Support for Gays in the Military Depends on the Question

A new CBS News/ New York Times poll finds that the wording of the question is key when it comes to determining whether Americans support allowing gays to serve in the military.

In the poll, 59 percent say they now support allowing "homosexuals" to serve in the U.S. military, including 34 percent who say they strongly favor that. Ten percent say they somewhat oppose it and 19 percent say they strongly oppose it.

But the numbers differ when the question is changed to whether Americans support "gay men and lesbians" serving in the military. When the question is asked that way, 70 percent of Americans say they support gay men and lesbians serving in the military, including 19 percent who say they somewhat favor it. Seven percent somewhat oppose it, and 12 percent strongly oppose it.

(CBS)

When it comes to whether Americans support allowing gays to serve openly, there is also a difference based on the term used. When referred to as "homosexuals," 44 percent favor allowing them to serve openly. When referred to as "gay men and lesbians," the percentage rises to 58 percent.

619809

In his State of the Union address last month, President Obama vowed to end the policy that bars gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military – commonly referred to as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

No matter the term used, support for gays to serve in the military has risen since 1993, when the debate arose early in Bill Clinton's presidency. In 1993, 42 percent said they favored allowing homosexuals to serve, with 21 percent saying they strongly favored it; that compared to 42 percent who opposed allowing them to serve (29 percent strongly). In 1993, 37 percent said they supported allowing homosexuals to serve openly and 56 percent opposed.

However, support is down from one year ago, when 67 percent said they supported allowing homosexuals to serve (46 percent strongly).

Read the Complete Poll

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CBS News Poll Database

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This poll was conducted among a random sample of 1,084 adults nationwide, interviewed by telephone February 5-10, 2010. Phone numbers were dialed from random digit dial samples of both standard land-line and cell phones. The error due to sampling for results based on the entire sample could be plus or minus three percentage points. The error for subgroups is higher.

This poll release conforms to the Standards of Disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.

as long as these people can accomplish the mission, it doesn't matter what sexual orientation they have. check out my blog

http://www.spitfirekitty.com/gays-in-the-military/

[NaturalCatFood]

Gays in the military is not like cosmetics, and should not be treated as such. Sure, they look good, but who is getting <a href="http://www.coastalclassiccreations.com">paraben free cosmetics</a>? Not a lot of people. I think the don't ask, don't tell policy was fine. They had to ruin it.

[shylohjacobs]

I personally see no problem with gays and lesbians doing anything different than anyone else. It's their choice and at the end it doesn't affect the people complaining about it in the slightest. It's not like being gay will save you money on grocery bills or something that would actually rise an unfair fuss, instead we are unfair to them! My opinion is so what! http://www.wecreateriches.com/index.asp?r=rbecker

[pocketcrockett]

I personally do not think being gay or lesbian is right, but everyone has to make their own choices right? http://www.hammond.com/thanksgiving-cards/1

[RedPorch]

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_eeYt1gOHtiQ/TNjcqREtydI/AAAAAAAAANU/iASJHK2PaTg/s1600/v98.+Military+gays.jpg

[digrawg]

I look forward to the day when sexual deviants are allowed to adopt children and serve openly in the military. I can't believe that anyone would condemn or oppose this! I am in the Navy and I want our homosexuals to be free to tell us about their sexual deviation and I want them to be loud and proud! I want to be able to look around me and 24/7 on a 6 month deployment and take comfort in knowing that the people who I'm working closely with and sharing living quarters with are sexual deviants. I want them to be able to walk around on the boat all day long proclaiming their deviation for me and all of my fellow honorable servicemembers to hear, including the Captain, the Commodore and all of the marines on the boat! I will not rest until sexual deviants are practicing their deviation openly, loud and proud, in full military uniform. Dear God please get them into the service. And to those of you that are in the service having to conceal your sexual deviation; thank you for your service! We're gonna make sure you can be open, it might take some more work, but we'll make it happen!!! God bless you guys

[ej_wa.state]

I spent 20 yrs serving in the military. I have yet to see how any of the presidential or congress terms are able to get past the UCMJ and article 125 which is a article against sodomy. This article is punishible against man or woman even a married couple. Goes to show how the goverment is they do not like a law, instead of fixing it they just over look it and do as they wish.

[erb0087]

"Homos/exuals" is a word loaded with negative connotations and emotional hysteria. It calls up images of s/exual orgies in the barracks.

But say "gay men and lesbians", and everybody thinks Elton John and Ellen Degeneres. No problem. (I know Elton John isn't an American, but you get the idea.)

[gayfriendly]

The ignorance about all kinds of sexuality is appalling: homosexuality, heterosexuality, and bi. And the fear this ignorance instills is reprehensible and hurtful in the extreme.

I know I'm preaching to the choir, but the solution seems so simple to me: treat others as you would like to be treated (by the way, that's a basic Christian tenet). Don't expect everyone to be like you, think like you, or live like you. Accept differences in people; in fact, celebrate those differences.

The folks commenting here who are obviously educated trying to educate the fearful and ignorant seems to be a futile endeavor. But, please, don't stop. Maybe some day these people actually will read the source material supporting the naturalness of being homosexual. One continues to hope.

[aevans0001]

Gayfriendly and anyone else with this view. I understand that it is important to treat homosexuals and others the same, but with your theory of allowing Gay men and women to serve (openly or not) suggests that there should not also be seperate showers or Barracks for Men and Women. Why is it fair to me as a Heterosexual Male that I can only shower with other Heterosexual Males or Homosexual Males, yet Homosexual Males can shower with what gets them off? Hmm treat all the same suddenly doesn't hold water.... The fact is that our Military Men and Women are the ones who have to deal with this situation and if Homosexuality is going to be a distraction for these Heroes then Homosexuals shall not apply or at least not be open. This is my thoughts, but the only people to vote on this issue should be the brave men and women of our armed forces....

[black_howler]

For those of you claiming homosexuality is a "lifestyle", that is a false and ignorant statement. Homosexuality is not a choice. Just like you don't choose the color of your skin, you cannot choose whom you are sexually attracted to. If you can, sorry, but you are not heterosexual, you are bi-sexual. Virtually all major psychological and medical experts agree that sexual orientation is NOT a choice. Most gay people will tell you its not a choice. Common sense will tell you its not a choice. While science is relatively new to studying homosexuality, studies tend to indicate that its biological.

http://www-news.uchicago.edu/releases/03/differential-brain-activation.pdf
http://www.newscientist.com/channel/sex/dn14146-gay-brains-structured-like-those-of-the-opposite-sex.html
Gay, Straight Men's Brain Responses Differ
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,155990,00.html
http://www.livescience.com/health/060224_gay_genes.html
http://www.springerlink.com/content/w27453600k586276/
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2008/06/16/172/

There is overwhelming scientific evidence that homosexuality is not a choice. Sexual orientation is generally a biological trait that is determined pre-natally, although there is no one certain thing that explains all of the cases. "Nurture" may have some effect, but for the most part it is biological.


And it should also be noted that:
"It is worth noting that many medical and scientific organisations do believe it is impossible to change a person's sexual orientation and this is displayed in a statement by American Academy of Pediatrics, American Counseling Association, American Association of School Administrators, American Federation of Teachers, American Psychiatric Association, American Psychological Association, American School Health Association, Interfaith Alliance Foundation, National Association of School Psychologists, National Association of Social Workers, and National Education Association."

[gayfriendly]

In the 1970s, Brigham Young University tried to change same-sex orientation by submitting men and women to a form of shock treatment (they called it "aversion therapy"). They were shown erotic scenes. Whenever the subject had a sexual response to homosexual activity, they were given a shock. Needless to say, they don't do this anymore. And, also needless to say, this did not accomplish what they hoped it would. It's just so incredibly, breath-takingly stupid, not to mention cruel.

See: http://mormonism.suite101.com/article.cfm/byu_electroshock_aversion_therapy

http://www.affirmation.org/memorial/homosexuality_at_byu_2.shtml