Category Archives: Government and Religion

Soldiers, Chaplains Try to Keep Empathy and Humanity in War

An official Department of Defense article notes the importance of empathy in war and its relevance to the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan.  In virtually every war in history each side stereotypically demonizes or otherwise dehumanizes its enemy.  Unfortunately, militaries must move past that division after the war is complete — especially when one military is supporting the establishment of their ‘former enemy’s’ government.

In Afghanistan, one soldier had an epiphany that led him to think more deeply about the people he fights:  Read more

MRFF’s Chris Rodda Criticizes One Military Chapel, Defends Another

If one wasn’t aware of her history, it might have been surprising to see a recent pair of articles highlight the intellectually inconsistency of the MRFF’s Chris Rodda.

Rodda recently went on record defending the construction of the US Air Force Academy chapel facility called the “Falcon Circle” from those who claimed it was an inappropriate use of government money for three cadets (a separate issue discussed elsewhere).  She said:

Designating the stone circle as a chapel facility simply accommodates a religious group with a worship area that meets their needs, something taken for granted by other religious groups at the Academy. Whether the users of that worship space number in the hundreds or in single digits is completely irrelevant when it comes to providing a place for them to worship according to their beliefs.

Comically, four days later an article appeared in the Tennessean quoting the Military Religious Freedom Foundation’s 2009 criticism of the construction of a different chapel at Fort Campbell.

The [MRFF] felt it looked too much like a megachurch Read more

Fort Hood Suspect Planned Execution at Fort Campbell

PFC Naser Abdo has a new lawyer after stating he disagreed with the defense strategy of his prior court-appointed counsel.

Attorney Keith Dorsett told U.S. District Judge Walter Smith during a brief hearing in Waco that his client had been uncooperative.

His trial is scheduled to begin at the end of January.

In a recent phone interview, Abdo also reportedly admitted to planning an attack on Fort Campbell, where he was originally stationed before Read more

USAFA Falcon Circle was “Right Thing to Do”

Update: Also repeated at Military.com.

Don Branum of the US Air Force Academy wrote a comprehensive article entitled “Why building Falcon Circle was ‘right thing to do'”, referencing the outdoor chapel area dedicated for use by members of USAFA claiming an “earth-centered” faith.  The article appeared to respond to Associated Press reports USAFA had spent $80,000 on the facility for but a few cadets.  (It did not appear to be related to the report by Senator Coburn, which did not use the $80K figure.)

The article covers the history — the factual history — of both the cadet chapel and pagans in the US military in general.  In so doing, it naturally compares the Falcon Circle to the Cadet Chapel.

As noted previously, it is neither reasonable nor appropriate to directly compare Read more

Fort Bragg Chaplains Encourage Strong Bonds in Marriage

The Fort Bragg command chaplain’s office hosted the latest meeting of Strong Bonds, the chaplain-based marriage strengthening retreats intended to help troops on the homefront.

“It’s especially critical for military personnel in that it’s difficult enough being in a relationship with someone, but when you take the dynamics of the military, the Army, the separation, the work stress, the long hours from time to time, that puts additional stress on relationships,” said Chaplain (Maj.) Ralph Clark…

The chaplains host 8 such seminars every year, and are based on a variety of relationship models:  Read more

Atheists Fight Marines over Camp Pendleton Cross

Update: Another California paper accuses the LA Times of being “too close” to Camp Pendleton in their failure to get an “obligatory” comment from the ACLU when they first reported on the Camp Horno cross.

An Associated Press article updates the protest by atheist Jason Torpy over the memorials located on Camp Horno, on the Camp Pendleton Marine post in California.  It repeats much of the recent local article, noting a decision isn’t coming until next year, though its title is telling:

Atheists, Marines debate Camp Pendleton crosses

Even if inadvertently, the AP accurately notes it is a ‘battle’ between Torpy and the US Marines, not any other group.

The article also says Torpy is happy for the rest of the memorial to remain, just not the cross.  Ironically, this seems to counter not only the concept of Read more

Study: Top Cause of PTSD is Moral Guilt

In an era in which society encourages each to do his own thing, and “right” is a relative term, a recent study seems to indicate many people do inherently have an understanding of morality at their core — and this may sometimes conflict with the actions required by military combat:

The conflicts that troops feel can range from survivor guilt from living through an attack where other troops died, to witnessing or participating in the unintentional killing of women or children, said researchers involved in the study.

The key quote comes near the end of the article:  Combat experienced US Marines were the subject group, and the study showed

Their condition [PTSD] was more closely linked to an inner conflict Read more

Canadian Court Rules Against Multiple Marriages

While Canada’s acceptance of homosexuality was occasionally held up as a contrast to their southern cousins in the United States, it seems Canada hasn’t worked out all the moral issues associated with “sexual freedom,” either.

In late November British Columbia’s superior trial court upheld Canada’s law banning polygamy and polyamory.

Interestingly, the court found that such prohibitions did violate the religious liberty of some groups — including some Mormons, Muslims, and Wiccans — but the law Read more

1 … 270 271 272 273 274 … 369