COLUMN: "The Argument Continues"

From Jonathan Steinmetz's "Taking the Long Way Home," Fall '92 This year the tradition remained intact. Once we all stated what we were thankful for -- and realized that the Cowboys were far superior to the Giants -- we didn't have much else to do except prepare ourselves for "The Argument." This is never really a planned tradition, it always just sort of happens. And it's not really an argument, it's what intellectuals like to call a "discussion," in order to avoid connotations of tempers raging, fingers pointing and pots and pans whizzing across the room. This year, the argument focused on whether gays should be allowed in the military. I am sure this topic was not restricted to our family's Thanksgiving, as the media coverage of this issue, along with the passionate feelings on both sides, made this a common discussion during Thanksgiving meals around the nation. The opinions at my table ranged from my grandmother, a liberal and defender of all rights, to her friend, an ex-soldier and defender of the military's old ways. It was a particularly interesting topic in my family this year. This summer, we awoke one morning to see a neighbor's picture plastered on the front page of the paper for being forced out of the military after he admitted to being homosexual. The fact that he had been my babysitter a few times when I was little made it all the more interesting to watch him on "Larry King Live." (And no, for you homophobes out there, the babysitter didn't "try" anything.) Personally, I am very ambivalent on this issue. I guess I am "waffling." Since I never served in the military, I don't know the real effects of this decision. But my point is, neither does Bill Clinton. The time may have come for the ban to be lifted, but many Americans -- myself included -- are having a difficult time stomaching Bill Clinton's opinions on an area he knows little about. Gays have been in the military for years. I have no problem accepting that a gay person can be as good a soldier as a straight person. There have been thousands of gay soldiers in the military, and I would be willing to bet that we have had more than a couple gay generals before. However, the military is a completely different operation than civilian life. It really does not matter if a computer programmer or a hairdresser is gay -- the fact that they are gay does not endanger anyone's life. In the military it could. Also, as Captain Harry Walters said, "In the civilian world you just work with your peers, but we live with them." Dave Frey, a Naval Reserve lieutenant from Chicago, pointed out that "You may be at sea for 90 days. If people are looking over their shoulder wondering, 'What is the other person in the berth or shower thinking about me?' the potential for problems is great." Rightly or wrongly, many straight men are uneasy living around gay men. If a man admits to being gay in the military, the other soldiers may not think of him as just another guy. It could become divisive, and bring about tension which would lower morale. Should the fact a man is gay make a difference? The answer is no, it shouldn't. But, the question we need to be asking is, will it make a difference? Because we are not living in a perfect world where prejudice and homophobia don't exist. I think that when Clinton made the promise to reverse the ban, he realized that there was the potential that in a close election, the homosexual vote could turn the tide. Clinton was wrong to make his promise, just like George Bush was dead wrong in making his 1988 campaign promise not to increase taxes when every leading economist knew that there was no way to keep the deficit under control without raising taxes. How in the world can Bill Clinton know the effects this decision will have without having served in the military? Not all, but a vast majority of military "superstars" -- including Colin Powell and Norman Schwarzkopf -- think this is a bad idea. My intuition is that they know a little bit more about what will work in the military than Bill Clinton does. And at least George Bush had taken Economics before. Jonathan Steinmetz is a Wharton sophopmore from West Palm Beach, Florida. "Taking the Long Way Home" appeared alternate Fridays.