Repeal this law.

That's the only conclusion one can reach after the release Tuesday of an exhaustive Pentagon study that concluded that allowing gay men and women to serve openly in the military posed a low risk even in a time of war and that 70 percent of service members believe that repealing the outdated "don't ask, don't tell" law would either be positive, mixed or have no consequence.

Repeal this law.

The nine-month study on the effects of doing away with "don't ask, don't tell" found that in the short run there might be some "limited and isolated disruption to unit cohesion and retention." But that could be dealt with through strong leadership. The study also found that most of the concerns raised were "exaggerated and not consistent with the reported experiences of many service members."

Defense Secretary Robert Gates said repeal, if it comes, should be done carefully. But he said repeal should be a "matter of urgency," and he called on the Senate to vote for repeal during the lame-duck session. Otherwise, repeal might be imposed by the courts, he said.

We agree with the idea of urgency — and not simply because of fear of court action. This is, and always has been, a simple matter of fairness. Citizens should be allowed to serve their country and to live their own lives without fear of recrimination.

"We are both convinced that our military can do this, even during this time of war," wrote Jeh C. Johnson, the Pentagon's chief counsel, and Gen. Carter F. Ham, the commander of the U.S. Army in Europe. "We do not underestimate the challenges in implementing a change in the law, but neither should we underestimate the ability of our extraordinarily dedicated service men and women to adapt to such change and continue to provide our nation with the military capability to accomplish any mission."

Gates said it best: "Now that we have completed this review, I strongly urge the Senate to pass this legislation and send it to the president for signature before the end of this year."

He's right. Repeal this law.

REPRINTED FROM THE MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL.