Thanks to Mike for flagging this up in another thread. I’m not going to write a long article about this at the moment, right now I just want to help spread the news: The US Army has sabbotaged Rock Beyond Belief so badly that it’s had to be cancelled.
Here’s the full story on examiner.com for those who can bear to read it
I can only imagine how Sgt. Justin Griffith is feeling right now. I doubt that betrayed even approaches it.
On a possitive note, the Military Religious Freedom Foundation is weighing in and lawyering up for a legal fight on this; I hope the officer(s) responsible get eaten alive by rabid Supreme Court Justices.
That Directive is 5410.18. is going to be hell for the military. Before seeing that, I was convinced that they had to (legally) give comparable events, and figured the easy loop hole would be, “Oh, we’re sorry, we shouldn’t have had that religious event; likewise we shouldn’t now have your secular event.” Completely the opposite of what the directive calls for. Law is not the military’s friend.
Disappointed,but unsurprised….had thought this was a completely private venture,but now learning it wasn’t quite suprised it got this far along.
Suggestion: hit the link, read the story, and click the “donate” button at the bottom to help the Military Religious Freedom Foundation in their legal fight against the military’s christian bias.
I saw this same kind of bullsh#$%t for the six years I was in. I couldn’t take anymore and got out. I give Justin all the credit in the world for keeping up the good fight.
Wow, just wow. If this does not prove that religious bias exists in the military/US gov’t then … it does, nevermind.
User Weaver at RatSkep sent SSGT Griffith a supportive email in this thread: http://www.rationalskepticism.org/atheists-in-foxholes/rock-beyond-belief-cancelled-t20201.html
I spent 20 years in the Navy and good bit of time stationed at NAS Oceana in Virginia. At the time, I had a good friend who claimed Satanism as his religion of choice. I had not yet evolved to Atheism, but I was well on my way.
The point being, he had a personalized plate on his car that said “STN-666″ legally issued by the state and granted access to the base by security. All legal and within regs. After about 2 years, someone noticed his plate and made a complaint to the Skipper of the base…who promptly banned his car from the base.
We wanted to file a greivance with the legal office…but none of the JAGs would take it on and we couldn’t afford a civilian lawyer that could swing the hammer. Finally, my friend just gave up, got a new plate, and went on about his life. Looking back, I wish we’d tried harder. This kind of thing makes me sick, especially in the military where the Constitution is supposed to be the bible, not the Bible.
For anyone in the States who gives a ****….
http://www.change.org/petitions/demand-that-the-us-army-show-equal-treatment-for-religious-and-non-religious-soldiers#?opt_new=t