Fot Mickey Weinstein an opinion of your opinion

Published On: August 22, 2016|Categories: MRFF's Inbox|3 Comments|

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I won’t belabor you with my beliefs or attack yours. I just want you to know that in my opinion  you are a disgrace to the thousands of military officers that have gone before you and millions of enlisted people who have loyally served this nation. Many of these people perished so that you could spout your garbage. You should be ashamed and pay back the education that you received free from this country. You have used  your education to bring harm to good upstanding people who happen to wear the uniform of this nation.
Mickey as far as my research has shown and  in my biased opinion you have demonstrated that you are total jerk and unworthy of the gifts this nation has given you. Shame on you!
(name withheld)

Response from MRFF Advisory Board Member John Compere

Brigadier General, US Army (Retired)
Dear (name withheld)
As a 75 year old patriotic American, disabled Vietnam veteran & retired Army airborne officer, it is my observation that any man who resorts to hateful name-calling does so when he cannot address a subject with intelligenceor integrity. Such childish behavior can often be observed on our elementary school playgrounds.
Ifyou have the mental maturity for a rational reply to the subject of our Constitution, religion & the military, please see the attached. If you do not, Shalom & Happy Trails.
 
John Compere
Brigadier General, US Army (Retired)
MRFF Advisory Board Member

Response from MRFF Advisory Board Member Mike Farrell

Hi (name withheld),

Good thing you didn’t “belabor” your opinion. Might have taken all day. As far as your attempt to “not attack” Mikey’s, you failed big time.

Your opinion is as meaningless as it is wrong. Mikey’s career, as anyone who cares to look will find, has been very successful in every regard. His work on behalf of his military brethren is deeply appreciated and highly thought of in many circles, some that would surprise you.

His support for and protection of the freedom of religious choice of the women and men in the military has earned him awards, recognition and respect far and wide.

I don’t know about what “research” you think you’ve done, but the fact that you admit your opinion is “biased” is the only worthwhile point in your message.

Mikey respects and admires the men and women of the US military. Your charge that he has “brought harm to good upstanding people who happen to wear the uniform” deserves some elucidation, I would think. His only objection to specific people in the military I’m aware of is to those who, in violation of carefully drafted laws, regulations and legal opinions, continue to insist their religious belief on those in their command or improperly proselytize in situations and circumstances where it is specifically disallowed.

People who insist on shoving their faith/belief system down the throats of others beneath them in rank or authority may believe they are “saving” souls, but as our laws and regulations have made clear, no one in our government or its military has the right to arrogate to him or herself that power.

You’ve used the word shame or versions of it a couple of times, Ken. The arrogance necessary to elevate yourself to a position presuming the authority to do so doesn’t look good on you.

Mike Farrell

(MRFF Board of Advisors)


As a 76 year old patriotic American veteran and retired Navy submariner I stand by what I said. I do apologize for getting Mr. Weinstein first name wrong.
I suppose I’ll be getting loads of vicious e-mails as a result of my note to Mr. Weinstein.  You totally misunderstood my comment. MRFF attacked a man and his organization. From what I read the Major wasn’t trying to convert anyone but simply had a passage highlighted bible on his desk. His freedom of religion was not respected and I object to bullies like MRFF trying to shove their idea of freedom down everyones throat.. My comments were not hateful name calling. Being a jerk is not hate talk it is an opinion. Your email and that of Mr. Ferrett include much more innuendo and name calling verbiage than anything I wrote.
 
It seems to me that your organization is trying not just to get religion out of the military but rather get Christianity out of the military. I have never heard that a Muslim, Jew, Buddist or whatever has been attacked by MRFF.
 
Review the struggle of Adm. H. Rickover if you want to see how 1 man dealt with religious persection at the USNA. He changed a lot of things from within the Navy and his actions in no way brought discredit upon the service. MRFF seems to enjoy making the military services look bad.
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I do not object to any of the things in your essay but the organization you represent uses tactics that are disruptive and morale destructive. The military as you well know has a chain of command. and that is the route you should go through, from the top down not the bottom up. MRFF does a gross dis-service to the military through its tactics.
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(name withheld)

Response from MRFF Advisory Board Member John Compere

Brigadier General, US Army (Retired)
Dear (name withheld),
Please do not be so naive, (name withheld).
 
Anyone who came to or near the field grade military officer’s government desk in a government office on government business was distracted by his deliberate display & forced to recognize his pompous parochial piety. It had nothing whatsoever to do with his military duties & was a deliberate distraction to his fellow military office workers, especially subordinates, who complained & requested that it be removed. What would be your reaction if he had put a nude photo of a girlfriend on the top of his desk for all to see, including subordinate female workers, or a Quran for all to see, including subordinate Christian or other believers?
Christianity is not “in the military”. It is in the private minds & hearts of its individual believers just like other religious or non-religious beliefs.
 
The military “chain of command” is for military members – not for a military religious freedom organization attempting to insure the military respects & adheres to our USA Constitution and military members honor & follow their sworn service oath. Unfortunately, the chain of command is often the problem and it would be an exercise in futility to use it to correct unconstitutional religious intrusions.
John Compere
Brigadier General, US Army (Retired)
MRFF Advisory Board Member

 Response from MRFF Supporter
Dear (name withheld), thanks for the reasonably civil, albeit non-specific, letter to the MRFF.  I occasionally answer letters for the MRFF in addition to helping defend your right to write and express your opinion.  I’ve been doing the former for about 12 years and the latter for over 30.  I think that would probably put me into the group of “thousands of military officers… who have loyally served this nation” you mention below.
 
While I’m certain there are long-serving, loyal officers and enlisted that may disagree with Mr Weinstein and the MRFF, I’m not one of them.  I met Mikey about a dozen years ago when the US Air Force Academy, through its own internal survey, discovered a problem with wide-spread, unwelcome religious proselytizing within the Cadet Wing, faculty, and staff.  Both Mr Weinstein’s offspring and mine experienced that bigotry first hand, greatly affecting their cadet experience and their desire to serve after graduation–in a negative fashion.  Mr Weinstein formed the MRFF to combat these egregious efforts by THOUSANDS of self-proclaimed loyal officers and enlisted personnel to turn the US military into their own religious baptismal pond of like-minded believers.  These same airmen (as well as soldiers, sailors, Marines, and coasties in the other services) thought that one simply could not serve the nation patriotically without being their kind of Christian (and you’d have to ask them what that entails–but it’s not Catholic, LDS, or Eastern/Russian Orthodox, I know that) and they made that clear to their subordinates.  Promotions, choice assignments, and advanced schooling were contingent on ‘getting along’ with the right kind of Christians.  Evaluations favored those of similar religious belief even though private religious or political belief should have no bearing on job performance or evaluation.  
 
Through the MRFF’s tireless efforts, policies have slowing been shifting.  The Air Force published it’s instruction 1-1 clearly delineating what commanders could and couldn’t do with respect to religion in the workplace.  It set definitive boundaries on proselytization within the Air Force while affirming the rights of all airmen to practice their religion in their free/private time–so long as it did not infringe on the rights of all other airmen to maintain their own beliefs–or lack thereof.
 
Since that time, the MRFF has steadfastly urged, cajoled, and filed suit in order to force the Dept of Defense to OBSERVE ITS OWN RULES.  That would seem easy, but it’s not–precisely because there are so many out there that think that Evangelical, Fundamentalist Christianity is a necessary and sufficient condition for honorable service in the US military.  You and I, however, both know that that is completely counter to the US Constitution which states that there should be no religious test for holding a position within the government–nor can the government establish or promote a specific religious perspective.  
 
That’s Mikey’s battle and the MRFF’s as well.  It’s my battle.  Some people think I’m a jerk.  Some people think Mikey’s a jerk.  I can live with that, and so can he.  But the fact remains that he’s also a very courageous jerk, completely committed to defending the rights of those that defend yours.  I’m glad he’s a jerk about that and THOUSANDS of officers and enlisted in our military, currently serving to defend you, feel the same way.  That’s why they’re clients of the MRFF and active supporters of the MRFF cause.  They’ve lived the threat first-hand and need the MRFF’s help to make our military stronger, more inclusive, and more effective for our nation.
 
Pay back the nation for his education and the ‘gifts’ that he’s received?  He’s doing that every day in ways, and at costs, you can’t imagine, by defending my rights and those of my fellow airmen.  I’d like to think you would support him for that as you would support an active duty officer like myself.  But then I’m probably wrong because I’m a jerk who all too often expects the best of people, not the worst.
 
A Senior Air Force Officer and Service Academy Graduate
 
 

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3 Comments

  1. Convivencia August 22, 2016 at 7:34 am

    Dear (name withheld)
    You’re hilarious – maybe that’s all there is to you. Are you trying to imitate the character named “Puddy” from the Seinfeld Comedy Series?- He’s known for the following quotation: “I’ll tell you what’s stupid. You, stupid.”

  2. Connie August 22, 2016 at 7:56 am

    Letter writer states: “I won’t belabor you with my beliefs or attack yours.” and then proceeds to do both.

    Honestly – how do people like this function with that much cognitive dissonance going on inside their head?

    When a person serves in the military they become a representative of the USA. They no longer speak only for themselves but for everyone. This concept is not even hard to grasp. A person representing all citizens of the USA may not spout their personal beliefs.

    Oh – I can hear the echoes of Rev Bob now – my faith (Twue Christianity Inc.) is the only answer for everyone therefore it deserves special treatment.

    Horse poop.

    There are as many pathways to the light as there are souls on the earth. It is extreme hubris to believe one human has the answer for all; hence our forefathers insistence that religion be kept separate from government.

    This isn’t rocket science. Not even close.

  3. Connie August 22, 2016 at 8:04 am

    Just found this snip – Letter writer asserts: “I have never heard that a Muslim, Jew, Buddist or whatever has been attacked by MRFF.”

    Well old man, why do you believe Christianity is mentioned so often? Couldn’t be because Twue Christians are behaving poorly?

    No, say it ain’t so!!!

    Lies in the name of ones faith are still lies. Just saying…

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