At the Intersection of Reality and Madness, the story of Jenne Newsome sees some light today in the wake of Gen. David Petraeus recommending repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.
Yesterday, four-star Army General David Petraeus told a Senate panel that “the time has come” for the military to rethink its stance on gays in the military. Good to hear that the time has finally come and if I had the chance to ask, I’d like to know what the hell took so long. Or more specifically, why is it still even an issue when the president has the power by executive order to have it repealed. I mean, we are at war on two fronts, no? Doesn’t the Commander in Chief have the power of executive order to put an end to this?
Of course Petraeus’ line could be seen as just lip service until further action; which can be quite frustrating for opponents and activists against the current policy. Especially the men and women who have served their country only to be kicked to the curb as a result of being outed.
We move into the unusual story of Newsome, who wasn’t asked, and didn’t tell. She was still kicked out anyway. Why, because the local po po saw her marriage certificate. What did they do? They took the information and told the local army base.
Rippa is livid.
So lemme get this right: they took a peek in her window and saw her marriage license? Um, and they were able to call the base and relay this information which subsequently lead to her dismissal? I don’t know about you, but that just doesn’t seem right to me. What it is, is an invasion of privacy, plain and simple. Hopefully the complaint she has filed against the police department in conjunction with the ACLU goes somewhere because this just doesn’t seem right. Newsome is of the opinion that the cops did what they did in retaliation for her refusal to come to her home to assist them in the apprehension of her partner.