A bill to end the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy was defeated in the Senate.
Senate Republicans on Thursday blocked the legislation, which would have lifted the military's 17-year-old ban on openly gay troops. The measure was tucked into a broader defense policy bill and had passed the House last spring.
It failed in a 57-40 test vote, falling three votes short of the 60 needed to advance.
Check out Steve Chapman's "Up From Homophobia" up at Reason.com. It's a great piece about how he overcame his own homophobia by (gasp!) simply getting to know people who happen to be gay.
Familiarity, in this case, doesn't breed contempt. It breeds acceptance. Heterosexuals have always lived and worked with gays, but without knowing it. Once they find out, most learn they have more similarities than differences.
If the military's ban on open gays is repealed, a lot of people in uniform will soon come to the same realization. Many already have. The Pentagon's new report on "don't ask, don't tell" says that when it surveyed military personnel, two out of three said they've served alongside colleagues they believed to be gay.
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