An evangelical Christian who compared President Barack Obama to Hitler was scheduled to speak at the Air Force Academy during a February conference, but the academy canceled her appearance after getting major push back from several advocacy groups.It boggles the mind why the Air Force Academy would think it proper to invite a speaker who compares their Commander-in-Chief to Hitler. I'll bet dollars to doughnuts that anyone who had compared Bush to Hitler would have not gotten within ten miles of the gates of Zoomie Tech.
The speaker, a former Nazi youth leader named Maria Anne Hirschmann, is controversial for her comments on Obama and for writings in one of her books that suggested Jews need to stop complaining about the Holocaust and forgive the Germans.
(I'll address the "forgive the Germans" part some other time. Count on it.)
This has been a problem with the Air Farce for years. First, Reagan appointed a bunch of Christianists into the Air Force Academy as a "safe" place to stash them in exchange for the support of the Christianists. Then those Christianists slowly wormed their way into positions of power until Bush II took office and openly empowered them. Now if you are an Air Force cadet and refuse to take part in Christianist rituals, you are ostracized and punished and the chain of command just laughs if you complain about it. There's been law suits and such, but thus far none have succeeded in actually changing the blatant fostering of a state religion being done at the Air Force Academy.
ReplyDeletePresident Obama needs to do something about that bucket of worms, but it's a bucket of worms that stinks so bad that he's afraid to touch it for fear that some of the stink will rub off on him at a time when he has to smell sweet to get more important things on his agenda passed. So ... grrr. Sigh.
It's hard to get good technical people to work for you if they think they're going to be ostracized for their beliefs. Of all the services, you think that would be of the most concern to the Air Force.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, these are the same people who tried to introduce faith-based suicide prevention at a time when suicides were on the rise. It's pretty clear that effectiveness is less important than other considerations.
"forgive the Germans"They never will. Trust me, the shit I've taken from members of Mrs. F's family (Jewish) over my ancestry (1st generation German-American) is as if I built the camps myself. As soon as the Jews (collectively) forgive the Germans, their 'victimhood' disappears. My nephews' and nieces' grandchildren will continue to be held accountable for the barbarism of 70 years ago, just as I am now.
ReplyDeleteCheck out Democracy Now when it is on line later today. Amy Goodman had several people talking about this exceedingly dangerous development of our armed forces being dominated and directed by right wing religious zealots. They are painting the present wars just as shrub Bush originally did, as crusades.
ReplyDeleteInteresting that "born again Christian" trumped "Hitler Youth LEADER" in the vetting process. Scary interesting.
ReplyDeleteAnd pretty rich that she calls Obama Hitleresque, so what, now if you are popular, you are Hitler?