General regrets remarks on homosexuality
Pace says he focused too much on his own 'moral views,' won't apologize
NBC VIDEO
• Pace won’t apologize for anti-gay comments
March 13: Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Peter Pace issues a statement on his anti-gay comments, saying he should have focused more on military policy and less on his personal views. NBC's Patty Culhane reports.
MSNBC
var cssList = new Array();getCSS("3053751") Related Stories
| What's this?
• Top US general calls homosexuality immoral-report
• Anglicans Vote on Gay and Lesbian Issues
• Italy government split by gay rights divide
• Gay vets challenge ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’
MSNBC staff and news service reports
Updated: 1 hour, 45 minutes ago
function UpdateTimeStamp(pdt) { var n = document.getElementById("udtD"); if(pdt != '' && n && window.DateTime) { var dt = new DateTime(); pdt = dt.T2D(pdt); if(dt.GetTZ(pdt)) {n.innerHTML = dt.D2S(pdt,((''.toLowerCase()=='false')?false:true));} } } UpdateTimeStamp('633094148310530000');
WASHINGTON - The Pentagon's top general expressed regret Tuesday that he called homosexuality immoral, a remark that drew a harsh condemnation from members of Congress and gay advocacy groups.
In a newspaper interview Monday, Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, had likened homosexual acts to adultery and said the military should not condone it by allowing gays to serve openly in the armed forces.
In an interview with the Chicago Tribune, Pace was asked about the "don't ask, don't tell" policy that allows gays and lesbians to serve if they keep their sexual orientation private and don't engage in homosexual acts.
Pace said he supports the policy, which became law in 1994 and prohibits commanders from asking about a person's sexual orientation.
"I believe that homosexual acts between individuals are immoral and that we should not condone immoral acts," Pace said in the audio recording of the interview posted on the Tribune's Web site. "I do not believe that the armed forces of the United States are well served by a saying through our policies that it's OK to be immoral in any way."
Personal opinion
In a statement Tuesday, he said he should have focused more in the interview on the Defense Department policy about gays — and "less on my personal moral views."
He did not offer an apology, something that had been demanded by gay rights groups.
Pace's senior staff members said earlier that the general was expressing his personal opinion and did not intend to apologize. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to speak on the record.
On its Web site, the advocacy group Servicemembers Legal Defense Network called Pace's comments “outrageous, insensitive and disrespectful to the 65,000 lesbian and gay troops now serving in our armed forces.”
The group, which has represented some of the thousands dismissed from the military for their sexual orientation, demanded an apology.
Some lawmakers object
Others quickly expressed their feelings. In a written statement, Sen. John Warner, the former chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, expressed dissatisfaction with Pace's comments. "I respectfully but strongly disagree with the chairman's view that homosexuality is immoral," Warner's statement said.
Later Tuesday, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said she was “disappointed in the moral judgment” in Pace's comments.
Rep. Martin Meehan, who has introduced legislation to repeal the current policy, also criticized Pace's comments.
"General Pace's statements aren't in line with either the majority of the public or the military," said the Massachusetts Democrat. "He needs to recognize that support for overturning (the policy) is strong and growing" and that the military is "turning away good troops to enforce a costly policy of discrimination."
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17590518/
Why does this man still have his commission?????!!!!!!
Pace says he focused too much on his own 'moral views,' won't apologize
• Pace won’t apologize for anti-gay comments
March 13: Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Peter Pace issues a statement on his anti-gay comments, saying he should have focused more on military policy and less on his personal views. NBC's Patty Culhane reports.
MSNBC
var cssList = new Array();getCSS("3053751") Related Stories
| What's this?
• Top US general calls homosexuality immoral-report
• Anglicans Vote on Gay and Lesbian Issues
• Italy government split by gay rights divide
• Gay vets challenge ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’
MSNBC staff and news service reports
Updated: 1 hour, 45 minutes ago
function UpdateTimeStamp(pdt) { var n = document.getElementById("udtD"); if(pdt != '' && n && window.DateTime) { var dt = new DateTime(); pdt = dt.T2D(pdt); if(dt.GetTZ(pdt)) {n.innerHTML = dt.D2S(pdt,((''.toLowerCase()=='false')?false:true));} } } UpdateTimeStamp('633094148310530000');
WASHINGTON - The Pentagon's top general expressed regret Tuesday that he called homosexuality immoral, a remark that drew a harsh condemnation from members of Congress and gay advocacy groups.
In a newspaper interview Monday, Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, had likened homosexual acts to adultery and said the military should not condone it by allowing gays to serve openly in the armed forces.
In an interview with the Chicago Tribune, Pace was asked about the "don't ask, don't tell" policy that allows gays and lesbians to serve if they keep their sexual orientation private and don't engage in homosexual acts.
Pace said he supports the policy, which became law in 1994 and prohibits commanders from asking about a person's sexual orientation.
"I believe that homosexual acts between individuals are immoral and that we should not condone immoral acts," Pace said in the audio recording of the interview posted on the Tribune's Web site. "I do not believe that the armed forces of the United States are well served by a saying through our policies that it's OK to be immoral in any way."
Personal opinion
In a statement Tuesday, he said he should have focused more in the interview on the Defense Department policy about gays — and "less on my personal moral views."
He did not offer an apology, something that had been demanded by gay rights groups.
Pace's senior staff members said earlier that the general was expressing his personal opinion and did not intend to apologize. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to speak on the record.
On its Web site, the advocacy group Servicemembers Legal Defense Network called Pace's comments “outrageous, insensitive and disrespectful to the 65,000 lesbian and gay troops now serving in our armed forces.”
The group, which has represented some of the thousands dismissed from the military for their sexual orientation, demanded an apology.
Some lawmakers object
Others quickly expressed their feelings. In a written statement, Sen. John Warner, the former chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, expressed dissatisfaction with Pace's comments. "I respectfully but strongly disagree with the chairman's view that homosexuality is immoral," Warner's statement said.
Later Tuesday, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said she was “disappointed in the moral judgment” in Pace's comments.
Rep. Martin Meehan, who has introduced legislation to repeal the current policy, also criticized Pace's comments.
"General Pace's statements aren't in line with either the majority of the public or the military," said the Massachusetts Democrat. "He needs to recognize that support for overturning (the policy) is strong and growing" and that the military is "turning away good troops to enforce a costly policy of discrimination."
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17590518/
Why does this man still have his commission?????!!!!!!
). It just isn't the case.
