Army offering six-figure bonuses for Arabic speakers, after kicking out dozens under DADT.
By on Aug 5th, 2008 at 12:57 pm
Army offering six-figure bonuses for Arabic speakers, after kicking out dozens under DADT.
The Christian Science Monitor reports today that the Army may begin paying retention bonuses worth as much as $150,000 to Arabic-speaking soldiers, “in reflection of how critical it has become for the US military to retain native language and cultural know-how in its ranks.” Yet as Steve Ralls points out, the Army is “taking almost every step imaginable” to keep Arabic speakers except rescinding the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy, which resulted in the expulsion of dozens of Arabic speakers and translators. A GAO report found that between 1998 and 2003, more than 60 linguists specializing in Arabic or Farsi were expelled from the military for being gay.
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plea of the army: Arabic speakers, Arabic speakers, our kingdom for Arabic speakers- unless you are gay.
snark
August 5th, 2008 at 12:59 pmSince BushCo is winding down, some sense of rationality may be returning? Skills are more important now?
August 5th, 2008 at 1:03 pmThe amount isn’t that unheard of. I got $60K for Russian last time I reenlisted in the Air Force. Then they moved the cap up a few months later. I could have netted $90K.
The DADT point is the tragedy.
August 5th, 2008 at 1:04 pmTeh gays need not apply!
Fax your cover letter and resume, 1-800-GO-HETERO-ARMY.
August 5th, 2008 at 1:05 pmScenario:
An top-notch Arabic speaking man comes running into Army Intelligence with information that saves the lives of several soldiers. However, in the relaying of the information, the young man indicates that he has a boyfriend. So, what would be this young man’s reward? For revealing that he’s gay, he would be cashiered.
Yeah, that makes sense.
August 5th, 2008 at 1:07 pmthe Army is “taking almost every step imaginable” to keep Arabic speakers
– - They’re probably being treated like rock stars and celebrities.
August 5th, 2008 at 1:09 pmWow. $150,000 is quite an incentive. Of course, we could always rely on contractors, British, or Aussie forces to supply linguists. All three groups have good linguists, and they allow troops to serve openly gay.
August 5th, 2008 at 1:20 pmClassic George Carlin line – …Oxymorons, like Military Intelligence.
August 5th, 2008 at 1:22 pmOnce again, law triumphs over reason. As For Truth @2 says, maybe rationality will start to return as this Insane Administration winds down, maybe.
Impeach Pelosi, Cheney and Bush and Save the Constitution!
What marroons!
August 5th, 2008 at 1:32 pmTorture is ‘justified’ by the ‘ticking time bomb’ scenerio, but they never say anything about the ‘confession’ being in English.
It almost seems like they’d rather have an attack than have a homosexual prevent it. Being a homophobe is Anti-American.
August 5th, 2008 at 1:35 pmIt really bites that our elected representatives tie the hands of our armed forces to pander to prejudice.
August 5th, 2008 at 1:37 pmMcWars Says:
——————————————————————————–
Teh gays need not apply!
Fax your cover letter and resume, 1-800-GO-HETERO-ARMY.
August 5th, 2008 at 1:05 pm
Heh. Too funny. :D
August 5th, 2008 at 1:45 pminteresting. it would then seem that if the 9/11 hijackers (all of whom obviously speak arabic) were gay, then they would have been kicked off boosh’s payroll??
August 5th, 2008 at 1:47 pmPS ‘Christian Science’ is an oxymoron
August 5th, 2008 at 1:48 pmTripleKick 7 Says:
Trying for triplekick 8 today?
August 5th, 2008 at 1:52 pmLet me help by clicking that flag button for ya.
If you’re a gay soldier who speaks arabic, then you owe it to your country to keep your private, abnormal sex preferences out of your job.
Triple- You owe it to the rest of us to keep your boring, prurient obsession with other people’s sexual orientation out of this thread.
It’s old and stupid…
August 5th, 2008 at 2:06 pmTripleKick 7 Says:
belac
Its called an opinion, deal with it.
August 5th, 2008 at 2:09 pm
_____
No, it’s called bigotry. And we’re not going to let you people get away with it anymore.
August 5th, 2008 at 2:20 pmTrippy,
When women serving in the Armed Forces prefer to serve next a lesbian because then she’ll be confident that the lesbian won’t rape her… that undercuts your bias and bigotry about gays in the military.
To feel threatened by innocuous orientations is a sign of being the biggest wimp EVER!
PROVE how gayness threatens cohesion.
Not OPINION… provide proof!
.
August 5th, 2008 at 2:24 pmIts called an opinion, deal with it.
The military needs Arabic speakers… even openly gay ones.
Deal with it.
Only ninnies like you, safely off the front lines, give a sh*t who those translators may be dating back home…
August 5th, 2008 at 2:32 pmThanks, lazy Z!
Tripleprick, are you gonna cwy for us? Are you gonna cwy? Is your fwee speek (spittle) being abridged?
August 5th, 2008 at 2:35 pmYou think we’re easy to bully, Tripplekick because we take the time to care for the welfare of this country.
We libruls will give you the collective wedgie on Nov. 4th.
August 5th, 2008 at 2:37 pmMy apologies, Zooey. That’s lady Z! I sounded trollish for a minute there.
August 5th, 2008 at 2:38 pmTriple…
August 5th, 2008 at 2:39 pmSo then you would argue that Pharmacists have a duty to dispense any and all prescriptions as long as that is the policy of their employer? After all, policy is policy…
Of course, it would have been nice if the military had pushed for more Arabic speakers (including various dialects) ***BEFORE** we invaded the area rather than waiting 7 years later when we are supposedly over the surge !
Of course, even to this year they apparently haven’t even figured out the Shia/Sunni thing yet either.
To put it in Christian terms – they still haven’t figured out that the Protestant – Catholic differences have influenced our history and current thinking. And they are far away from figuring out that there are Baptists, Pentecostals, Presbyterians, Lutherans, etc. And totally oblivious to the smaller churces such as Quaker/ etc.
August 5th, 2008 at 2:48 pmTripleKick 7 Says:
Wayne,
Go cry to your mama. You’re the biggest wuss in the TP community.
Ohhh, I bet you will threaten to beat me up next. I’m skeered…. **snort**
It seems that you are the one afraid of gay people. And I will make a wager that you have never served in the armed forces.
I served and there were gays serving then too and they did not destroy the military, no matter your irrational homophobic fears
August 5th, 2008 at 2:58 pmDribbledick,
Don’t phuck with Wayne.
Trust me on this one. You’d like that commercial, ‘this is your brain’…
August 5th, 2008 at 3:37 pmTripleKick 7
Sorry there TripleKick but TP doesn’t like much disagreement.
You may have noticed that the most dangerous posters on TP are the ones with specific beliefs.
BTW, do you know that joke about why the Marines are looking for a few good men? Contrast.
TP doesn’t like contrast.
August 5th, 2008 at 5:29 pmI don’t think danger has anything to do with it. I think it has more to do with being put off by arrogant jackasses
August 5th, 2008 at 9:27 pm