Left Flank

Dr. Gregory House says, he watches The L Word with the sound off. This week, I turned the volume up.

Now on to DA, DT. So last week we got to see Tasha really let loose and express what it is that drives her to serve. Every day I deal directly with service members impacted by this law, and Tasha's words were not at all unfamiliar to me. She conveyed what most of the men and women fighting DADT feel – they want to serve, they do so honorably and they are no less patriotic than their straight counterparts. Tasha is under investigation for Homosexual Conduct. She's been served with paperwork indicating she's being "chaptered out" which is how an administrative separation is handled in the military. Rather than just accepting the discharge, Tasha has chosen to fight this separation and will go to an Administrative Separation Board – kind of like a trial but much less formal.

This week Alice was confronted in her home by 2 military officers assigned to investigate Tasha. There are regulations governing the scope of a DA, DT investigation and while this kind of questioning of a civilian shouldn't have occurred, it is important to remember that it can happen. Tasha was completely justified in being angry with her military defense counsel for not warning her that the investigator might try to question Alice. Regardless of how Capt. Beech feels about gays in the military, it's his job as an attorney to properly advise his client.

Now, this is where it would be helpful to have an SLDN attorney on this case. SLDN works in tandem with military defense attorneys all the time. The majority of them are very good lawyers who vigorously defend their clients, but the reality of the situation is, however, that most military defense attorneys have never dealt with a DADT discharge. SLDN handles these cases ever single day and we have valuable expertise in navigating the law. If Tasha had called SLDN when she received notice of this investigation, we would have advised her of her rights under Article 31 to say nothing, sign nothing and speak to defense counsel. We also would have warned her that investigators might try to question her girlfriend and that, as a civilian, Alice has no obligation to speak to military investigators. Rather than agreeing to answer questions and rather than inviting them in to snoop around her apartment, Alice should have declined to answer any questions and sent them on their way.

It was nice to see Capt. Beech eventually come around and be all warm and fuzzy towards the end of the episode. How sweet. But honestly, I'm frightened to see what comes next. I hope Alice uses her internet savvy to get online and do a little research. I find it hard to believe that someone who is so plugged into the LGBT community has no idea that SLDN exists. I'm holding out hope that the writers will do the responsible thing and let people know that SLDN is here, as the only organization providing free confidential legal assistance to service members fighting DA, DT – as we have been doing every day for the last 15 years.

I will be watching for the trial.

American troops are arriving in Mindanao for the annual Balikatan exercises, which stress an humanitarian mission. But, there seems to be a problem with the chain of command between the Americans and Filipinos.

US forces participating in the exercise will stay at Bitanag, about 2 kilometers from the Panamao hospital, where American security concerns recently caused tension among the local staff.

Dr. Silak Lakkian, hospital chief, said a M/Sgt. Ron Berg had ordered the local personnel to shut down the facility during the night effective Nov. 30 and had threatened to shoot anyone defying the order.

She said the workers found out how serious Berg was when they once tried to switch on the hospital's generator after 6 p.m. Berg called her on the phone and ordered her to switch off the generator, which provides electricity at night.

An investigation later showed that no such order had been issued by US officials.

Sulu Gov. Abdusakur Tan said Maj. Eric Walker of the US forces later apologized to Lakkian.

Rafael said the incident was unfortunate. He said Filipino Marine commanders in the area should have informed the local staff instead of the Americans. Rafael said US forces were only trying to protect the hospital as a red alert status was in force in Panamao then.

«It was just a misunderstanding in communication, when the Americans spoke in English and the other did not understand,» he said.

Rafael said the investigation had been completed and that he was submitting a full report on the incident.

In Zamboanga City, Maj. Gen. Nelson Allaga, Western Mindanao command chief, said there was no need to sanction the American soldier responsible for the closure order on the Panamao hospital.

M/Sgt. Berg certainly knows how to go "green to gold".

TNR accuses the «Army» of bad faith. Michael Yon calls TNR «...a group of cowards who won't 'fess up and can't face the scorn of American combat soldiers who were injured by their collective lapse of judgment.» Ace of Spades argues likewise:

TNR, on the other hand, chose to stonewall, obfuscate, and lie. They had highly relevant information about the stories' veracity in their hands. They simply refused to report that information, for fear others might not read the transcripts as generously as they were inclined to.

Other bloggers (via ROK Drop, thanks for the original heads up) whose work I respect have also criticized TNR thoroughly. Chris Lemieux makes good points until he defends TNR's Franklin Foer. Finally, Michael Goldfarb recounts his side of the story «That Took Forever».

Really, I think everyone is right, by their own self-appointed standards. Beauchamp's «work» was forgettable, and his service to his unit neglected. The soldiers and leadership in his unit should feel uneasy about Beauchamp's decision to consider his «work' more important than his job. And, I know full well from personal experience the «Army» guards its reputation jealously, and that's not a bad thing. Finally, Goldfarb and TNR's Franklin Foer didn't hurt their reputations with their core constituencies with their «work», even if I think Goldfarb went over the top, and that Foer's conduct in the telephone interviews and his attempts to turn an editorial error into an ideological contest with Goldfarb were both outrageous. Really, Foer's conduct has made partisan mudslinging tedious. It's çráp all around, and, I'm convinced, for no benefit.

Who cares about the substance of Beauchamp's «work»!

I subscribed to TNR less than a year ago because i wanted to read a reliable national journal. I was oblivious of TNR's previous editorial scandals. I've found TNR somewhat inconsistent. and rarely am I overwhelmed, but usually disgusted, with editorials. The good stuff usually comes from a small group of columnists, like Michael Crowley, John Judis, and Josh Kurlantzick, as well as Beinart's and Goldberg's «What's Your Problem?». I had already started to reconsider my subscription renewal before the Beauchamp affair hit, and I had consciously put TNR on notice: unless there were an unbroken pattern of excellent stories by the end of January, 2008, I would have probably not renewed the subscription. Now, I am almost certain I will not renew my subscription.

I want reliable reporting and insightful editorials, not shoddy management. And, my opinion counts in the only way it can in the real world - with my wallet!