The military was regularly providing flyovers at countless evangelical Christian events all over the country, not only violating the regulations prohibiting military participation in religious events, but spending millions of dollars of taxpayer money in the process.In case you might be one of those who didn't see the harm in the military getting so cozy with Christianity, you might want to read this typical letter to the Military Religious Freedom Foundation. Peruse a few of the dozens of posts Ed Brayton's written regarding the infiltration of our armed services by religious fanatics. And then ponder the fact that we have a military with some of the most powerful ordnance in the world.MRFF began exposing these events, which included flyovers on the five holidays when flyovers at civilian events are permitted, and even a few at National Day of Prayer events, and began to see some decline in their frequency, but we weren't sure if the number of flyovers at these events was really decreasing, or if the military and organizers of these events were just being more careful not to make the nature of the events so obvious.
Well, needless to say, the following letter denying, for the first time in 42 years, the request for a flyover at one Christian rally, released on many websites in conjunction with a Christian Newswire article titled "Pentagon Denies Flyover of Patriotic 'God and Country Rally' in Nampa Idaho Because of its Christian Content," was the best 4th of July present MRFF could have asked for.
America is a secular country. We can't afford to allow our military to become sectarian. It's good to see them begin the long journey back to neutrality.
The military is an institution that must respect all its citizens. It can't be taking sides in divisions based on politics, religion, ethnicity, or gender. For as long as I worked with the military, that was the rule. It wasn't always honored, of course, but few rules are. Seeming support for any group of citizens over others is troubling, and it needs to be corrected before it becomes a habit.
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