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We Asked, They Told

"He would have made a better officer than any officer I knew on active duty," she says. "But because he was gay, he couldn't serve and the military lost out. The Navy could have benefitted by someone of his caliber."

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Considering All Sides

The fringes are clear.

Radical leftists might suggest the inherent intolerance of any organized armed force, calling for the complete abolition of the U.S. military.

The ultra-conservatives cringe at the thought of homosexuality in any part of the public sphere, never mind the front lines of battle.

Move toward the center from here and you'll find those who cite pragmatic reasons for "don't ask, don't tell," noting the military's attitude toward sexuality in any context and the particularly uniform environment the armed forces wishes to foster.

But many of the cadets and midshipmen, while part of the same system, vary ideologically. Most, though, see both room for negotiation and a need for resolution.

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