SAN FRANCISCO - The San Francisco Board of Education is considering expelling the military's Junior ROTC program from the city's high schools because of the Pentagon's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy regarding gay service members.
A resolution introduced Tuesday by the board's only gay member would end the city's relationship with the JROTC by the 2007-2008 academic year, arguing that the military's ban on openly gay soldiers violates the school district's equal rights policy for gays.
Keep in mind how "progressive" and "tolerant" they consider themselves in San Francisco. It's not like I haven't written about it before.
I like EdWonk's suggestion:
Why not let the students themselves decide whether or not any particular school site has a Jr. ROTC program? If the kids don't want to participate , they won't sign up for it. After all, Jr. ROTC is an elective, not a requirement.
Allow the kids to continue to have Freedom of Choice. It's the American way.
What about the parents? Don't they have to approve their students' joining JROTC? And what about this, which I wrote back in November:
I don't understand the view that says that children are old enough, intelligent enough, and mature enough to make decisions about abortions without consulting their parents (Prop 73 passed 79-21 in San Francisco City and County), but they are not smart or strong enough to resist even the message from a recruiter who asks them to volunteer for something--and those under 18 have to get parental permission! Apparently the siren call of the military is so strong that the only way to keep their children from heeding its call is to silence that call! It doesn't say much for the foundational beliefs of The Annointed Ones of the Bay that they fear the message so much that they think a single recruiter can destroy in a couple hours the house of cards, the belief structure, it took them 18 years to build.
If "don't ask, don't tell" (a policy promulgated by a Democrat/liberal/"progressive" President) were to go away tomorrow, I wonder what excuse the San Franciskookies*** would give for wanting JROTC to go away.
***I think I should trademark that term.
4 comments:
President Clinton campaigned in 1992 stating that he would lift the ban on gays in the military. I am sure that was his intent and the military all but revolted.
Don't ask, don't tell was a compromise. The gay community didn't like it then or now, but it helped defuse the situation for a while. Republicans forget this now, but at the time, President Clinton took quite a bit of flak from the gay community for not going further.
You are right about one thing. There is so much animosity on both sides that even if the ban was lifted tomorrow, I doubt that there would be any type of reconciliation for at least 20 years.
I really wish super-liberals like this would try running for their city councils, or state legislatures, or Congress, or anything. But please, stay off the school boards. Just the fact that this resolution was introduced is one more thing that leads people to believe that public education is being taken over by crackpots. It is something we definitely don't need.
Two words: Solomon Amendment.
And yes, you should trademark the term.
Anonymous: while I agree with most of what yous said, I must vehemently disagree with your statement that the military "all but revolted". While there are plenty in the military who would not have welcomed the situation, there would have been nothing *near* a revolt. We are *not* a banana republic.
Was there a near revolt when Clinton, who was not all that well-liked by military types, was reelected? Of course not. Again, we are *not* a banana republic.
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