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Letters to the Editor

Published Thursday, 03-Jan-2008 in issue 1045

“While this and much more was accomplished in 2007 in the effort to repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, including a letter from 28 generals and admirals urging Congress to repeal the law, we do not believe repeal is likely in this Congress or with this president.”

Dear Editor:

On behalf of Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN), I would like to respond to Bob Roehr’s “Year in Review” column where Mr Roehr implied that there had been little or no progress on the bill to repeal the military’s Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy. I would offer that quite the opposite is true and that substantial momentum has been achieved in the long journey to repeal during 2007.

The Military Readiness Enhancement Act (H.R. 1246) was re-introduced by Representative Marty Meehan (D-MA) early this year with a bipartisan group of 109 original cosponsors from the previous Congress. Upon Meehan’s retirement from the House, Representative Ellen Tauscher (D-CA) assumed the role of lead sponsor for the bill. Working with Tauscher, SLDN and our allies, has implemented a legislative strategy to build support for repeal both inside and out of Congress. To date, 139 bipartisan members of Congress have agreed to co-sponsor HR 1246 and with changes expected in Congress next year, this trend is likely to continue. San Diego’s own Congresswoman Susan Davis, who chairs the House Armed Services Military Personnel Sub-committee, has been a strong and courageous ally in this effort. She has made it clear that when the appropriate time comes, hearings on the bill will be held. SLDN’s goal and that of our allies is to ensure that we do not have hearings just for the sake of hearings but rather to have a timely and substantive debate that actually moves the bill forward rather than a show for the nightly news.

While this and much more was accomplished in 2007 in the effort to repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, including a letter from 28 generals and admirals urging Congress to repeal the law, we do not believe repeal is likely in this Congress or with this president. We do, however, believe 2008 will be about building a national campaign to educate the public on the issue, and developing stronger legislative support in Congress, including introduction of a bipartisan Senate bill coupled with House hearings in the next session.

That is why I encourage you to go to the SLDN website at ww.sldn.org to see how you can help end this last vestige of federally sanctioned discrimination against our community.

Michael Magee

Board Member, Servicemembers Legal Defense Network

“Longtime adult business owner and gay activist, Bob Clark passed away of kidney failure at 5:00 am on Monday, December 24, 2007.”

Dear Editor:

Longtime adult business owner and gay activist, Bob Clark passed away of kidney failure at 5:00 am on Monday, December 24, 2007. A celebration of life service will be held in the near future. He is survived by George Isbell, his lifetime partner of thirty-two years.

Previously Bob and George owned the Gentlemen’s Headquarters, a social club for men and later owned the Foxy Theater, an adult theater. Bob and George had successfully fought a ten year legal battle with the San Diego City Attorney to allow the G & B Emporium, an adult bookstore to remain open. The city maintained that the business was within one thousand feet of residential property which was a violation of the zoning ordinance. John Barriage, the attorney representing the bookstore, argued that the freeway ran between the adult business and the residential property requiring anyone to travel well over one thousand feet to get from one to the other. Barriage presented an offer to City Attorney Michael Aguirre to settle the case with the city but he and the City Council refused the offer. Then the court ruled in favor of the bookstore causing the city to lose several million dollars which it could have avoided. This was one of Aguirre’s first attempts to close a law abiding GLBT owned business under false pretenses. Since then Clark and Isbell opened a second bookstore, Adult Emporium #2, in Kearney Mesa.

Bob Smith

“I know it’s in vogue for some in the gay community to have disdain for us “breeders” but come on, this is the holidays and it was a musical show. Tolerance, inclusiveness, pride and the arts are all things I want to teach my children.”

Dear Editor:

I was delighted to see that The San Diego Gay Men’s Chorus was presenting their annual holiday performance “Bells and Brass” right here in my neighborhood of La Jolla. I advertised it to my friends and family. Unfortunately, I did not get to enjoy what was likely a wonderful celebration because I was rustled out of the place in the middle of the second song. You see, I understood their advertisement in my local newspaper to suggest a family holiday celebration but alas, I took my 2 year old and we were clearly not welcome.

The staff was wonderful and it’s a shame that it was only a few members of the audience that did not appreciate or tolerate us but it was their attitude that reflected poorly on the whole gay community. Again, the staff was wonderful. I called a few days early to ask if I needed two tickets since my daughter would likely sit on my lap, and very pleasantly I was told that I need only purchase one.

Now I realize that the “oohs” and “ahs” of my daughter may only be music to my or other parents’ ears but for anyone to say that she was acting inappropriately would be dishonest. She stayed on my lap for the one song we saw, and when it was done we clapped along with everyone. Getting into the second piece I noticed a half-glance back at me and thought it best to retreat to the back aisles so I scooped her up and went. A man in the back asked if my “intent was to ruin (his) entire evening by bringing her back here”. I was so dumbfounded that all I could do was suppress my inner New Yorker and slink out the door.

I know it’s in vogue for some in the gay community to have disdain for us “breeders” but come on, this is the holidays and it was a musical show. Tolerance, inclusiveness, pride and the arts are all things I want to teach my children. It’s ironic that the gay community showed me their own ugly brand of intolerance.

Linda Jaffe

Letters Policy

The Gay & Lesbian Times welcomes comments from all readers. Letters to the editor longer than 500 words will not be accepted. Send e-mail to editor@uptownpub.com; fax (619) 299-3430; or mail to PO Box 34624, San Diego, CA 92163. To be printed, letters must include the writer’s name, address and daytime phone number for verification.

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