Tag Archives: politics

Walter Reed Rescinds Ban on Bible

Update: More than 20,000 people signed a petition in less than 24 hours to “help end the ban” on Bibles at Walter Reed.

A US Army officer “in disbelief” forwarded a Walter Reed National Military Medical Center memorandum regarding patient visitation to the Family Research Council.  The memorandum said:

f. No religious items (i.e. Bibles, reading material, and/or artifacts) are allowed to be given away or used during a visit.

The ban was so broadly written it would prevent even families from providing Bibles to their wounded family members, and it banned priests from bringing the eucharist or providing last rites.  Notably, while the policy banned all religious items, the Bible was the only religious text specifically mentioned.

The FRC circulated the memorandum at Capitol Hill, and Rep Steve King (R-Iowa) took to the House floor and “blasted” the policy:

Mr. Speaker, these military men and women who are recovering at Walter Reed and Bethesda have given their all for America…They’ve Read more

Dismissed General McChrystal Cleared

According to the Associated Press, retired General Stanley McChrystal — former head of operations in Afghanistan, fired by President Obama over disparaging remarks reported in the Rolling Stone — has been “cleared of wrongdoing.”

The probe’s results…called into question the accuracy of the magazine’s report last June, which quoted anonymously people around McChrystal making disparaging remarks about members of President Obama’s national security team, including Vice President Joe Biden…

The Pentagon inquiry also concluded that not all of the events at issue happened as reported in the article.   Read more

Women in Combat Have Three Times Suicide Rate

USA Today notes preliminary data from the US Army indicates “the suicide rate for female soldiers triples when they go to war.”

The findings…show that the suicide rate rises from five per 100,000 to 15 per 100,000 among female soldiers at war. Scientists are not sure why but say they will look into whether women feel isolated in a male-dominated war zone or suffer greater anxieties about leaving behind children and other loved ones.

Some might earlier have called that last statement sexist, particularly in light of recent recommendations that women be allowed in combat Read more

DADT: Gay dating at USAFA, Amos on Marine Moral Compass, More

Below is an update on ongoing issues with respect to the planned repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.

Included below:

  • Polis says USAFA should hire gay Chaplain, welcome same-sex dating
  • Virginia’s proposal to institute its own DADT for its National Guard
  • Transgender appeals for equal treatment following repeal
  • Hunter’s Restore Military Readiness Act of 2011
  • King’s combat unit DADT repeal exemption
  • Repeal training to begin shortly
  • Video message from General Amos on repeal

Read more

Bill Would Permit Religious Symbols in Military Memorials

With frequent, long-lasting, and repeated lawsuits against military memorials with religious symbology, US Congressmen have proposed legislation that would explicitly permit just such memorials.

Rep. Duncan Hunter…introduced the War Memorial Protection Act in response to the federal Ninth Circuit Court’s Jan. 4 ruling, declaring the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial unconstitutional. Joining Hunter as co-sponsors are Congressmen Brian Bilbray of Solana Beach and Darrell Issa of Vista.

All three Congressmen are from the San Diego area.  Several members of Bilbray’s family are reportedly memorialized at the Mount Soledad cross that inspired both the lawsuit and the legislation.

Also noted at the Religion Clause.

Study: Those Who Wait For Marriage Have Better Relationships

A recent study in the American Psychological Association’s Journal of Family Psychology “revealed” that those who waited until they were married before having sexual relations had higher relationship stability, among other factors.

This study is completely unrelated to the military, but there’s an important detail:  The behavior in this study had nothing to do with religion.  (In fact, it was “controlled” out of the study.)

While some are quick to dismiss calls for supporting “moral” conduct as so much bad couscous, there can be (and are, according to this study) secular “benefits” to conduct or characteristics often attributed to a “religious” origin.

Choi to Rejoin Military Despite Mental, Political Issues

Former Army Lt Dan Choi announced in the Huffington Post that he intended to rejoin the military service now that DADT has been repealed.  Homosexuality aside, Choi may have other issues to overcome before the military will let him in.

Choi, originally promoted to “Mr.” below-the-zone for being homosexual, reportedly admitted to being “involuntarily committed” to a psychiatric ward due to Read more

1 … 3 4 5 6 7 … 13