Gays are Icky?

So, I want everyone to remember the name Ike Skelton (D-MO) The representative of the 4th Congressional District in Missouri is the Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee and was one of the most important voices in the discussion regarding the crafting of DADT (Don't Ask Don't Tell) in 1997, which disallows open homosexual behavior among all ranks in the United States military. This man, Ike, told reporters yesterday that he opposes the overturning of DADT because the topic of homosexuality is not "family-friendly"

I don't even know where to begin on that! His exact words to the press were:

"What do mommies and daddies say to their 7-year-old child?" Skelton asked journalists at a media breakfast. "My biggest concerns are the family."

This ignorance about how homosexuals interact with straight society is confounding. His biggest concern is the family defined within a socially conservative framework, and it consists of one (presumably) heterosexual male and one (presumably) heterosexual female parent along with any number of children ranging from 1 to ∞. The biggest disservice to our families is to not discuss sexuality and sexual orientation in a frank and serious manner. The world is full of people who are different than one another, and to be able to function in that world, we have to be aware of difference amongst ourselves. Families have homosexual members and that will not change in the forseeable future, ignoring their identity can be devastating. To deem the topic of homosexuality unfit for discussion because of your sensitivities is not helping anyone, and insults the intelligence of everyone around you.

Ike Skelton, you're a grown man. I didn't think that you are willing to accept the dismissal of qualified Soldiers, Airmen, Marines, and Sailors so that our military can be cleansed of homosexual elements. But, you are. Get over yourself, and don't let other people suffer because you are too afraid that you might catch the gay.