Pentagon: OK to talk about faith Hallelujah!

Pentagon: OK to talk about faith, but not to push beliefs on others
By Chris Carroll
Stars and Stripes
Published: May 2, 2013

WASHINGTON — It’s OK to evangelize. But it’s not OK to proselytize.

That’s what the Pentagon said Thursday, attempting to clarify its position on religious speech in uniform as controversy swirled up around press reports over possible prosecutions of troops for sharing their faith.

What it comes down to, officials said, is that discussing matters of faith and religious practice with a willing audience is allowed, but pushing religious beliefs on those who don’t want to hear it is a form of harassment forbidden under Defense Department policies.

“Service members can share their faith (evangelize), but must not force unwanted, intrusive attempts to convert others of any faith or no faith to one’s beliefs (proselytization),” Pentagon spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Nate Christensen said in a written statement.

Officials said there was no plan to step up disciplinary action to weed out unacceptable religious speech.
read more here

Clergy no longer deaf, dumb and blind to veterans

Clergy no longer deaf, dumb and blind to veterans
February 12, 2011 posted by Chaplain Kathie

Living in Florida, knowing this state has over a million veterans and at least one church on every major street, I thought getting the clergy involved in helping veterans would be easy. I was totally wrong. A couple of years ago, I visited over 20 churches in the Orlando area. I was armed with over 20 years of information from research and living with it. I knew how churches work along with what their mission is supposed to be because I worked for a church as administrator of Christian Education. Each year for Memorial Day and Veterans Day, there are special services honoring the men and women serving this nation. Weekly prayers are offered up for all the troops. This is why I was so stunned and disheartened discovering only one out of the twenty churches responded after my visit. The pastor happened to be a veteran and a chaplain. He agreed more had to be done to help veterans in our own community. He couldn’t get involved here because he was transferring to another state. It was almost as if they have been deaf to the cries for help from their own communities.

Tracking PTSD across the country there will be a report of churches getting involved, which means they are paying attention refusing to remain uninformed. These churches are no longer denying how trauma, especially combat trauma, eats away at the soul from the simple fact PTSD is an attack against the emotional part of the brain. God is always involved in trauma. People survive it then wonder if God saved them or put them in the middle of it to suffer. Soldiers always seem to wonder where God was when this happened or that happened because they saw the worst that one human can do to another. Children used as shields, bombs blowing up women and children along with old men and the friend here one minute, killed the next one. After this they wonder how God could allow all of this to happen. Where was he? Then they question the existence of God Himself.

Most people do not have a nurtured relationship with God. They get their cues from their parents first and then whatever church their family attends. Too many have never gone to church, so their knowledge of God begins pure and simple as it develops from life. Others are subjected to sermons on how much God will punish them if they do something wrong instead of how much God loved them and they could be forgiven because of Christ paying the debt. It is easy for them to have their limited faith pulled away from them leaving them to believe they are not only totally alone but condemned to suffer.

I have no tolerance when it comes to military proselytizing. To hear a Chaplain has told a grieving soldier he is going to hell because he is not a member of the right denomination should have all of us understand how much harm is being done while they are on active duty. It leaves them with nowhere to turn topped off with being shoved away from the spiritual help they wanted.
read more here
Clergy no longer deaf, dumb and blind to veterans

Disabled veteran denied pain meds because he wouldn't convert

The good news in this is that the VA did send this veteran to a new doctor but the bad news is it ever reached that point. I am a chaplain because I do believe in the power of prayer but faith cannot be forced onto anyone and it is up to them what they believe or not. As a person of faith I see it as my job to show love, compassion and care for others but it is not my job to judge someone, try to convert them or pressure them into anything. I address questions regarding faith carefully, as if what I say matters just as much as the person I am talking to. For a government office to have anyone trying to religiously convert anyone, getting involved in influencing their personal faith at all is way out of line.

A Crusade and a Holy War in the US Military
-- Jason Leopold

An Orthodox Jew and former petty officer in the US Navy said his civil rights were violated after a chaplain and officials at a Veterans Administration hospital in Iowa City, Iowa, tried to convert him to Christianity while he was under the V.A.'s care.

David Miller, 46, who is on full disability, said in an interview that his physician at the Veterans Affairs (V.A.) Medical Center in Iowa City told him last week to go home and pray or meditate in place of using medication to relieve the pain he was experiencing from kidney stones. When Miller complained to V.A. staffers that his physician suggested he turn to God to treat his medical condition and refused to prescribe pain medication, V.A. officials provided him with a new doctor.

"My doctor said that since I am a religious Jew, I should try prayer or meditation to deal with the pain," Miller said. "I was shocked that a medical doctor would make such a suggestion. I immediately raised hell and was assigned a new physician."

Kurt Sickels, a spokesman for the Iowa City V.A. Medical Center, said that he could not comment on Miller's specific allegations against the hospital, but he said the V.A. does not try to convert patients to Christianity.

"We respect all religious preferences and beliefs, and we make every effort to accommodate what those beliefs may be," Sickels said.

If officials tried to convert Miller, Sickels said, the hospital staff is not adhering to its policy.

Miller dresses in the traditional attire required for Orthodox Jews. He started receiving treatment for a heart condition and kidney stones at the Iowa City V.A. hospital after moving back to his hometown two years ago. Since then, he said, a chaplain on duty at the hospital has tried on numerous occasions to convert him to Christianity.

"The first two visits by the Protestant (Assembly of God) chaplain were all about trying to convert me, trying to convince me that I needed Jesus, that Jesus was the Messiah of the Jews too," Miller said. "My medical records clearly indicate that I am Jewish. However, with each admission, I have informed the nursing staff both verbally and in writing that I require kosher food and that I do not wish to be visited by anyone from the chaplain's office. I requested they contact my rabbi, and I provided them with his name and telephone number. Despite these instructions, during all three of my hospitalizations, I have been denied kosher food and have had to endure my entire hospitalizations without eating."

The chaplain, Miller said, provided him with a copy of a scripture from the New Testament, despite Miller's protests that he be left alone. click link for more

How is this possible? It happens while they are in the military and there are some in the VA believing they have every right to get involved in the personal choices of our veterans. Faith is a very personal thing. When they suggest prayer, that is fine as long as they do not get involved in what-who-how the veteran prays. Spirituality is important in healing but that is when it is of their own freewill, needs and beliefs.

Soldiers allege punishment over Christian show

Soldiers allege punishment over Christian show

By Joe Gould - Staff writer
Posted : Monday Sep 6, 2010 10:03:09 EDT

The Army is investigating allegations that soldiers were pressured to attend a Christian concert — and punished when they refused.

Pvt. Anthony Smith says he was one of 80 soldiers in Advanced Individual Training at Fort Eustis, Va., who were punished for opting not to attend a Christian rock concert on post. The soldiers were confined to their barracks, ordered to clean and were barred from using cell phones and other electronics, according to Smith and another soldier who asked to remain anonymous.

The Army is conducting an investigation into the incident, ordered by Lt. Gen. John E. “Jack” Sterling, Training and Doctrine Command chief of staff, TRADOC spokesman Harvey Perritt said. Perritt and a Fort Eustis spokesman declined to offer details while the investigation continues.

Col. Thomas Collins, an Army spokesman at the Pentagon, said the military should not impose religious views on soldiers.

“It’s not a problem to hold a Christian rock concert on an Army post; it’s a problem if soldiers who didn’t want to attend were compelled to attend or feel punished for not attending,” he said. “That is not consistent with Army policy.”
read more here
Soldiers allege punishment over Christian show


I felt the same way when I wrote this,,,,,

Monday, August 23, 2010

Soldiers Punished for Refusing to Attend a Christian Rock Concert
There is nothing wrong with being a Christian. There is something very wrong with trying to force others to become one. There is nothing wrong with talking about the love of Christ. There is something wrong with trying to force someone to love Christ. There is nothing wrong with talking about your own faith, no matter which group you happen to belong to. There is something wrong with power being given to your denomination over others just as there is something wrong with the military doing any of this.Maybe you're devoted like I am but thinking of what Christ means in your own life was not forced on you. You had the right to decide which church to attend. Christians come from many different denominations and each has their own set of rules as well as beliefs. If you read this story based on your own faith then look deeper and know this isn't about just being a Christian, but a member of the selected group of Christians above all others. This isn't about making a choice of your own freewill but being forced to conform. This nation was built on the foundation of religious freedom and was defended by the blood of those who serve in the military. If you find no problem with these things going on in the military then you are not supporting your own faith, your own country or the troops.
click link for the rest of this

Are Some Troops Being Evangelized

To my Christian brothers and sisters

You may not think proselytizing is a problem. You may think it is a good thing but you are not looking at the ramifications behind this.

I am Greek Orthodox, in other words, fall under Eastern Orthodox. We kneel when we pray, eat bread and drink wine for communion. Should I have the power to tell someone else they are not worthy if they do not? Christians can't even agree on the Creed

The Church has widely used the Nicene Creed since the fifth century. In some liturgical churches, for example the Episcopal/Anglican Churches, it is recited every Sunday. In others, the Nicene Creed is alternated with the Apostles’ Creed for Sunday worship, although the Apostles’ Creed is more often used at Baptismal services. The Eastern Orthodox tradition uses only the Nicene Creed. While most non-liturgical Protestant churches prefer the shorter Apostles’ Creed, none would object to the doctrines the Nicene Creed summarizes. It is the only creed accepted by all three major branches of Christendom: Protestant, Roman Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox. -Dennis Bratcher, ed.

We believe in one God the Father, the Almighty, creator of heaven and earth, and of all that is, seen and unseen. (visible and invisble)

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, (eternally) begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one being [substance] with the Father. Through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven; by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made truly human. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father [and the Son]. With the Father and the Son he is worshipped and glorified. He has spoken through the Prophets.

We believe in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen
http://www.crivoice.org/creedsearly.html

I visit many churches and often remain silent when even the Lord's prayer is said because I am not sure what words they will use. I remain silent when they the Creed is said because of the same reason. I do not want to offend anyone nor do I want to demand the right to say the Creed as I know it in their church.

The Major Denominations:
Roman Catholic - The Roman Catholic Church denomination is the largest Christian group in the world today with more than a billion followers constituting about half of the world's Christian population.

Eastern Orthodox - Approximately 225 million people worldwide are Orthodox Christians.

Protestant - There are approximately 500 million Protestants in the world.

In a 2002 study conducted by the Pew Research Council, 53 percent of Americans identified themselves as Protestant Christians. There are approximately 500 million Protestants in the world. {1}

"Protestantism" is less a denomination than a general branch of Christianity encompassing numerous denominations and a wide theological spectrum ranging from conservative to liberal.

Protestantism originated in the 16th century Reformation, and most modern Protestant denominations can trace their heritage to one of the major movements that sprung up in the 16th century. Presbyterians are indebted to John Calvin and Reformed theology, as well as to John Knox and the Church of Scotland. Anglicans and Episcopalians trace their heritage to the Church of England that resulted from King Henry VIII's break from the authority of Rome. Evangelicalism (and to a slightly lesser degree, Methodism) is indebted to Pietism, a 17th century Protestant movement emphasizing a holy life, individual study of the scriptures, and better training of ministers.

Protestant denominations differ in the degree to which they reject Catholic belief and practice. Some churches, such as Anglicans and Lutherans, tend to resemble Catholicism in their formal liturgy, while others, like Baptists and Presbyterians, retain very little of the liturgy and tradition associated with the Catholic church.

In common with Catholic and Orthodox Christians, Protestants adhere to the authority of the Bible and the doctrines of (t)he early creeds. Protestants are distinguished by their emphasis on the doctrines of "justification by grace alone through faith, the priesthood of all believers, and the supremacy of Holy Scripture in matters of faith and order." {2} Most Protestant churches recognize only two sacraments directly commanded by the Lord - baptism and communion - as opposed to the seven sacraments accepted by the Catholic Church.

Should it be up to someone else to tell me my faith is not equal to their's even though the Greek's were the first converts to follow Christ out of the gentile world St. Paul preached to? No, I have no such right and I do not want to have it. Yet this is going on everyday. Should I have the right to refuse to help anyone unless they convert? What would you think of me if I walked away from someone in need simply because they did not appreciate the authority of my faith?

If you say the Protestant faith is the right one then which branch are you talking about? That is what religious freedom protects. It is not about Christian vs Christian vs everyone else. It is protecting the equal rights for you to go to the church you want and everyone else having the same right to go or not depending on their own beliefs. There are Jewish/Hebrew Chaplains and there are Muslim Chaplains just as there are Christian Chaplains. They are supposed to take care of the troops according to the beliefs of the troops and yes, take care of the spiritual needs of all of them no matter what they believe as humans in spiritual crisis. Chaplains are supposed to practice as non-denominational responders to the needs of others and not their own desires for converts.

Yesterday I wrote how I wish there were more Chaplains in the military and that we saw more of Christ in their mission to help the troops heal from what is asked of them. This is not about getting rid of Chaplains in the military. It is about getting more of them to remember what they are there for and answering the call they received from God to be there for the troops in need. We need more of them because the need is so great. Suicides and attempted suicides scream for their spiritual guidance especially when PTSD is spiritual warfare.

I pray you read the following with an open mind and while you do ask yourself how you would feel if a Chaplain told your son or daughter their faith was not good enough or they were suffering because they didn't believe in the right doctrine. What if they did not consider themselves part of any organized religious group at all but still said they believed in God and Christ? This happens all the time with our young. What if they said they only believed there was something out there but were not sure what that "something" is? Would you want them forced into it?

In Place of Mental Health Care, Are Some Troops Being Evangelized?

William Astore
Writer, Professor, Retired Lt. Colonel, Air Force
Posted: August 10, 2010
Yesterday, the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) and Veterans for Common Sense sent a startling letter to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates. It alleged that the military has sent some psychological casualties to chaplains for counseling, rather than to mental health care professionals for diagnosis and treatment. In a few cases, the letter alleges, chaplains sought to provide comfort through evangelism. In essence, it seems wounded and disturbed troops were encouraged to put their trust in Jesus: that He would provide for them if only they accepted Him.

General George S. Patton Jr. was fired during World War II for slapping soldiers with PTSD. Assuming the MRFF letter is correct, are we prepared to fire chaplains for seeking to alleviate PTSD and other disorders with a healthy dose of scripture and heartfelt appeals to Jesus?
read more here
In Place of Mental Health Care

Stop Unconstitutional Proselytizing

If it were up to me, I would want to see Christ everywhere, but not the way He has been used. I want to see Him reflected in the way we act and treat each other. I want the love of God, the way we were told by Christ He loved us to be reflected in all we do for the sake of someone else. I want to see Him the way other people manage to forgive someone even though everyone tells them they are wrong to forgive. I want to see Him when I look into someone's eyes and see love there. I want to see Him when I see people looking for nothing in return other than the feeling they get back when they do.

To have what's been going on happening is not about Christ. It is about something much deeper. There is nothing wrong with Chaplains being of on denomination or another and holding to their beliefs but there is something wrong when the spiritual needs of the men and women in the military are secondary to what the Chaplain wants. It's not their job to get converts but it is their job to be there for the spiritual needs of the troops.

Too many times I've heard Chaplains say they don't know anything about PTSD yet they are being asked to fill in for mental health professionals. This piece points this out and I can tell you that it is happening. While many of my friends say this is a Christian nation, none of them have managed to explain which Christian nation they believe it is. They think all Christians are alike until they actually sit down and talk to someone who happens to belong to a different denomination. A Presbyterian is different from a Methodist and different from a Baptist and they are different from Catholics and they are different from Orthodox. None of them agree on everything. So exactly what part would you want to see happen if one of your own kids was admonished for being part of the wrong Christian faith?

Let's say you were Catholic and there was an Evangelical Chaplain he had to go to see for a troubled soul. Would you want to hear that your son was sent away because he wouldn't put up with being told his faith was wrong? I doubt it. It's nice to live in a nation where there is a place for everyone. Where we can all walk into any church we want and decide for ourselves where we belong, or into a synagogue or a mosque. It's nice to think the troops have the same luxury but that's all that is. A thought. There are not enough Chaplains to go around anymore than there are mental health workers. The troops should not have to worry about being pushed away instead of helped. They shouldn't have to worry about being assaulted emotionally with a bible as a weapon to use against them.

I want to see more military chaplains and I want to see better ones but I want them to stop acting as if getting converts means more than saving the life of a soldier willing to lay down their lives for the sake of all others. Veterans for Common Sense is right on this issue and this practice needs to stop. These Chaplains deserve support and we should value their courage but to allow them to keep doing this is not serving the troops or Christ. This isn't even touching the fact that this nation was supposed to be about freedom of religion. In a perfect military there would be Chaplains from every walk so that all these men and women could be comforted by the faith of their own choosing. But that won't happen. They are no less deserving of comforting than any other no matter what faith they call their own and yes, no matter if they have no faith at all. Chaplains are supposed to have enough faith to be able to help everyone no matter what. Like I said, I'd like to see more of Christ in all of this when people are taken care of as people.

VCS and MRFF to Secretary Gates: Stop Unconstitutional Proselytizing
Written by VCS
Tuesday, 10 August 2010 15:27
Veterans for Common Sense and the Miltiary Religious Freedom Foundation sent the following letter to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, urging him to stop religious proselytizing, especially of mental health patients.

August 9, 2010

Dear Secretary Gates:

The Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) has learned on numerous occasions over the past several years about blatantly sectarian Christian religious programs and Christian proselytizing in the military. The proselytizing is unconstitutional and we demand you issue an order to stop it now.

Our letter addresses a particularly pernicious subcategory of proselytizing that must also cease immediately. The military often substitutes evangelical chaplains in the place of professional mental health care for service members suffering from mental health conditions, especially post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These reports have recently become increasingly frequent and alarming.

Among the many types of shocking incidents and illicit and dehumanizing practices reported to MRFF have been the military's teaching of creationism as an actual bona fide means of suicide prevention; the use of a parachurch military ministry's evangelical Christian program to treat PTSD; service members seeking help being sent to and proselytized by chaplains instead of being sent to mental health professionals; articles in official military publications stating that finding Jesus if the only solution to the mental health problems faced by members of our armed forces; mandatory mental health training inside chapels, plus countless "Spiritual Fitness" events and programs being promoted as mental health solutions.

Perhaps the most alarmingly repugnant stories are those coming in from our recent war veterans regarding the widespread practice of "battlefield Christian proselytizing." When, on active duty, our service members sought urgently needed mental health counseling while on the battlefield and with the gun smoke practically still in their faces, they were instead sent to evangelizing chaplains, who are apparently being used with increasing frequency to provide mental health care due to the acute shortage of mental health professionals. Chaplains are not certified, professional mental health experts.

read more here
Stop Unconstitutional Proselytizing

Marines thinking Bibles and bullets shouldn't blend

There is something beyond just having these Bible verses on the sites, as if that was not bad enough, but to think they are on the sites at all is very perplexing. Are they supposed to be looking at the verses or the enemy? What was the manufacturer thinking and what was the military thinking when they let this happen? Didn't they inspect the weapons?

It was pointed out yesterday that should a serviceman or woman become captured and they see the Biblical verses on the sites, they will be treated a lot worse for this and it very well could inspire more hatred toward the troops in Muslim nations. If Trijicon wanted to support the troops with Bible verses then they should have handed out prayer cards with them on it instead of putting them on the sites of weapons.

The other factor is, the American people are paying for the weapons, thus paying for the verses to be on the sites and we should be asking exactly how much money we were billed for to cover Trijicon doing this. It's an easy guess that it would be a lot cheaper for them to not do this.

Marine Corps considers ending contract with Trijicon
New York Daily News

The Marine Corps is reconsidering its contract with a Michigan company that has engraved hundreds of thousands of rifle sights with Bible inscriptions, a spokeswoman said Tuesday.

"We are aware of the issue and are concerned with how this may be perceived," USMC spokeswoman Capt. Geraldine Carey told ABC News. "We will meet with the vendor to discuss future sight procurements."

Trijicon, based in Wixom, Mich., has been making the rifle scopes for the Marines since 2005 - and carving references to Bible passages next to the scope's serial number.

U.S. military rules prohibit any service member from proselytizing while serving in Iraq or Afghanistan, which are primarily Muslim nations.
click link for more

"America Supports You" leaves eveyone wondering who the "you" is

"America Supports You" leaves eveyone wondering who the "you" is
by
Chaplain Kathie
What was sold to the American people and the military families, was that this was a wonderful way to show support for the troops. After all, isn't that what we kept saying? We support the troops. The problem is, they really were not too clear on who the "you" was in any of this. As you can see from the investigation, a lot of money didn't go to the troops or really have anything to do with what they need. The bottom line is, when it comes to supporting the troops, it isn't the government even though that's what they want the public to think.

We see this when they come home wounded and are forced to wait without money to have their wounds taken care of when they cannot work. We see this when they come home sick because of burn pits and depleted uranium along with contaminated water. We see it when reports came out saying they knew about the tactic the Iraqi insurgents would use as the weapon of choice, IED and that the up-armored vehicles would have saved lives. We see it when they come home and PTSD is still trying to kill them. The list goes on, so please keep that in mind when you read the following and see if you are as infuriated as I am.

Report: Problems with America Supports You

By William H. McMichael - Staff writer
Posted : Friday Dec 12, 2008 17:39:04 EST

About $9.2 million in appropriated funds were inappropriately funneled to the independent newspaper Stars and Stripes to finance a Pentagon program aimed at telling troops how well they are supported by the general public, the Defense Department Inspector General has concluded.

And a senior Pentagon official conducted that program, America Supports You, in a “questionable and unregulated manner,” producing “results that were not consistent with the program’s objective,” the IG report said, adding that the official had “too much authority and control over the ASY program.”

Stars and Stripes officials also “lost visibility” of $4.1 million in appropriated funds — those authorized by Congress for specific programs. The IG’s Dec. 12 report also concluded that about $1.9 million from Stars and Stripes’ nonappropriated fund account was spent to subsidize expenses of the ASY program.

Stars and Stripes, which falls under Pentagon public affairs management but is editorially independent, is supported primarily with nonappropriated funds. Pentagon policy bans the use of nonappropriated funds, raised through the on-base sale of goods and services, from being used for or to support public affairs activities.

The audit also found that the Pentagon public affairs directorate provided “inadequate oversight” for an $8.8 million contract with an outside public relations firm. The audit questions the “nature of work, cost and competitive process” of the contract, said Bob Hastings, assistant secretary of defense for public affairs.
click link above for more

We also have a ton of info just from this one page;

Fundraising activities under investigation
On May 11, 2007, officials said that the Pentagon is "looking into complaints that Defense Department officials charged with building public support for troops in Iraq and Afghanistan might have been engaged in improper fundraising," David S. Cloud reported in the New York Times.

Officials said the inspector general is "examining whether officials who run 'America Supports You,' a three-year-old Pentagon program lauded by Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, helped arrange a fund-raiser for a private foundation"—the America Supports You Fund—set up in December 2006 "by former Bush administration appointees," Cloud reported. In a January 2007 memo explaining the ASY Fund, Allison Barber wrote: "What we have learned is that the American people are beginning to fatigue, even in their support for the troops. ... I don't think we have a minute to lose when it comes to maximizing support for our military, especially in the new political environment."

Stars and Stripes involvement
In October 2007, the U.S. Defense Department Inspector General's review of "America Supports You" widened to include the U.S. military newspaper Stars and Stripes. "Both America Supports You and American Forces Information Service -- the parent organization for Stripes -- are headed by Allison Barber, deputy assistant secretary for public affairs," Stars and Stripes reported on October 20.

Freedom Walks
On September 11 in 2005, 2006 and 2007, America Supports You held a "Freedom Walk" in Washington DC, "to commemorate the attack on the Pentagon and honor all lives lost on September 11." ASY describes the walk as a "new national tradition," and encourages local cities to organize their own Freedom Walks. An America Supports You "teaching supplement" in the Weekly Reader, a periodical for grade-school students, encouraged the students to organize Freedom Walks, among other activities

Other activities

In July 2006, National Public Radio reported that "one recent effort is a campaign to get people at major league baseball games to 'text-message' their support to the troops on their cell phones... even though those messages aren't actually sent to the troops." According to former ASY webmaster Chris Moore, the messages were simply archived on an ASY computer database.

On December 2, 2004, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld presented an "America Supports You" dog tag to Bill O'Reilly on his Fox News show, calling O'Reilly "a terrific supporter of our troops." President George W. Bush also plugged the "America Supports You" campaign during an address to Marines and their families at Camp Pendleton, California

PR firm
In December 2004, O'Dwyers PR Daily reported that the PR firm Susan Davis International (SDI) "is handling the Pentagon's 'America Supports You' campaign to drum up support for the nearly 150,000 U.S. forces that may be occupying Iraq during the next four years". "America Supports You," a Defense Department campaign, was originally planned to run through May 2005 but as of August 2007 is ongoing. SDI was paid "at least $2.7 million" for the first year of America Supports You alone, reported National Public Radio.

Operation Tribute to Freedom
ASY's predecessor of sorts appears to be "Operation Tribute to Freedom," which was launched by the Defense Department in May 2003. A Department press release explained it as "a sustained and widespread program of activities in appreciation for our men and women in uniform and the families that support them." The program's now-defunct website says it "encourages and facilitates public participation at every level -- from corporations and organizations to families and individuals. It reinforces the bond between citizen and soldier."

Infuriated? If not, then you haven't been paying attention. What if you were one of them?

But this one is the one that gets my blood boiling

Converting U.S. troops and Iraqis
The "evangelical entertainment troupe" Operation Straight Up, which "actively proselytizes among active-duty members of the US military," is an official arm of America Supports You, reported Max Blumenthal on The Nation blog in August 2007. Among OSU's future plans are mailing "copies of the controversial apocalyptic video game, Left Behind: Eternal Forces to soldiers serving in Iraq." The game is based on the Tim LaHaye/Jerry Jenkins books, and players must "kill or convert ... non-believers left behind after the rapture."

go here for more

Fundraising activities under investigation

Now think of that. Not only are you told they can keep you as long as they want to under stop loss, tell you that if you have problems you need to go talk to someone and then they send you to be "saved" in a way you didn't expect. I really doubt it would matter to them if you had been saved by Christ as a Catholic or any other denomination of Christianity, or were of another faith or even no faith at all. They blurred the line between taking care of your spiritual needs by taking advantage of you in a weak moment of despair to convert you. Wouldn't that bother you? Would you feel totally betrayed? Taken advantage of? Made to feel as if you've just been targeted by a cult?

For Heaven's sake! I wonder how many men and women were pushed away from Christ because these people couldn't get a grip on reality and actually do the work of Chaplains taking care of the spiritual needs of anyone in need? More to the point, how many were pushed away from the psychological and spiritual help they needed in a moment of crisis? Shame on them for betraying the very people they were selling themselves off as helping and "supporting" when the "you" turned out to be someone else.