[outdog]

For me, I tend to wonder how deep the ACLU is trying to search. Rape and Sexual Assault both have a certain level of confidentiality involved for reporting for the servicemember's protection. If that is among the information being denied to the ACLU then I absolutely understand our reluctance to release that type of information. To put it mildly, the ACLU has a fairly checkered history where actual civil liberties are concerned and I'd hesitate to give them anything that could later be used against us to suit their own agenda.

Fundamentally they make a good point, despite the policies in place, our military culture has not raised its level of awareness to really effectively handle the issues. Too ingrained in our lines of thinking are preconceived notions that the incidents are probably false reportings or that the victim's actions or attire prior to the incident helped enable the action. That or the impulse we tend to have to break down all confidentialily to engage in a full-out witchhunt make reporting of actual incidents sporadic at the best of times. I agree the problem persists.

But, to what purpose does the comprehensive disclosure of this information serve? The problem here is culturally ingrained, and cannot be unilaterally solved at the leadership level. For the problem to be solved individuals have to believe it's a problem and to believe it's important to solve it. Barring that all we'd be doing is shoving redundant policy down our own throats.