Army Refuses to Distribute Fallen Friends Medals

Associated Press ^ | June 26, 2004 | Elizabeth A. Davis

[BluegrassScholar]

Thoughts?

[Michael81Dus]

Unbelievable! I just cannot imagine that this happens in America, the country which is known around the world for its strong support for the Republic and its soldiers!

[wheelright]

"The denial is based upon the religious content on the medallion. There are some next of kin that may find the inscription offensive to their personal religious beliefs," wrote Lt. Col. Kevin Logan, chief of the casualty operations division.
With all due respect; Lt. Col. Kevin Logan is an ass.

[rageaholic]

Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends

This concept is universal. The fact that the phrase is contained in the Bible has no relevance concerning the recipient's faith. This decision was therefore in error.

[leadpenny]

Thoughts?

A Lieutenant Colonel did not make this decision.

[lepton]

Given that the writing doesn't even apparently include the reference to where it's from, I can't imagine offense from anyone sane. I mean, if there was a generic and appropriate self-evident verse from the Koran on the back, would anyone normal care?

[Red6]

Great, this kind of BS needs identified. The Army is way to PC as it is.

I hope the mainstream media in the US picks this up and embarasses the Army, this LTC and his superior who he is probably parroting.

The media focuses on BS reference the military and then tends to over look such shameful and discusting examples of idiotic behavior from senior military personnel.

Red6

[Aeronaut]

This kind of rot will be the downfall of this great country.

[Tennessee_Bob]

The back side says "John 15:13" and "A Fallen Friend," and it includes a space for the name of the person who was killed.

[LibKill]

I suppose the Army must stop using cash now. It all has "In God We Trust" on it.

This PC bullsh!t really aggravates.

[LadyDoc]

This is a quote from a book. But quoting it is not promoting religion. It is similar to taking a quote of poetry that everyone knows and placing it on a coin.

The King James bible is part of our LITERARY heritage, as are many quotes from it. It is not used in manyy mainline churches nor has it ever been used in Catholic churches. However, in college we studied the Book of Job in the KJV as literature...and many quotes from this version are in our cultural vocabulary.

It is similar to Reagan's funeral, where they used the line "the shining city on the hill"... this quote is from Winthrop's sermons describing what the Pilgrims saw their new colony as starting. The reference of Wintrhop comes from the bible (Jesus said you can't hide a city on a hill...having worked in Africa where there was no electricity, I can confirm you see village lights from miles away). Was that "religious"?

Greater love hath no man is a well known phrase. It is a theme common in all cultures and religions, but expressed well by the story teller Jesus the carpenter. So why should we censor this simply because the story teller also happened to be (take your choice) the Son of God founder or a first century fraud.

[MACVSOG68]

I guess the crosses at Arlington are the next to go....

[TalBlack]

"This PC bullsh!t really aggravates."

Of course it does. That's because it is the sound of the badguys winning. It's the sound of America dying.

[LibKill]

Too true. We're being nibbled to death by PC ducks.

[lepton]

Ah, a misquote in the article. Makes the decision not quite as stupid...but it's still stupid.

[Junior]

It's bureaucracy. Bureaucracy is mindless and soulless and situations like this usually require someone high up to bend or break the rules, because the average bureaucrat has neither the initiative nor the authority to do so. Don't worry; this will be fixed shortly -- you can guarantee it.

[kcvl]

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[writer33]

"A Lieutenant Colonel did not make this decision."

I'll second that.

[Dane]

A Lieutenant Colonel did not make this decision

Probably a lawyer to avert the ACLU from licking their chops.

[kcvl]

Casualty Operations Division (COD)

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