British military learns that openly serving gays are a huge "nonissue"

Allowing lesbians and gays to serve openly has strengthened the British military, The New York Times reports today. The Times talked about the experience of one squadron leader in the Royal Air Force.

Far from causing problems, he said, he found that coming out to his troops actually increased the unit’s strength and cohesion. He had felt uneasy keeping the secret “that their boss was a poof,” as he put it, from people he worked with so closely.

Since the British military began allowing homosexuals to serve in the armed forces in 2000, none of its fears — about harassment, discord, blackmail, bullying or an erosion of unit cohesion or military effectiveness — have come to pass, according to the Ministry of Defense, current and former members of the services and academics specializing in the military. The biggest news about the policy, they say, is that there is no news. It has for the most part become a nonissue.

The only problem appears to be a sensitivity to embarrassing us timid Americans who are still struggling with the unfair Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy.

And so it goes...