CARNAL NATION

We've done our share of making fun of England. And it's mostly been deserved, what with their obsessions over naked gnomes and rather strangely-named towns. But still, credit where credit is due. In America, it's still possible to assert that allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the armed forces will bring about the collapse of Civilization As We Know It without the media treating you like a specialist in tin-foil headgear. In contrast, England not only lifted the ban on homosexuality in the military nine years ago, the military establishment seems very much at ease with the fact. So much so that the cover of this month's issue of the British Army's official magazine, Soldier, features James Wharton, an openly gay offficer wearing his dress uniform and Iraq medal with the word "PRIDE" highlighted next to him. The article from the Independent has much to say about how the ban was lifted and how people both inside and outside of the armed forces have adapted over the last nine years, but for Americans who have watched the shameful treatment of Dan Choi and other servicemembers, the picture to the right speaks louder than words of the differences between the two countries.