Tag Archives: Military

Senate Confirms New Secretary of the Air Force

Deborah Lee James has been confirmed by the US Senate, which clears the way for her to be sworn in later this month as the newest Secretary of the Air Force.

“On behalf of the more than 690,000 men and women of the U.S. Air Force, I want to welcome Secretary James to our Air Force family,” Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh said in a Dec. 13 statement. “I’m confident that she’ll lead us with the same vision and passion she’s shown throughout her public service and private sector leadership, building on the extraordinary accomplishments of our Acting Secretary Eric Fanning, who has magnificently led our Air Force these last few months.”

Acting Secretary Eric Fanning has been filling in since Secretary Donley retired in June.

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2014 NDAA Strengthens Religious Liberty, Raises Mikey Weinstein Concerns

The 2014 National Defense Authorization Act that came out of the congressional conference committee last week strengthens language protecting religious liberty in the US military — and implicitly scolds the Department of Defense for not implementing such guidance already.

The House has already passed the new bill.  In short, if the Senate passes the bill and President Obama signs it, which seems to be expected (excepting the new controversy over retiree benefits), the Department of Defense will be required to accommodate not merely belief, but also expressions of belief, to the extent that it does not adversely affect the mission. The Act amends Section 533 of the last NDAA to read [changes emphasized]:

Unless it could have an adverse impact on military readiness, unit cohesion, and good order and discipline, the Armed Forces shall accommodate individual expressions of belief of a member of the armed forces reflecting the sincerely held conscience, moral Read more

Mt Soledad Memorial Cross Ruled Unconstitutional. Again.

US District Judge Larry Burns ruled that the Mount Soledad war memorial cross must be removed from its perch above San Diego, but he immediately stayed his own order pending appeals.

While recent news reports have focused on the order to remove the cross, this is actually old news in the two-decade old case, and Judge Burns has essentially acted only to move the case forward — not end it. In fact, Judge Burns disagrees with his own ruling:

The five-page order, issued Thursday, makes clear that Judge Burns does not believe the Mount Soledad cross violates the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause. “This court previously held (and continues to believe) Read more

Can a Christian Chaplain Serve in the US Military?

The Reverend (Dr.) Al Mohler recently asked a question heretofore unknown:  Can Evangelical Chaplains Serve God and Country?

Mohler addresses the repeal of DADT, as well as the recent clarifications to the Southern Baptist Convention’s policies regarding their military chaplains.

He also notes the irony that some advocates for homosexuals proclaimed the repeal of DADT would be a non-event, even for chaplains.  Some of those same Read more

X-37B Passes One Year in Orbit

The US Air Force’s secretive X-37B reusable unmanned space vehicle has surpassed a year in orbit.

The unmanned X-37B spacecraft — flying a mission known as Orbital Test Vehicle 3 (OTV-3) — launched into space atop an Atlas 5 rocket from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on Dec. 11, 2012. What payloads the space plane is toting and the overall mission goals on its confidential cruise are classified.

The Space.com article notes that “skywatchers” have been constantly monitoring the X-37’s orbit and altitude changes. What it is actually doing remains a mystery.

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Group Tries to Turn DoD Against Southern Baptists

Tom Carpenter of the Forum on the Military Chaplaincy previously took issue with the Southern Baptist Convention’s stance on homosexuality as it pertained to their military chaplains. In short, Carpenter said it essentially eliminated their ability to be military chaplains.

Next, Carpenter took a quiet but dramatic step by trying to persuade the Secretary of Defense of the error of the SBC’s ways:  Carpenter wrote a letter trying to get the DoD to “ask” the SBC to “revisit” the guidance they issued to their chaplains. Fortunately, the DoD was unfazed, for now. The DoD responded to Carpenter saying  Read more

A Private Act Sends a Public Message

Some have recently expressed heartburn over Baptist, Catholic, and other Christian US military chaplains being told not take part in any event or ceremony where a possible acceptance of homosexuality might be construed.  In that light, Rev (Dr) Al Mohler had an interesting commentary on the recent decision by former President George H.W. Bush and his wife to attend such a ceremony — and the very public impact of that simple “private” event:

According to The Washington Post, the elder Bushes attended the wedding of Bonnie Clement and Helen Thorgalsen, held at Kennebunkport, Maine…The 41st President of the United States was present, along with the former First Lady…

No one should be surprised by the Read more

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