God and Country

Dustin Chalker, an Army Sergeant and MRFF “client,” publicly announced that he started a petition on the whitehouse.gov “We the People” website calling for an “End [to] the Military’s Discrimination against Non-Religious Service Members.”

The petition wording reflects some of the sentiment behind Chalker’s failed lawsuit against the Army — a lawsuit that was tossed out because Chalker failed to use the internal grievance systems the Army has in place.  The petition contains similarly vague claims of illegal conduct, which are (still) unsupported to date by any public facts:  Read more…

Senior Airman John Harris is a Messianic Jew who was deployed to the Middle East, but he still wanted to celebrate Sukkot.  With the help of the deployed chaplains, including a Rabbi at a completely different base, he was able to get the support he needed.

“I spoke with the Chapel staff here and they put me in contact with a rabbi at (Joint Base Balad),” said Harris…

“It has been an unexpected joy for me to be able to Read more…

As noted here last year, Georgia Pastor Donald Crosby protested the Warner Robins High School “Demons,” saying the mascot “sent the wrong message” to the teen students.

In a federal lawsuit, Crosby now claims his arrest for picketing without a permit violated his First Amendment rights.

After discovering that his freshman son would be a future “demon” at the school, [Crosby] began collecting signatures of protest and picketed along with more than 20 members of his congregation on the first day of school.

Officers arrested the pastor, however, Read more…

The Air Force Times says Langley AFB’s F-22 fleet has returned to flight after a short grounding following an oxygen-related incident last week.

The rest of the USAF F-22 fleet was not affected.

US Army BrigGen Rhonda Cornum is the director of the Army’s Comprehensive Soldier Fitness program.  She also embodies the values of her own program:

The CSF program focuses on the ability to bounce back from stress or trauma, something she utilized after her experience in the Gulf War…

Cornum flew over the Iraqi desert with her crew in a Black Hawk helicopter Feb. 27, during the fourth day of the U.S. ground assault…

Her crew was responding to the downing of F-16 pilot Capt Bill Andrews, who was shot down over Iraq.  Their helicopter took fire before getting there and crashed.  Five of her crewmates were killed; she was wounded and taken Read more…

The Associated Press notes the Blue Alliance, a “gay and lesbian alumni group” of “almost 100” US Air Force Academy graduates, will host a tailgate party at the Air Force-Army football game next month.  They will also have their annual dinner on the USAFA campus.  Despite their small size, they will have some interesting guests:  Read more…

Addressing Regent University’s Robertson School of Government, president of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission Richard Land told students God calls some into public service — with the express intent of influencing the culture.  Referencing Romans 13, Land said

God “does call some of us to be involved in government, because you cannot write laws that will protect you from bad application by evil people…We need for godly men and women to be willing to be open to the prospect that God’s will for your life may be to go into public service, to serve Read more…

US Army Chaplain (1stLt) Thomas McNeill Bulla was serving in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive in France in October 1918.  He was struck by enemy fire while helping tend to wounded Soldiers, evacuated to a field hospital, and died two days later.  The State of Virginia is awarding him the state’s highest honor:

Bulla never received any recognition by the Army Read more…

The National Catholic Register ran a piece on military chaplains entitled “Profiles in Courage: Military Chaplains,” documenting the roles and experiences of Catholic chaplains in the US military.  While it noted the typical shortage, it also highlighted a surge of new volunteers:

The Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA reported a sharp jump this year in the number of seminarians interested in serving as military chaplains. As the 2011-2012 academic year begins, there are 31 military-affiliated seminarians nationwide, up from three just three years ago.

The article also profiled four military chaplains Read more…

Members of the 3rd Marine Expeditionary Brigade paid a visit to the Gentle Hands Orphanage during a Marine exercise in the Philippines.

Gentle Hands, a Christian child and youth welfare agency, provides shelter and care to children ranging in ages from birth to high school.

The orphanage is currently home to 50 people.

The Marines helped with heavy lifting, moving Read more…

In a somewhat unusual turn of events, the co-pilot (and lone survivor) of a 2010 Coast Guard helicopter crash has been charged with two counts of negligent homicide and other UCMJ violations.

[Lt. Lance] Leone was one of two pilots flying the MH-60 Jayhawk, which crashed off La Push. The crash killed all three other passengers on board.

In addition to the negligent homicide charges, Leone faces two counts of dereliction of duty and destruction of government property, Kip Wadlow, a Coast Guard spokesman, said.

The helicopter flew into power lines Read more…

Michael Weinstein recently highlighted an article by ally Bruce Wilson entitled “Rick Perry Event Pastor Predicts Coming “Prison Camps” For Jews.”  Weinstein prefaced it with (emphasis original)

This is the level of religious fundamentalism that threatens our country’s future, and I will NEVER stop fighting it!

The tone was somewhat unusual, given the topic had nothing to do with the military, which is Weinstein’s self-proclaimed forte.  In fact, there’s no public connection to the MRFF at all, save the personal association between the author and Weinstein’s group.  Weinstein’s critical sensationalism on the topic was a display of rank hypocrisy as well, for Weinstein has similarly predicted a dire future for Jews at the hands of American Christians:

In Plan A, evangelical Christians with a smile on their face will ask you to please, please, please accept their biblical worldview of Jesus. The problem with that is, inevitably, Plan A morphs into Plan B. They stop asking so nicely, and then you have the Holocaust, the pogroms, the Inquisition…  Read more…

The US Air Force Academy explains in a lengthy article discussions from earlier this month on the effects of the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, on Academy policies.

On the panel were Chief Diversity Officer Dr. Adis Vila, Academy Chaplain (Col.) Robert Bruno, judge advocate officer Lt. Col. Karen Rhone and Col. Gary Packard, who led the team that drafted the Defense Department’s plan to implement the repeal of DADT.

The discussion lasted for more than an hour and covered a wide swath of topics, ranging from who could be married at the Cadet Chapel and who could conduct the ceremony to the courses of action available to those who had a deep-seated moral objection to serving alongside gays or lesbians.

The summary hits on several topics, including marriage in military chapels.  As predicted, Col Packard highlights the ability of homosexuals to be “married” Read more…

According to the Air Force Times, the Air Force has reported that a manned QF-4 crash in July was caused by a flight control malfunction.  A stab actuator disconnected and caused an uncommanded, and uncontrollable, pitch up.

The article notes the $2.4 million Read more…

The US Air Force has reported that an F-15C Eagle from Nellis AFB crashed near Alamo, NV, yesterday afternoon.  The pilot ejected and had “started walking” when he was picked up by a rescue helicopter about 30 minutes later.

As usual, the AF will investigate the mishap and report on it some months from now.