Vietnam veteran gets VA to pull Duck Dynasty "ugly divisive items" from store

Freedom of speech? Freedom of religion? Yes in both cases. Freedom does not mean you, or anyone else, has the right to use yours while abusing theirs. When Phil Robertson said something and people were hurt by it some came out and screamed about his right to say what he wants. That is absolutely true. He does have the right. So does everyone else.

When they were offended by his words and voiced their views publicly, supporters of Robertson came out and screamed about their faith and free speech. Just because they feel the same way does not mean they have the right to silence those who do not share their same views. Robertson does not represent all Christians and there are Christian denominations embracing gay people as God's children. That is what freedom means. Free to make your own choices and believe what you want. Freedom works both ways.

Today some will be screaming about Robertson and Duck Dynasty's right to make a fortune off a TV show while few will actually stop and think what freedom means. The very freedom veterans fought for and many died for. The freedom generations of homosexual military men and women were ready to die to protect while their own rights were removed.

Removing the products has little to so with the show but more to do with showing a religious view condemning the laws of the military shall not be tolerated.

Duck Dynasty products under fire at VA medical center
ABQ Journal
By Mike Bush
Journal Staff Writer
January 7, 2014

A Vietnam veteran has taken aim at Duck Dynasty products on sale at a Veterans Affairs Medical Center store in Albuquerque, and it looks like all the items in his cross hairs will be removed from the canteen’s shelves.

Robert Anderson is one of many people upset over a magazine interview in which Duck Dynasty star Phil Robertson made comments they found racist and homophobic. In the January issue of GQ, the 67-year-old TV patriarch calls homosexuality a sin, comparing it with bestiality. Robertson, who is white, also claims that African-Americans he knew during the Jim Crow era in the South “were happy.”

On Dec. 27, Anderson – who served in the Air Force in Vietnam in the 1960s – wrote to the canteen that he was “greatly offend(ed) that the Veterans Administration Patriot Store would sell items promoting an entertainment group that clearly stands for racism and bigotry.

“The reactionary views incorporated into the Duck Dynasty group are contrary to the policies and mission of the VA medical system to not discriminate among veterans based on race or gender,” he continued. “Please remove these ugly divisive items immediately.”

A few days later, in an email to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Anderson urged quick action “to remove the racist and bigoted products” from VA canteens. On Monday, the Central New Mexico Community College instructor said he was still waiting to hear back from the national office.

Last week, Debra Abeyta, assistant chief of Canteen 501 in Albuquerque, advised Anderson that she, too, was “very upset by the racist remarks made” by Robertson, adding, “We here at the canteen service in no way promote such ideas and have taken steps to remove the product from the store.”
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This is what he said he believed in 2010


While it was very difficult to listen to this whole video of Robertson's preaching what he wants, it became clearer that homosexuals are not his only target. Robertson says he does not believe in evolution even though many believe that God created the world that way. Even the brightest minds say that had the earth been created an inch away from where it began we wouldn't be here. Think about how magnificent that is. He has the right to simplify it anyway he wants.

He ranted about healthcare providers, abortion on and on pointing to the Founding Fathers.

He talks about killing animals but does not mention how putting the "creatures" into our hands also means caring for them along with the earth. Being a meat and potatoes type of person, appreciating the bounty of God providing these creatures into our care.

17:45 he begins on immorality. Running down the list of "sins" all lumped together. As he blows into his duck call devices he talked about Lincoln and the "little piece of meat" hanging down the back of your throat. I had to listen to this part a few times because it didn't make any sense.

This video has some pretty strong language but a friend sent a link to it because the hypocrisy of Robertson is spotlighted along with their yuppy histories. The show is a show but Robertson's preaching is not a show. He says it is what he believes. Pretty sad.