Below:
The US House of Representatives passed the 2012 Defense Appropriations bill last week. (The previously-passed Defense Authorization Act ‘authorizes’ the military, while the Appropriations Act funds it.) It included an amendment affecting funding for Chaplain training, intended to prohibit them from performing ‘homosexual marriage’ ceremonies in military chapels, regardless of state law. It was intended to ensure military policy remained Read more
Three US Marines at Camp Pendleton stand accused of entering sham marriages to obtain access to financial benefits. It all started when a homosexual Marine wanted to live with her girlfriend but “couldn’t afford it:”
[US Marine Corporal Ashley] Vice told CNN affiliate KGTV in San Diego that she wanted to live off base with her girlfriend, Jaime Murphy, as a couple. Murphy is a civilian.
But on her salary, she couldn’t afford it.
So she says she found a Marine, Jeremiah Griffin, who agreed to marry her so she could receive the $1,200 per month living stipend the Marine Corps gives to married couples living off base.
Her homosexual partner eventually married a third Marine, Joseph Garner, for the same reason. Vice has told the press the three will likely face jail time, since they are unable to pay back the funds they are accused of getting fraudulently.
Ultimately, the military’s response has nothing to do with homosexuality; Read more
Included below:
The recent controversy over the Navy’s apparent acceptance of homosexual marriages in base chapels (quickly reversed after Congressional disapproval) spurred a response by Chaplain endorsing agencies representing “over a thousand military chaplains.” The groups wrote a letter calling for conscience protections not only for Chaplains — but also for every servicemember:
When guidance…is forthcoming from senior leadership that implies protected status for those who engage in homosexual behavior and normalizes same-sex unions in base chapels, any outside observer would conclude that both homosexuality and homosexual unions officiated as marriages in base chapels are normative.
This creates an environment that is increasingly hostile to the many chaplains — and the service members they serve — whose faith groups and personal consciences recognize homosexual behavior as immoral and unsafe and do not permit same-sex unions.
For this reason, and particularly in light of the growing confusion regarding how DADT repeal will play out — indeed, we were told that issues like same-sex weddings were not a concern because of DOMA just months ago — we strongly encourage the adoption of broad, clear, and strong protections Read more
Below:
Camp Pendleton Marines recently went through the required DADT training for the upcoming repeal of the policy most often known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” Despite some people dismissing the concerns of servicemembers Read more