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The article reports that the U.S. Army is faced with a daunting task of providing more troops in Iraq and Afghanistan in the wake of recent cashiering of gay soldiers. It must be noted that the army had cashiered 6,300 troops for indulging in homosexual activities over the past 6 years. Discharged gay soldiers worked as truck drivers, engineers and band musicians.

The article reports on the coming out of retired U.S. Marine Staff Sergeant Eric Alva, the first U.S. soldier wounded in the Iraq war. Alva said that his proudest moment in the service came when he would confide in one of his friends about his sexual orientation. According to the Government Accountability Office, over 11,000 men and women have been dismissed since the ban on gays serving openly was implemented a decade ago.

The article reports on Ryan Smith, who has served for several months in Iraq as a low-level enlisted soldier, encountering numerous combat situations. While there, he came out to the members of his unit. When he returned from his Middle East deployment, Smith got in touch with the Center for the Study of Sexual Minorities in the Military at the University of California, Santa Barbara, to share his story. Smith's decision to be honest with his fellow soldiers came at a time when the military's don't ask, don't tell policy, which prohibits gay men and lesbians from serving openly, is being increasingly debated. The military claims that allowing openly gay soldiers would hurt unit cohesion, but Smith found just the opposite to be true.