DADT Survey: The Marines are resistance to the repeal of DADT

The DADT survey reveals that it's the Marines who are not really feeling the repeal of the discriminatory law.

The Senate is supposed to consider repeal during its lame duck session in December, with many legislators favoring changing the law to allow gays to serve openly. A few staunchly oppose it, however, and both sides are expected to cite the survey in arguing whether to move forward with repeal.

The Corps is the youngest, smallest and arguably the most tight-knit of the enlisted forces, with many of its roughly 200,000 members hailing from small towns and rural areas in the South.

Marines are unabashed about distinguishing themselves from the rest of the military, with a warrior ethos and a religious zeal for their branch of service that they liken to a brotherhood.

"We've never changed our motto. We've never changed our pitch to new recruits. We have hardly changed our formal uniforms in 235 years," said Marine Reserve Lt. Col. Paul Hackett, 48, who has been in the Corps for 25 years. "We are a religion unto ourselves, and we pride ourselves in that."

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Many Marines say they aren't bothered by the notion of serving with openly gay men and women. Gary Solis, a Marine combat veteran who teaches the laws of war at Georgetown University Law Center, says others have the misconception that openly gay Marines will not be as aggressive or "gung-ho" as their comrades in arms.

Okay, so hopefully their leaders will train them to protect and honor their gay & lesbian teammates. They will have to get over it and realize this is bigger than their egos and beliefs.

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