Darren Manzella is one brave soldier!

The Iraqi veteran made waves when he came out on 60 Minutes last year, a big no no considering the military's ban on openly gay soldiers. Despite the hubbub, Manzella returned to active duty and, at the time, it seemed that the government had no plans of ousting him. Unfortunately that was not the case and Manzella received his walking papers last week.

While the military brass didn't approve of Manzella's man-loving, he says his peers didn't seem to mind. On the contrary - they were "proud!"

After my appearance on 60 Minutes I received a lot of support from most of my colleagues. Some were surprised that I made such a public statement but told me that they were proud of me for standing up for people who could not speak out. To them, I was still SERGEANT Manzella though. I really didn’t notice a change in how I was treated or viewed.

Many of my peers and co-workers voiced to me that they felt it was unfair that I was being discharged. They felt, as many people in our military and society feel, that an able and competent soldier should be retained especially in this time when we are fighting two wars and need every capable man and woman who is willing to put on a uniform and serve their country.

The Republicans, of course, fail to see Manzella's logic.

Don't Ask, Don't Tell doesn't just hurt soldiers. It hurts their families, as well.

CONTINUED »

The Pentagon ain't about telling. Not when it comes to Don't Ask, Don't Tell, at least.

Government officials insist they're still booting bent soldiers, yet they refuse to "speculate" on why discharge numbers dropped since the war began. Gay activists claim the military no longer wants to fire flamers, but the Pentagon maintains its doing its discriminatory duty. From an official statement:

The Department will continue to follow congressional mandate on homosexual conduct. This law requires the Department of Defense to separate from the armed forces members who engage in or attempt to engage in homosexual acts; state they are homosexual or bisexual; or marry or attempt to marry a person of the same biological sex.

This does nothing to explain why openly gay soldier Darren Manzella continues to fight alongside his straight comrades.

Soldier Darren Manzella broke new ground by coming out on 60 Minutes. While one would expect some repurcussions for such a public rejection of Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Manzella says he's been greeted by official - and welcome - silence. What's more: he's learned he's not alone:

"I thought I would at least be asked about the segment or approached and told I shouldn't speak to the media again," says Manzella, 30, a medic who recently returned from Kuwait and plans to hold a news conference today in Washington to discuss the military's silence.

He says he is among a growing number of servicemembers who have told other troops and even commanders they are gay and have not been discharged.
…
Manzella says he was invited to join more than 600 members of an invitation-only MySpace group, Guys and Gals Like Us, for gays who don't hide their orientation from their units. The members use pseudonyms because some gay servicemembers have been discharged for acknowledging their sexual orientation elsewhere online.
…
"A lot of servicemembers are getting 'wink-wink' treatment from their commanders," says Aaron Belkin, director of the Palm Center at the University of California, Santa Barbara…

While the military establishment keeps mum, rabble-rousing Elaine Donnelly from the Center for Military Readiness wants military injustice: "[Manzella's] commanders should be disciplined appropriately for failing to do their duty." Said commanders have yet to return Donnelly's call.

It's a very happy holiday for out sergeant Darren Manzella! Servicemembers Legal Defense Network tell us that the openly gay sergeant returned home to the United States yesterday:

Sergeant Manzella arrived back in the United States yesterday with his unit, returning from a long tour in Kuwait. He got back to his base in the States yesterday, safe and sound.

As you can imagine, his CBS appearance on Sunday has caused quite the buzz among his fellow troops, but Darren reports to SLDN that he's received an overwhelmingly positive response from many people - both inside and out of the armed forces - who have contacted him to offer support and congratulations. (And we've been passing along your messages to Darren, too. You can still email him at darren@sldn.org.)

Now, of course, Darren's thoughts are turning to the upcoming holidays. And, we're happy to report, it looks like he'll likely be able to spend Christmas at home with parents and siblings, who are all immensely proud of him.

That warms the cockles of our heart.

• Recently arrested hustler Cody Castagna's mug shot makes us wonder why Republican Richard Curtis would hire him in the first place.

• Zoe Leonard's 1992 "I Want A President" still resonates.

• Did Canada's New Democratic Party drop a lawyer for being trans?

• HX editor Brandon Voss talks gay with Friday Night Lights' Kyle Chandler for The Advocate. The gays apparently urged Chandler to try the theatrical arts. Figures…

CONTINUED »