more, and pretty soon our little tyke is so involved with his sampling of bon-bons that he doesn't notice mommie as she approaches. So it is with the homosexual in the service. The gay GI must either accept the frustration of denial, or grab for the goodies, never knowing when he might be caught with chocolate on his face.
You disagree? Don't kid yourself. In spite of the fact that 58% of your comrades in arms will have engaged in homosexual act (s) by the time they are thirty-five, this fact will help you little. The main point is whether or not this 58% engage in sex with their bunk buddies. The answer to this to this question lies in their attitude toward you, the lavender legionary in their midst.
Officially speaking, you are the cancer that must be rooted out before it spreads and corrupts the entire body. As a basic trainee in the Air Force, I was completely indoctrinated concerning the dangers of homosexuality. I remember sitting on my foot-locker and hearing the gospel according to the Airman's Guide read to me by my barracks sergeant. It was my third day in the service, and I distinctly recall his harsh voice as he intoned from the book: "Homosexuality will not be tolerated in the Air Force and the prompt discharge of true, confirmed, or habitual homosexuals is mandatory."* He continued reading and phrases such as "admit homosexual tendencies, knowingly associate with known homosexuals, bring any information. . . to the attention of his commander," were riveted to my memory.
*The Airman's Guide, Military Publishing Company, 1954.
Reading further, he told us that it was a morally disgusting practice and that we should be constantly on guard for those who told dirty stories, enticed us with French pictures, or attempted to get us drunk in an effort to perpetrate their heinous acts upon our pure
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and Christian bodies. Just so he could be sure we understood, he repeated the whole thing in the gutter language of which he was so fond.
Later on, when I had a chance to read the regulations myself, I found out that the policy was to administratively discharge all those who were suspected of homosexual acts as undesirables. Those that exhibit tendencies, but who can't be proven to have committed any acts, would be discharged with a general discharge. Rarely was anyoue court-martialled. I heard of only one case during the six years I spent in Air Force blue, and this involved forcible rape.
Unofficially, homosexuality is ignored by those in command, unless their attention is forcibly drawn to it. There are more than enough problems for them to worry about without including those of faggot infiltration.
On a personal level in the every day dealings with fellow servicemen, the situation gets a bit stickier. Even though this age end educational group has the highest rate of incidence of homosexuality, it has also the highest amount of prejudice against homosexuals. The ground rules are simple; a homosexual is an inferior being who is due only contempt. While it is permissible to use him as a means to an orgasm, the average GI definitely doesn't want to spend his off-duty time with him, and certainly doesn't want him as a roommate. If the homosexual happens to be a fellow GI, the serviceman uses him and then tells his buddies of his discovery, so that they may share in his find. In jig time everyone knows, and then it's only a short nasty step to the undesirable discharge. While this may not happen in 100% of the cases, it happens more often
than not.
Because of this prejudice against the homosexual, the vast majority of contacts by servicemen are made with civilians, usually in an usually in an area free of