A Melancholy Progress

Not every issue of public policy can be decided in a manner that satisfies all the parties involved. Indeed, some issues stagger toward resolutions that satisfy absolutely no one. Such is the case with the melancholy conundrum of gays and the military.

President Clinton announced Monday a new policy on accommodating gays in the armed forces. The announcement came after months of internal work at the Pentagon and in Congress, especially by Sen. Sam Nunn (D-Ga.)--and after, of course, the President’s many promises during the campaign. The upshot was a policy that is a variant of “don’t ask, don’t tell.”

This is different from Clinton’s initial stand, which was that military personnel ought to be judged on the basis of job performance and behavior--not sexual orientation. That’s the correct position--but strong opposition made such an absolutist policy unenforceable. The new policy seeks to place the emphasis on conduct. But this emphasis is easier stated in its theory than administered in practice: For what is conduct and in what appropriate, as opposed to inappropriate, ways is it to be monitored?

The President’s new policy does advance, however incompletely, the cause of a fuller acceptance of homosexuals in society. Surely this was Clinton’s intent. And surely this is the only goal worthy of America.

Every day new scientific evidence points closer toward the conclusion that homosexuality is not some kind of electable option--a “lifestyle decision”--but is a predetermined, genetically driven orientation.

Two predictions seem safe. One is that this issue will wind up in the courts; the second is that at some point in the future it will have to be revisited by the politicians. Said Clinton: “It is not a perfect solution. . . . It will not please everyone.”

That surely is an understatement. Even so, the new policy does represent a measure of progress. And the President deserves at least some credit for advancing it.