Tag Archives: aetc

Air Force Colonel Michael Madrid Punished for Religious Expression

First Liberty Institute has sent a letter to the Air Force demanding the reversal of punitive actions taken against Col Michael Madrid for expressing his religious beliefs about sexuality.

In 2014, one of then-LtCol Madrid’s subordinates — who was in the middle of being court-martialed — accused Col Madrid of

“engaging in demeaning and derogatory behavior toward [the subordinate] based on [the subordinate’s] sexual orientation” thus “creat[ing] a hostile work environment.”

Besides the troubled circumstances of Read more

General: UAV Pilots will Outnumber All Others

General Edward Rice, commander of the Air Force Air Education and Training Command, has made (the foreseeable) statement that UAV pilots will someday outnumber all other pilots in the Air Force.

Of course, the birth of the nuclear age foretold the end of the fighter pilot era, and the demise of the dedicated close air support aircraft has been predicted (and proven false) repeatedly.  The future is anything but entirely certain.

MRFF Belittles Senator Cornyn’s Defense of Constitution

As predicted, it wasn’t long before Chris Rodda came out in defense of Michael Weinstein’s “big victory” for his self-founded Military Religious Freedom Foundation that Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) recently seemed to undermine.  From the Huffington Post:

This summer, the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) scored a big victory…

Senator John Cornyn…doesn’t like the Air Force’s decision…

Rodda’s article is essentially a rehash of the prior writeups, with the addition of Cornyn’s letter.  One “new” piece of information is Rodda’s claim that Read more

Catholics and Air Force Nuclear Weapons

Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, wrote a letter to General Edward Rice, the Commander of Air Education and Training Command.  AETC oversees the training program at Vandenberg Air Force Base, which recently dropped a course because, depending on who you ask, it used Bible verses.  Calling the Air Force’s decision to pull the class “wrongheaded,” he says

[T]here is absolutely nothing in the Constitution of the United States that disqualifies a presentation of St. Augustine’s “just war theory,” and related biblical references. In fact, the First Amendment protects freedom of speech, as well as religious liberty…Moreover, biblical passages are often cited when referencing the work of Rev. Martin Luther King. Should we similarly censor them?

I have read the materials used in the class, and can assure you that no one — save an anti-religious zealot — would find fault with them. I therefore urge you to stand fast against these bullies and do what is academically right and constitutionally protected: reinstate the class.

He also notes that Michael Weinstein is a Read more