Tag Archives: Navy

Mikey Weinstein Attacks POW/MIA Displays

POW/MIA display tables — symbolically empty tables representing those who did not come home — have long been a fixture in military dining halls and formal ceremonies. They’ve also been a sore spot for militant secularists, who object to the traditional inclusion of a Bible on the table. Prior controversies have been discussed before, including one at Patrick Air Force Base earlier this year that resulted in the table being completely removed because it was “divisive.”

Michael “Mikey” Weinstein has now gotten into the fray, complaining to the US Navy that an official Navy blog included an info graphic of the traditional table — complete with Bible:

Weinstein had a predictably adjective-filled response:  Read more

Navy Celebrates 239th Birthday with Worship Service

The US Navy celebrated its birthday at its service academy in Annapolis with a worship service in the US Naval Academy chapel:

The worship service reflected several religious traditions from those participating in the service and included remarks from Vice Adm. Walter E. Carter, Jr., Superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy, and Chief of Navy Chaplains Rear Adm. Margaret Grun Kibben. Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Michael Stevens also attended and participated in the scripture reading.

Chaplain Kibben called for courage:  Read more

WWII Vet Receives Norse Burial

The US Navy routinely performs burials at sea for qualified veterans, ceremonies that follow religious traditions despite the complaints of some who see a collusion between religion and the military.

The US Coast Guard recently performed a ceremony for World War II veteran Andrew Haines, and it honored his request as well — for what the Navy Times called a “Viking funeral“:

Haines…wanted a burial at sea…. On Sept. 29, the Station Atlantic City Coast Guard conducted the burial about three miles off the coast of New Jersey.

[The] handcrafted wooden Norse-style vessel…was lowered into a recess on the Coast Guard ship, where the shavings inside the boat were lighted with a flare and pushed out to sea.

Boatswain’s Mate 1st Class Christopher Fonseca, the unit’s operations officer, Read more

Two F/A-18s Lost at Sea, One Pilot Recovered

The US Navy reported two F/A-18Cs crashed while flying from the USS Carl Vinson in the Pacific.

Two F/A-18 Hornets from Carrier Air Wing 17 embarked on the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) crashed at 5:40 p.m. local time, today, while operating at sea in the western Pacific Ocean.

The F/A-18C is the single-seat version of the legacy Hornet. One pilot was “rapidly located” while a search was conducted for the second.  The search was eventually suspended and the pilot, 26-year old Lt. Nathan Poloski, was declared presumed dead.  The aircraft are believed to have collided.

Also at the Military Times (and updated). Read more

Air Force Seeks DoD Review of Oath

Update: Patrick Vaughn, general counsel for the American Family Association, wrote an article saying “The U.S. Constitution makes it clear: American atheists are not and should not be barred from serving their country through military service.”

Facing scrutiny for its letter-of-the-law requirement that Airmen enlist with “So help me God,” the Air Force has asked the DoD General Counsel to provide an official legal opinion:

The Air Force said Tuesday it was awaiting a legal opinion from the Defense Department’s top lawyer on whether an enlisted airman who’s an atheist can opt out of the phrase “so help me God” in his re-enlistment oath…

“The opinion that we’re seeking will help inform future decisions and the latitude that can be taken with the oath,” Air Force spokeswoman Rose Richeson said Tuesday. “But the Air Force has to comply with law.”

From an objective position, Read more

Mikey Weinstein Threatens Lawsuit over Navy Bibles

Update: A variety of groups signed a letter to the Navy asking them to allow the Bibles to remain in the Navy lodges.

Riding the coattails of the Freedom From Religion Foundation, Michael “Mikey” Weinstein has threatened to sue the US Navy if it fails to remove Bibles from its lodging rooms:

If the Navy refuses to pull the Bibles “out of every single room,” said Mikey Weinstein of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, “we are looking to file a federal lawsuit.”

For the record, Weinstein threatens to sue someone at every turn.  It is likely this threat is as empty as virtually all the others.  (He lost the few lawsuits he filed many years ago, further undermining his threats.)

Weinstein’s apparent paranoia was on full display:  Read more

Navy Christens First Ship for Homosexual

As announced last year, the US Navy recently christened a research vessel for late astronaut Sally Ride.

The Navy [christened] the Auxiliary General Oceanographic Research (AGOR) R/V Sally Ride (AGOR 28) Saturday, Aug. 9, during a ceremony held at the Port of Anacortes Transit Shed in Anacortes, Washington.

There had previously been a push to name a vessel for Harvey Milk, which was opposed even by some homosexuals. Ride at least had credentials to justify the honor.

Read more

Allen West Compares Mikey Weinstein, ISIS

In an interesting twist to an old tale, Allen West — a retired Army LtCol and former Florida Representative — compared the “covert action of atheist groups” in the United States to the militant attacks by the terrorist group ISIS in Syria and Iraq:

What is the difference between the violent actions of ISIS and the covert actions of these atheist groups? Let’s be honest, the desired end state and result is the same — the death of Christianity.

Citing Michael “Mikey” Weinstein’s attacks on religious liberty (specifically, his support for the  Navy lodges banning Gideon Bibles), West said  Read more

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