives out of the workplace, I foresee no problems.”[3]
A black female officer suggested was reported saying in “Gays and Lesbians in the Military”: “This Army would be far more technically and tactically proficient if people were judged solely on their job performance and not on the color of their skin, their gender, or their sexual preference.”
[4]