So how's this for an idea?
Operation CHOI: Chained Honor, Obligation, and Integrity.
U.S. Army Lieutenant Dan Choi and U.S. Army Captain Jim Pietrangelo were recently arrested for chaining themselves to the White House fence in protest against DADT.
The Secret Service went nuts.
What if thousands of U.S. military service personnel, active duty and veterans, did the exact same thing -- chain themselves to the WH fence -- all at once, for the exact same reason?
Think we'd get the Administration's attention?
I bet we would. This would be a massive action of civil disobedience they could not ignore. It would be right there in the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King.
Now I must admit, because I live in California and have no resources to put this thing together, let alone travel to Washington myself, someone else would have to step up to the plate and organize this.
But think about it: hundreds or perhaps thousands of U.S. military members all willing to go to jail in protest against a policy that damages U.S. military readiness and security. Picture it: bodies upon bodies, all of them with military service, chained to the WH fence. If the Secret Service can scarcely handle two such persons, what are they going to do if it's hundreds or thousands? I think the picture is clear.
Rule: This must be a peaceful, absolutely non-violent protest, an act of mass civil disobedience.
Rule: If you are going to chain yourself to the fence, you must have U.S. military credentials; either your military I.D. or a copy of your DD-214.
Rule: You must not be wearing your uniform. Remember, if you are on active duty you are wearing your uniform regardless of what clothes you are dressed in. If you are a veteran, you've earned the right to wear your uniform as civilian dress.
The time has come, nay, long passed, to eliminate DADT. This is my idea of one way that might help make it happen.
P.S.: I am a U.S. Navy veteran (1979-1985), straight male, and I served alongside my gay shipmates, and I never for one minute questioned their ability to serve. The only thing I cared about was whether they could do their job.
All comments welcome.