Tell Sec. Gates to stop harassing Dan Choi and all of our gay vets

[Bluebear]

via Americablog:As we wrote yesterday, Lt. Dan Choi and other gay vets are being harassed by Pentagon bill collectors who are demanding they repay thousands of dollars, and in some cases nearly $100,000, in costs associated with their training, education and bonuses. According to the Pentagon, all that money was "wasted" on gay service members who were subsequently kicked out, so DOD wants the DADT victims to pay the money back.

Incredible.

Dan got a demand from a credit service for $2,500. Another gay vet is being harassed about repaying $78,000. It's simply amazing that kicking these patriotic Americans out of the military wasn't enough. Now the administration wants to make them pay even more.

It's not Dan Choi's fault, or the fault of an gay servicemember, that the Pentagon arbitrarily, and discriminatorily, decided to end their careers. It's absurd and offensive for the military - and more generally, the Obama administration - to continue harassing our troops.

Please sign this public letter (see link) to Defense Secretary Gates that Joe and I just posted. We know the White House reads our blog, and we know they don't like the bad publicity they get when these kind of snafus are aired publicly. Please help us spread the word, and put pressure on the administration, by signing our public letter demanding that Secretary Gates call off the bill collectors now.

http://gay.americablog.com/2011/01/tell-sec-gates-to-stop-harassing-dan.html

[Dogmudgeon]

1. The USSR did this to emigrants

If you left the Workers' Paradise, the Revolutionary Vanguard would send you a bill for what you "owed" them.

The Chinese do this, too; next-of-kin of executed convicts are billed the cost of the execution, usually the cost of a bullet.

And, if you leave the Church of $c1ent0l0gy, they send you a "FLB" -- "Free Loader Bill".

So the DoD is joining a most distinguished group. Remember to point that out to Sec. Gates.

--d!

[pacalo]

2. Done.

[Solly Mack]

3. K&R