Comments on: Gay troops challenge DOMA in federal lawsuit http://www.washingtonblade.com/2011/10/27/gay-troops-challenge-doma-in-federal-lawsuit/ the gay community's news source Wed, 19 Jun 2013 16:16:43 +0000 hourly 1 By: Ned Flaherty http://www.washingtonblade.com/2011/10/27/gay-troops-challenge-doma-in-federal-lawsuit/#comment-37855 Ned Flaherty Sun, 30 Oct 2011 05:44:50 +0000 http://www.washingtonblade.com/?p=30773#comment-37855 Military personnel with same-sex spouses lose up to 40% of their rightful pay/benefits ($250,000 over a career) just becuase of DOMA. Those 275 active/reserve duty benefits, plus 93 veteran benefits, have a huge impact.

SLDN is pursuing a full, complete solution by overturning, for once and for all, the DOM Act.

Yes, DoD might be able to make some interim, compromise effort in the meantime, but — as we’ve seen many times before — there’s a tiny but vocal minority of Republican Congress members who scream bloody murder whenever LGBT people start getting fair tretment. DoD was right in allowing same-sex weddings in on-base chapels, but that didn’t stop Congressional homophobes from causing a 6-month tabloid-based battle about federal law, taxpayer dollars, religious liberty, gay germs in Christian churches, what-will-the-kids-think, etcetera.

If DoD tried what you suggest, there would be a long string of separate, ridiculous mini-controversies over that would drag on as many years as the lawsuit. It’s simpler, clearer, and more permanent to resolve this the way SLDN is doing it, for once and for all.

If you have any doubt about the difficulties Republicans would raise at every step of the way, look at this side-by-side comparison of the 12 presidential candidates, and their plans for equal military pay, DOMA repeal, DADT reinstatement, and related issues affecting 31 million LGBT Americans: http://www.marriageequality.org/Election2012.

]]> By: Michael Bedwell http://www.washingtonblade.com/2011/10/27/gay-troops-challenge-doma-in-federal-lawsuit/#comment-37709 Michael Bedwell Thu, 27 Oct 2011 17:19:44 +0000 http://www.washingtonblade.com/?p=30773#comment-37709 While applauding this lawsuit, we fail to understand while SLDN yet again paints over reality with a disingenuous broad brush. Their press release unequivocally states that federal law prevents gay military couples from having access to military “housing,” when, in fact, as the Pentagon itself acknowledged in their November 2010 “study” report, only the financial stipend for NON-military housing [typically referred to as “off-base”], called the “Basic Allowance for Housing” at the “with dependent rate” is affected because the definitions of “dependent” trigger DOMA. However, NOTHING prevents gay couples from being allowed to live in “military family housing” [as they do in Great Britain and Australia] but arbitrary Pentagon policy that could be changed NOW with a stroke of the proverbial pen. Definitions of eligibility for this housing do NOT trigger DOMA but the Pentagon has admitted they CHOSE to deny access for a variety of “reasons” that fail to disguise the actual one—homophobia on their part on that of straight couples living in military housing that might object. From the Pentagon report, emphasis theirs:

“For benefits such as these, the Department of Defense COULD legally direct the Services to
revise their regulations to extend coverage to Service members’ same-sex partners. This could
be accomplished in two ways: leave to the Service member the freedom to designate his or
her ‘dependents’, ‘family members’, or similar term; or, revise these definitions to specifically
mention a committed, same-sex relationship, and require some type of proof of that committed
relationship. The latter is similar to the approach now being taken in Federal agencies for civilian
employees.”

Why is SLDN not investing as much energy in pressuring the Commander-in-Chief to order the immediate change of this arbitrary policy as they are this lawsuit which will take YEARS in court?

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