“We have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion. Avarice, ambition, revenge, or gallantry, would break the strongest cords of our Constitution as a whale goes through a net. Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”
– President John Adams, 11 October 1798
ADVERTISEMENT
A group of chaplains speak on their experiences and what the chaplaincy means to them:
Via Jews in Green.
ADVERTISEMENT
The courthouse in which US Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan is to be tried for the Fort Hood massacre looks more like a bunker in Afghanistan than an office building in Texas. As noted by the Associated Press — which includes a rare photo of the combat zone-like revetments:
The military courthouse…has been transformed into a fortress, surrounded by hundreds of stacked freight car-sized shipping containers, and by tall dirt- and sand-filled barriers designed to protect it against the impact of a bomb blast. Armed soldiers stand guard around the building.
The substantial security measures may belie the attributed position that the government characterizes Hasan’s attack as “workplace violence,” not terrorism.
The article also notes the paralyzed Hasan is transported from the local jail to the courthouse by helicopter, at random times, “for his protection.”
ADVERTISEMENT
US Army SFC Dennis Dutton recently came to the MRFF for…help?…after this happened during his graduation from Abrahms Tank Maintainer school at Fort Benning, Georgia, in 2012:
In case you missed it: He’s the one on the stage who didn’t bow his head.
Apparently, it is a point of pride that Read more
Chaplain (1Lt) Justin Cowan served the troops in his unit as they supported efforts in their Colorado communities responding to recent fires:
“Many of these Guard members were manning checkpoints on the Black Forest fire and have returned to duty here, leaving behind Read more
Chaplain (LtCol) Jason Logan:
Prayer Breakfasts are important because they address the soldier’s deeper needs. The Army believes fundamentally that the American soldier is more than just a body and that each soldier has unique needs. One of those specific needs – or pillars as we call them – is spiritual fitness.
ADVERTISEMENT
Michael Weinstein had toned down his conspiracy theories during the spate of negative press, but recently revived one of his favorites: That Christians are trying to take over the US military to start a nuclear war [edits original]:
People are suffering and the consequences are potentially nuclear war; an apocalypse, but not the biblical one. [Instead,] one [brought about] by this weaponized, twisted, poisonous version of Christianity Read more
The US Army has released an updated Social Media Handbook, though it largely focused on official military media actions. Notably, an accompanying article seemed to align Army policy with previously released Air Force guidance:
Soldiers must maintain their professionalism at all times, even on their off time, said Sweetnam.
They are subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice and could face corrective or disciplinary action if Read more