Craig Baxam reportedly converted to Islam just prior to leaving the US Army in July.  By December, he had been arrested in Kenya:

Baxam…told investigators he wanted to live in an area governed by the strict edicts of Islamic Sharia law, such as those imposed by Al Shabaab, and defend them to the death if necessary.

He is apparently claiming the “bumbling” defense, sort of: 

[He] told FBI agents that he had no contacts with al-Shabab and only a haphazard plan to connect with the group

This is only the latest development undermining Michael Weinstein’s conspiracy theories.

At this point, at least, it seems Baxam was content to wage his holy war in Africa with al-Shabab, though given Islamic terrorists’ prior use of Islamic Americans to advance their causes (and their apparent intentional recruitment of Americans), there is at least a possibility he would ultimately have become a tool against the United States.  No doubt “former US Army intel analyst” would make a good subtitle during terrorist propaganda videos.

Had Baxam tried to act out his desire — “looking for dying with a gun in [his] hand” fighting for Islam — while he was still in the US Army, he would have been only the latest of several members of the US military to do so.  (Interestingly, three of the four have been members of the US Army; the other was a Marine.)

This week Baxam made the first of what will likely be many court appearances.

Ironically, Chris Rodda and Richard continue to promote Michael Weinstein’s conspiracy theory that Christians are the threat in the US armed forces because they are trying to take over the world.  Despite their claims of the ubiquitous and dangerous threat, however, they have never produced an actual opponent, relying instead on vague or undefined Christian bogeymen as the adversaries in Michael Weinstein’s self-declared “war.”  They have never once provided proof a member of the US military advocated taking over the military or the world, never mind acting out in violence based upon any religious beliefs.

With the possible exception of one Jewish lay leader, all of Michael Weinstein’s public “opponents” have been identified as Christian — if they were identified all, which most weren’t.  This hasn’t deterred Weinstein’s group from assigning beliefs to them, whether they hold such beliefs or not.

These are the same people Michael Weinstein said would bring about the second holocaust, yet in six years and four lawsuits, Weinstein has never once successfully supported his claims.  In fact, he’s never even followed through after his claims were summarily dismissed.  (He has, however, raked in significant sums in donations over the publicity the controversies generated, more than half of which has gone to his own paycheck.)  Apparently, he is losing because the conspirators in the “shadow government” are deftly hiding, probably in a bunker with Dick Cheney, James Dobson, Tim Tebow, and Colonel Sanders planning their coup even as we speak.  Seriously.

While Rodda, Richard, Leah Burton and others don their tin foil hats over the beliefs they assign to Christians, it seems they’ve intentionally ignored other religions with a bit more empirical evidence:  When Islamic members of the US military have expressed the very views Weinstein has said are worthy of court martial, it seems Rodda, Richard, and Weinstein have said and done…nothing. 

For example, PFC Naser Abdo, currently charged with attempting to kill US soldiers at Fort Hood (in the name of Islam), publicly stated his belief that Islam was inconsistent with service in the US military because he might have to fight other Muslims.  Weinstein had previously said such language was worthy of court-martial — yet despite Weinstein having a direct conversation with Abdo (before the planned attack), Weinstein said nothing publicly about Abdo’s statements.  Even so, Weinstein continues to excoriate Christians for ‘violating their oaths’ in favor of their religion based not on their actions, but on his interpretation of the beliefs he claims Christians have.  For example,

A group called the Officers Christian Fellowship, and for the enlisted folks, the Christian Military Fellowship. These groups have a goal they believe is much more important than the [military] oath they all swore…Either you accept our view, or either we or our version of Jesus will have to kill you, and our version of Jesus will light you up on fire for Eternity, so you’re really gonna be dead.

Note he accuses Christians of planning violence against their fellow troops — something unrecorded in modern history — while he has ignored the trend of Muslim troops who have actually acted out such violence.

Weinstein has even defended Muslims against “Islamophobia” while practicing a virulent form of “Christophobia” himself — a dissonance he appears to embrace happily.

The one thing Weinstein and the members of his Military “Religious Freedom” Foundation have been unified on has been their common disgust for those they consider to be the ‘wrong kind’ of Christian.  The MRFF seems happy to criticize those whose religious beliefs they interpret as unworthy of religious freedom — while intentionally ignoring those who plan to or actually do act out in violence based on their religious beliefs.

Associates of the MRFF — Weinstein, Rodda, Burton, Richard and others — aren’t promoting religious freedom.  They only want to restrict the religious freedom of some Christians they disagree with.

How’s that for ‘protecting the Constitution?’