We've already discussed in detail the controversy surrounding the potential repeal of DADT. Are there any other punitive UCMJ Articles that you think should be repealed as being out of date? And would you pay to watch a PPV channel that has Congress debating a repeal of Article 125 and seeing how many euphemisms they can come up with?
Rum, Sodomy, And The Lash
Now that the House has approved an amendment to the Defense Authorization Act that would lead to the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (I don't think it will get through a Senate filibuster, and the only reason it's being pushed now is to make Senate Republicans filibuster a Defense bill during wartime for use as election fodder), I'm wondering if they're going to take the next step and change the UCMJ. As all servicepeople know, the UCMJ has a prohibition on sodomy (Article 125) that pretty much criminalizes any sexual acts male homosexuals could do with each other beyond kissing (lesbians pretty much get off scot free, unless they have a long tongue -- it all depends on how the Court Martial would interpret the "penetration, however slight" requirement to complete the offense). The upshot of Article 125, of course, if that it actually criminalizes a substantial segment of the heterosexual population of the military as well -- the prohibition on oral sex doesn't apply only to same sex behavior.
