Army Reprimands Soldier Under Fire for Religious Beliefs

foxnews.com ^ | 6/24/2013 | Todd Starnes

[Greystoke]

A member of the U.S. Army Band who said he was reprimanded for having anti-Obama bumper stickers on his personal car, serving Chick-fil-A sandwiches at a party and reading books written by conservative authors like Sean Hannity was found guilty of three Article 15 charges. Master Sgt. Nathan Sommers, a decorated soloist with the Army Band, was found guilty Thursday of failing to go to an appointed place of duty, disobedience of an order and making a false official statement, his attorney said. The charges were handed down June 9, one day after Sommers told Fox News that he was facing discrimination and persecution because of his conservative political and religious beliefs.

[Greystoke]

.

[2ndDivisionVet]

Did he lose any stripes?

[PATRIOT1876]

No freedom for those defending our freedoms?!?!?!?!

[knarf]

" .. was found guilty Thursday of failing to go to an appointed place of duty, disobedience of an order and making a false official statement, his attorney said."

Where's the conservative stand and religious beliefs ?

[jimmyo57]

No freedom for those defending our freedoms?!?!?!?!

No, that’s the irony of being in the military!

[Gay State Conservative]

Athough I never ran afoul of the UCMJ during my stellar Army career it’s always been my understanding that an Article 15 isn’t a “conviction” like what you see in a court martial.I always thought that a superior officer could accuse a subordinate of misconduct and either offer that person NJP or refer it for a possible court martial.If the individual accepted the NJP he/she might lose pay,a stripe,be assigned extra duties,etc but no jail time,no discharge and no criminal “conviction”.Of course an Article 15 doesn’t do one’s prospects of a successful military career any good...but it ain’t prison.

[RBStealth]

" .. was found guilty Thursday of...'


for the accused signing an article 15 is laying down. It means you forego a trial, and let your company commander punish you....reduction in rank and fined,detention(mopping floors)etc. It is not being 'found' guilty per se, but is rolling over.

[ConorMacNessa]

This is, IMO, an obvious put-up job. Interestingly, it is a decision not of a Special or General Court-martial, but a decision in a non-judicial proceeding - what we used to refer to in the Navy as "Captain's Mast."

From the Article:

"Retired Lt. Gen. Jerry Boykin told Fox News it appears the Army is trying to send a message to not only Sommers but others in his unit.

'Over my 36 years in the US Army I saw numerous situations like this where a soldier is singled out by the chain of command for punishment,' Boykin said. 'The Article 15 proceeding may be technically legitimate, but one must recognize that an Army Master Sergeant with 25 years does not normally do stupid things that are easily avoidable unless there is some mitigating circumstance.'

Boykin said the issue is whether the chain of command would be doing this if it were not for his outspoken Christian faith and his unwillingness to compromise on what he believes.

'It seems to me that the chain of command has failed to deter him from his beliefs and has resorted to this step now,' he said."

Ordered meals from Chick-Fil-A? Read books by Hannity, et al.? Refused to give up HIPAA information on his son?

Where is the offense here? Our young men and women in the Armed Forces are being rapidly marched down the road to becoming agents of totalitarianism rather than Guarantors of our Freedoms!



"Dia shábháil ar fad anseo!"

Genuflectimus non ad principem sed ad Principem Pacis!

Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. (Isaiah 49:1 KJV)

[OneWingedShark]

Our young men and women in the Armed Forces are being rapidly marched down the road to becoming agents of totalitarianism rather than Guarantors of our Freedoms!

I saw this in 2008 when I got a "shut up, specialist" from the NCOs when I remarked that it would be the Army's job to remove Obama from office if he was found to be ineligible. It* was one of the main contributing factors to leaving after 9-years.

* Obvious institutionalized rebellion against upholding the Constitution.

[ConorMacNessa]

That is in accord with my recollection as well.



"Dia shábháil ar fad anseo!"

Genuflectimus non ad principem sed ad Principem Pacis!

Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. (Isaiah 49:1 KJV)

[Ruy Dias de Bivar]

40-45 years ago I read of a Soviet soldier who was reprimanded for being an Orthodox Christian.

The USSR “Psychiatrists” worked on him till he became atheist.

Never thought it would happen here.

[ConorMacNessa]

Good on you, FRiend! Keep your powder dry!



"Dia shábháil ar fad anseo!"

Genuflectimus non ad principem sed ad Principem Pacis!

Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. (Isaiah 49:1 KJV)

[GreyFriar]

this isn’t the Army I enlisted into 40 years ago tomorrow, June 25th.

[circlecity]

The Army has a very low tolerance for publically disparaging the commander in chief. I remember a General during the Clinton era was forced to retire for ragging on Bubba in the media. This kid was told to remove the anti-Obama stuff and he didn’t. Like it or not the military has always given the boot to those caught in this when it finally pi**es off the wrong person. You respect the rank, not necessarily the one wearing it. There are some situations where, right or not, you have to shut up or face the consequences.

[ScottinVA]

Onward Christian soldiers... Out of today’s military. Your leadership has made it ceystal clear you’re no longer welcome there.

[StonyBurk]

A former Navy SEAL Benjamin smith said recently “we are now pawns to the Muslims and the socialists. ‘Makes sense to me.

[ScottinVA]

Under Article 15 of the UCMJ, the member has the option, if offered by his/her commander, of accepting non judicial punishment in lieu of a court-martial. It sounds to me like he accepted it. If this case is as he described, he should’ve pushed for a court-martial and forced the government to prove his “guilt.” The “failure to go to a place of duty” charge sounds to me like there may be a bit more to this story than we’ve been told.

[ScottinVA]

To follow up to my earlier post....

It’s still quite clear, regardless of the circumstances of this case, Christians are still catching the brunt of discrimination.

[gaijin]

I honestly HOPE they do much more of this and if u really think about it then you will also.

[Antoninus II]

From the description of the “charges”, it wouldn’t rate more than an LOC. IMHO...