What consenting adults want to do behind closed doors is their business. All I ask is that if I come over for dinner that they not use the same kitchen utensils to prepare the meal that they use in the bedroom.

It was in that spirit that I paid no attention to the sexual preferences of military personnel who served with me when I was in the US Air Force. There were doctors, nurses, medical technicians, pilots, commanders and many others and their sexual preferences never entered into the workplace. Military people tend to be much more focused on the job than other issues.

As a physician, it could be a touchy subject. Sexual activities are an important part of a medical history. Presenting problems and certain diseases are still associated with sexual behaviors. How exactly do you incorporate "Don't Ask" into the equation?

The most frustrating case out there is that of John Hensala. He is a psychiatrist who went to medical school under the Health Professionals Scholarship Program. He decided to reveal he was a homosexual in 1994 which was the time he was supposed to start on active duty.

If Hensala was a man of principle he would have paid the USAF back the $71K they paid for his education. He signed the same contract I did and it clearly states that if the active duty commitment is not met the money will be repaid.

Hensala made his revelation one year after the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy was enacted. The thing is nobody asked, he just told. It appears that Dr. Hensala was more interested in a free education and being a political football.

He has enjoyed support from the gay community. It is bothersome that an agenda can blind a group to such treachery but not altogether uncommon. Fight the fight but there should not even be a question that the money should be repaid.

The arguments against homosexuals serving in the military have changed over the years. It is no longer classified as a mental illness and security concerns have been debunked over the years. The last remaining reason is morale.

The morale argument does not hold much water. People know there are homosexuals serving with them and it is rarely an issue. There are far greater problems such as drugs, alcohol and gang activity.

Polls are all over the place. Generally, they show that the public supports homosexuals serving in the military openly (40-79%). The numbers are less convincing among military members (25-42%).

It would have been far better to let Dr. Hensala serve as a gay man then to have allowed political correctness to keep Dr. Nidal Malik Hasan in the US Army. The US military needs to have qualified individuals and policy needs to guide the selection process in the right direction.

Despite military bearing, there were plenty of times I was exposed to the stories of relationship exploits of younger military members. It is doubtful that it would have mattered much if some of those exploits had between two people of the same gender.

That said, the 10 or 20 years of experience you gain at looking at the human condition is important. It is not entirely clear that every 20 something year old would have the same attitude. I am not sure of the data but it definitely seemed that young military personnel were generally more conservative and religious than the general population.

That cannot be overlooked but it likely can be overcome. One thing about most soldiers is they can put aside bias if they are given an order.

Most of the gay and lesbian people I have met go about their life quietly. The activists who speak out for "gay rights" are really not front and center in their thinking.

Serving "openly" is a relative term. Nobody should be flashing their sexuality everywhere especially in the military. Most of us just do not want to know.

The most important thing needs to be qualification for the job. The military has unique characteristics but sexual preference does not need to be a consideration. There are certain job fields, physicians for example, where it can be hard to get people and restrictions that have no reasonable basis should be excluded.

It is time for the Uniform Code of Military Justice to be changed. No special protections are needed as the Municipality of Anchorage recently considered. All that is needed is a reality check.