Not so fast, Christian soldiers

LA Times ^ | 22 August 2007 | Editorial Staff

[shrinkermd]

Last week, after an investigation spurred by the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, the Pentagon abruptly announced that it would not be delivering "freedom packages" to our soldiers in Iraq, as it had originally intended.

What were the packages to contain? Not body armor or home-baked cookies. Rather, they held Bibles, proselytizing material in English and Arabic and the apocalyptic computer game "Left Behind: Eternal Forces" (derived from the series of post-Rapture novels), in which "soldiers for Christ" hunt down enemies who look suspiciously like U.N. peacekeepers.

The packages were put together by a fundamentalist Christian ministry called Operation Straight Up, or OSU. Headed by former kickboxer Jonathan Spinks, OSU is an official member of the Defense Department's "America Supports You" program. The group has staged a number of Christian-themed shows at military bases, featuring athletes, strongmen and actor-turned-evangelist Stephen Baldwin. But thanks in part to the support of the Pentagon, Operation Straight Up has now begun focusing on Iraq, where, according to its website (on pages taken down last week), it planned an entertainment tour called the "Military Crusade."

[gondramB]

>>And if you’re serving in Iraq, I think you’re entitled to the game and to play either side. Just like Christian soldiers are.<<

I think the soldiers should have any damn thing they need and just about anything we can possibly give them that they want. Certainly including whatever video games they want, certainly including this one.

But these people took an incredibly popular book series and made a truly unworthy game out of it. I just don’t feel sympathy for really, really bad game makers.

[jer33 3]

Wow. And to think we, as a nation, help to free communist countries which ultimately gave them freedom to worship. Think of all the people who risked their lives to smuggle bibles into closed countries. Who would ever think such a minuscule group of people in America could so boldly object to others enjoying their freedom and to actually have influence?

I say let them move to China.

[George W. Bush]

But these people took an incredibly popular book series and made a truly unworthy game out of it. I just don’t feel sympathy for really, really bad game makers.

Sorry, but they're really really bad books too. LOL.

But I don't lay awake nights worrying that my fellow-citizens or our soldiers in Iraq might read those books or play those games either.

It's called liberty. Give it a try sometime.

[George W. Bush]

GWB: Give it a try sometime.

That's "Give it a try some time."

I blame Mr. Silverback's evil influence for having exposed me to such ungrammatical contractions on another thread.

[Popocatapetl]

I suspect the real reason the Pentagon stopped this had a LOT more to do with that video game than Christianity, per se.

Remember how that soldier was court martialed a few years ago for refusing to serve with the UN? That started an angry debate in every US enlisted and officer club on every corner of the planet, and *nobody* would speak up on behalf of the UN.

“I hate the UN.” “I hate the UN more than you do.” I hate the UN more than anybody.” “Do not, I do.” etc.

In other words, there are a LOT of soldiers who have now reached the firm conviction that being assigned to serve the UN is NOT worth staying in uniform for. They will quit the US military or be fired before they will do it.

To allow the soldiers to have a video game where they are actually *fighting* UN soldiers! What a nightmare!

Right now, the military personnel services must cringe at the very idea of the next time the US government decides to commit US military personnel to a UN mission. That one court martial could turn into a hundred, with as many resignations from officers and senior NCOs. Having UN service in your 201 file might mean the end of your career anyway.

In fact, it would be a VERY good idea for the Pentagon to start quietly polling military personnel about exactly how much they hate the idea of working for the UN.

[George W. Bush]

There you go. Thanks, padre. That's all I'm sayin...

I think you might have said just a wee bit more than that. LOL.

Now that I've made it clear that you can also play the blue-helmets shooting the Christians, are you sure we can't interest you in a copy of the game?

[George W. Bush]

Remember how that soldier was court martialed a few years ago for refusing to serve with the UN?

A hero to us here at FR.

That started an angry debate in every US enlisted and officer club on every corner of the planet, and *nobody* would speak up on behalf of the UN.

Good. They understood they swore an oath to the Constitution, not the U.N. Charter.

“I hate the UN.” “I hate the UN more than you do.” I hate the UN more than anybody.” “Do not, I do.” etc.

Sounds like hundreds of threads we had at FR. Good stuff too.

To allow the soldiers to have a video game where they are actually *fighting* UN soldiers! What a nightmare!

Well, they could choose to be Antichrists and shoot Christians instead.

And it's not a nightmare. It's patriotic.

Right now, the military personnel services must cringe at the very idea of the next time the US government decides to commit US military personnel to a UN mission. That one court martial could turn into a hundred, with as many resignations from officers and senior NCOs. Having UN service in your 201 file might mean the end of your career anyway.

What's your problem with this exactly?

In fact, it would be a VERY good idea for the Pentagon to start quietly polling military personnel about exactly how much they hate the idea of working for the UN.

Are you sure you're on the right website?

[Marysecretary]

Wonder what Brother Andrew would say about this? He risked his life many, many times smuggling bibles into countries that could have ended his life for doing just that.

[Cogadh na Sith]

Wonder what Brother Andrew would say about this?

What rank was Brother Andrew?

[PurpleMan]

“Wonder what Brother Andrew would say about this?”

Start smuggling them into China, (Hong Kong), North Korea, etc, etc, etc.

[George W. Bush]

Start smuggling them into China, (Hong Kong), North Korea, etc, etc, etc.

Apparently, we'll have to smuggle them to our soldiers inside Iraq as well.

[Tuscaloosa Goldfinch]

Yep, the American Bible Society sends Bibles to service personnel.

[Popocatapetl]

You might have misinterpreted. I am not opposed to these care packages. And I do not think that US military personnel are wrong in not wanting to serve under UN command.

But being prior service, I cringe at just about anything that is going to get service personnel that bent out of shape. I would wince just as much as if Congress decided to demand that all military personnel don pink tutus and do ballet.

I truly doubt that collectively there might be a mutiny of some sort against serving with the UN, unless of course some leftist twit like Hillary decided to rub it in their face; but I would not be surprised to see a lot of good personnel throw away their careers and retirement, or even go to military prison because they were forced to. And this would be a shame. To lose good people because they were ordered to do something repugnant to them.

But back to my main point. I think the Pentagon realizes this, and *that* was the main reason they banned those care packages. The soldiers already disdain the UN. Letting them play a game that encourages them to kill UN personnel is just going to make things harder for the military, and its people, in the future.

Right now, for the most part, they can still get enough soldiers to volunteer for UN missions. But I don’t know by how much. And when they can’t get volunteers, they have to order them to do it. And that’s when the trouble starts.

And I don’t want to see our soldiers get into trouble.

[PurpleMan]

Per post 132:

“The American Bible Society sends Bibles to service personnel.”

[George W. Bush]

But being prior service, I cringe at just about anything that is going to get service personnel that bent out of shape. I would wince just as much as if Congress decided to demand that all military personnel don pink tutus and do ballet.

They swear an oath to our country, not to a criminally corrupt incompetent group of internationalists, socialists, globalists and enemies of human rights such as compose the membership of the United Nations.

...I would not be surprised to see a lot of good personnel throw away their careers and retirement, or even go to military prison because they were forced to. And this would be a shame. To lose good people because they were ordered to do something repugnant to them.

But it is repugnant. And since we have and believe in a volunteer force, why should you be afraid of our soldiers choosing not serve the United Nations or leaving the military over the issue?

Right now, for the most part, they can still get enough soldiers to volunteer for UN missions.

It is unfortunate that we have any deployed for and under the U.N. But it may provide a way to shunt incompetent persons away from missions like Iraq. I doubt our military is wasting its best soldiers on a U.N. mission. Nor should they.

Right now, for the most part, they can still get enough soldiers to volunteer for UN missions. But I don’t know by how much. And when they can’t get volunteers, they have to order them to do it. And that’s when the trouble starts. And I don’t want to see our soldiers get into trouble.

Then you should vocally oppose such deployments under U.N. auspices. That is the source of the trouble, not our patriotic soldiers who know and understand exactly that to which they swore their oath of military service.

[George W. Bush]

“The American Bible Society sends Bibles to service personnel.”

Fine and good (hopefully a trustworthy translation, no NIVs, paraphrases, etc.)

But the ABS isn't sending them video games. I don't see why people are getting their panties in such a knot over some Xbox game.

[George W. Bush]

You might enjoy this thread. FReepers seriously quoting Marx against religion as an opiate, worrying over whether our troops might not like the United Nations enough, advocating censorship of Christian materials (including video games) for our soldiers in Iraq.

More love for "the troops". To me, this is the kind of love for "the troops" you normally find at a liberal website.

[Cogadh na Sith]

I don’t think you understand the purpose of the military.

[Mr. Silverback]

I blame Mr. Silverback's evil influence for having exposed me to such ungrammatical contractions on another thread.

Sounds to me like more hypocrisy of the shrimp marketing variety...

[George W. Bush]

Sounds to me like more hypocrisy of the shrimp marketing variety...

I'm so surprised you'd say that. LOL.