Thursday, October 5, 2017

MIKEY's NEW OP-ED ON HUFFPOST & DAILY KOS

USAFA’s LGEN. Silveria Speech
"8 Words Short of Epic!"

8 Words Short Of Epic

Wednesday, October 4, 2017

By: Michael L. "Mikey" Weinstein, Esq.
Date: Wednesday, October 4, 2017

"...While at the highest level, we remain in serious need of virile leadership, I was pleasantly surprised this past week when the USAF Academy's (USAFA's) new Superintendent, Lt. Gen. Jay Silveria, reflexively pulled rank to decisively and potently shut down a disgusting display of racism that recently occurred at my alma mater. The bigotry there isn't new; but after some low-life scumbags scrawled racist slurs on whiteboards located outside their dorm rooms at USAFA's cadet-candidate prep school, Silveria's speech was refreshingly charged with the electrical current of moral authority. Indeed, he made it crystal clear that in no way would this expression of bigotry be timidly tucked under the rug at USAFA. Bravo.

MRFF applauds his efforts. But, having seen what we have at USAFA over many long years...having been personally touched, jaded and burned by the Academy's culture of fundamentalist Christian religious bigotry, and having represented countless Academy cadets, faculty and staff, all facing prejudice because of their religion or because of their lack thereof, MRFF finds itself wanting to hear much, much more from Lt. General Silveria.

Well, at least 8 words more...."

Click to read on Huffpost & Daily Kos

STARS AND STRIPES
PUBLISHES MRFF's REBUKE
OF OPINION PIECE
DEFENDING CH. HERNANDEZ

Issues surrounding chaplain are not theological

Wednesday, October 4, 2017

Rebuttal to the Sept. 29, 2017 Stars and Stripes Op-Ed of Reverend Tommy Vallejos

It is ironic to have to remind Reverend Vallejos of one of the Ten Commandments - not to lie. Yet, in his Opinion letter published on September 29, 2017, he makes at least two false statements. First, no one, to include the Military Religious Freedom Foundation [MRFF], is "persecuting" Chaplain (Captain) Sonny Hernandez for his "personal faith." Second, the Reverend's claim that the Air Force did not follow up on MRFF's complaints against Chaplain Hernandez is likewise demonstrably false - all he had to do was read the September 22nd article in the Stars and Stripes which noted that, "the Air Force is reviewing IG complaints made against Chaplain Hernandez that were referred to the AirForce Inspector General's office." [...]

Click to read on Stars and Stripes

(Stars and Stripes has limited free views of article)

Click for background on
Rev. Vallejo's delusional,
pro-Hernandez opinion piece

Click for Background on Captain Hernandez, currently under USAF investigation

STARS AND STRIPES OP-ED BY REVEREND TOMMY VALLEJOS, REBUTTED ABOVE BY MRFF

Don't persecute chaplain for practicing his faith

Friday, September 29, 2017

Can a person of faith serve in the military? As a retired military veteran, a Hispanic, and a man of deep faith, I was shaken to my core after reading a recent story about Chaplain (Capt.) Sonny Hernandez coming under fire for sharing commonly held biblical principles with his fellow Air Force servicemembers ("Air Force chaplain controversy: religious freedom vs. personal faith," Sept. 21).

[...]

Thankfully for Hernandez, the Air Force did not follow up on the complaint filed by the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF), a group whose mission is to eradicate any religious influence in the military on the basis of instilling a "separation of church and state" — taken to mean that public life must be free of faith or any degree of religious influence. [...]

Click to read on Stars and Stripes

We receive an enormous amount of emails at the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, both from our supporters and detractors.
Through "MRFF's Inbox", we share some of these emails with you.

Click to view MRFF's Inbox

"weinstein is leading you all to the eternal flames"

From: (name withheld)
Subject: weinstein is leading you all to the eternal flames
Date: October 4, 2017 at 4:56:27 PM MDT
To: Mikey Weinstein

Do you fine folks at the MFRR even know that when you die you will not be going to heaven?
You will going to your father in Hell. The devil.
You will be set on fire to roast for your evil in opposing the Son of God for our military men.
And you will have satan's right hand man to thank for your burning alive forever.

Michael Weinstein.
Mikey your fearless leader is of satan by satan and for satan.
And he is a jew as we can all see so well. (John 8:44)
Mikey is satan's little helper.
Condemn him for his demonic evil before Jesus will make you pay for not doing so.

(a service member's wife who knows what she is talking about)

Response by MRFF Advisory Board Member Mike Farrell

Hi (name withheld),

You may actually be a service member's wife, there's no way to know about that, but you sure as hell don't know what you're talking about.

The sickness that permeates your "knowledge," your apparent belief system, is alarming because it is what promotes this ugly assault on people you don't know yet feel free to condemn. I urge you to talk to your service member husband and see if you can't find some psychological help through him or his medical connections.

Just to be as clear as possible in the face of your perverse views and accusations, none of us is going to the hell you envision, a place the idea of which obviously torments you. Nor are any of us "opposing the Son of God for our military men," as you claim to believe. We support those in the military and, in particular, support their right to believe as they choose rather than having them left to suffer while misguided hyper-Christian zealots like you insist their personal, twisted and in your case wacky beliefs on them.

Mikey takes a lot of heat from bigots like you for being "a jew," as you put it. But you know, so was Jesus. And he took a lot of crap too. I see no reason to condemn Mikey; instead I applaud him for his steadfast dedication to supporting the constitutional rights of every woman and man in the service of their country.

You might think about being a fraction of the American citizen he is. If you were you'd find a lot of ways to be of value to your husband and your country rather than being a pathetic bigot spewing hatred in the name of God.

Mike Farrell
(MRFF Board of Advisors)