General Casts War in Religious Terms

[eleny]

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-general16oct16,1,7655334.story

The Pentagon has assigned the task of tracking down and eliminating Osama bin Laden, Saddam Hussein and other high-profile targets to an Army general who sees the war on terrorism as a clash between Judeo-Christian values and Satan.

Lt. Gen. William G. "Jerry" Boykin, the new deputy undersecretary of Defense for intelligence, is a much-decorated and twice-wounded veteran of covert military operations. ....

Yet the former commander and 13-year veteran of the Army's top-secret Delta Force is also an outspoken evangelical Christian who appeared in dress uniform and polished jump boots before a religious group in Oregon in June to declare that radical Islamists hated the United States "because we're a Christian nation, because our foundation and our roots are Judeo-Christian ... and the enemy is a guy named Satan."

[PurityOfEssence]

1. Note to idiot: please don't waste time looking for Satan; look for Osama

If he says things like this in public again, he should be removed with great publicity. It's not just that I dislike his brand of guess, it's dangerous to the country to let this guy help us be perceived like this.

[Oilwellian]

13. Holy Shit! Check this out...

Ft. Bragg Commander Invites 'Hundreds' of Xtian Evangelists for Special Visit
Church Event Set for Base Stirs Concern (4/06/03 - NY Times)

Even as the US is openly at war with a Muslim nation, the commander of Fort Bragg, where the Special Forces are trained, has personally invited "hundreds" of Southern Baptist ministers to attend a special getaway at the base. The commander, Maj. Gen. William G. Boykin, has close ties to a religious group called FAITH Force Multipliers, which is sponsoring the event.

FAITH Force Multipliers is led by Rev. Bobby H. Welch, a Vietnam vet who trained at Fort Bragg. Welch tells the NY Times that his goal is "to apply military principles to evangelism." (See article, below.)

One recruitment broadside for FAITH Force Multipliers has an explicitly Crusade-like tone: "Our goal is to enlist, train, and empower a great army of believers for the sake of the Kingdom of God. .... You can be a part of a great team of Special Forces sowing good seed, expecting a bountiful harvest to the glory of God."
http://www.subliminalnews.com/archives/000044.php

[PurityOfEssence]

17. I...guess...I...should...thank...you...for...that...

Seriously, though, thanks. That's outrageous. I'm going to have to get my chin strap replaced soon if things continue as they've been going.

These people just boggle the imagination. They want to make this a crusade, and once those dice have been cast, it'll be treason to not stand by their religion as the American truth. The obvious connection to then marginalize anyone who doesn't cotton to the Sky Chief, and not just ANY Sky Chief, the big X-man.

Can it be stopped?

My greatest fear of the Iraqi occupation was for what would happen when the first Christian Missionaries were roughed-up or worse. This is just another pathway to the same disaster.

[karlschneider]

2. This guy is a very dangerous fucking nutball.

:grr:

[Parche]

3. religion

We need freedom FROM religion

[eleny]

4. they just covered this on cnn, too

[eleny]

5. kick

[Bread and Circus]

6. This is the kind of nutty bullshit...

we have been fed for 3 years by Bush et al.

I love the fact that people have religion
but this is not what we need in the military
or the government.

Jesus Christ :eyes:

[eleny]

7. Mike Malloy talking about this guy now

[Oilwellian]

8. I just sent Mike this email:

If I heard your clip correctly, Rumsfeld said he didn't know General Boykin. Well lookie what I just found thanks to Google:

Dated August 3, 2003
Army Maj. Gen. William G. Boykin has been nominated for appointment to the grade of lieutenant general with assignment as deputy under secretary of defense for intelligence, intelligence and warfighting support, Office of the Secretary of Defense, Washington, D.C. Boykin is currently serving as commanding general, U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center, Fort Bragg, N.C.


http://216.239.39.104/search?q=cache:uSqQZsbRBgQJ:www.defensedaily.com/personnel/previous/pm08042003.htm+Lt+Gen+William+G.+%22Jerry%22+Boykin&hl=en&ie=UTF-8


Do these people EVER tell the truth???

[Terwilliger]

9. No, there's NO reason to think certain religious influences

might have a bit TOO much power in this country :eyes:

[Oilwellian]

10. Boykin was Black Hawk Down commanding officer

Black Hawk Down commanding officer
to speak at First Baptist Broken Arrow June 30

Maj. Gen. William G. Boykin, who was one of the original members of the
Army's Delta Force, will speak at First Baptist Church of Broken Arrow, 100
W. Albany, at the 9 a.m. and 10:45 a.m. services on Sunday, June 30.

Boykin was commanding officer of the Army's forces stationed in Somalia in
the 1990s during the firefight that was recently made into a movie called
Black Hawk Down. Boykin was wounded by a mortar in Mogadishu, Somalia, after
the firefight and will give an account of faith during the days surrounding
the conflict.
http://www.discovertulsa.com/community/article.asp?aid=694

[moondust]

11. This guy is psychologically unfit to serve.

The army needs to take action.

[PurityOfEssence]

18. god: the cosmic trump card

Things that would be absolutely unconscionable from a secular person are just swell when the Witchy-man's called into play. Just as drugs and driving are a bad mix, so are weapons and religion.

Samuel Johnson was wrong; patriotism isn't the last refuge of a scoundrel, religion is. What's worse is that any version of madness can be justified or tolerated if done in the name of the unquestionable. Whether you like them or not, assholes are less of a danger to society than religious zealots; the former cause pain and trouble, but the latter create mass tragedies.

This guy is just nuts. Unfortunately, not only is he tolerated because of his upright belief, he's glorified for it.

What next?

Hey, at least we'll get the Muslim vote next year, but then we'll be the infidel party...

It just gets better and better, doesn't it?

[drdigi420]

12. Simply more evidence that

religion is evil.

Your decisions should not be based on fiction, but fact. Religion sells fiction, allows the practicer to remove themselves from earthly accountability when loyal to a fictional 'higher cause'.

This is what makes religion (and other cons) so dangerous. When people have the false conception that some divine being controls everything and this life is only temporary, they tend to be a little more willing to attempt to reach the 'next life', and they don't mind dragging a few of us sane people along for the ride.

[PurityOfEssence]

19. It's a great racket, though, isn't it?

Let's be clear here, they're not selling anything; they're RENTING it. Purchase is one-time fleecing; these flocks get soaked on a regular basis for the rest of their lives. It's a great big toll road to happyjoyville, and the best part of the scheme is THEY NEVER HAVE TO DELIVER! Isn't that sweet? Sure, little fella, just shut up, pay up and you'll get the big prize at the end of the ride. It's a huge business hawking a product for which they'll never even be held accountable.

Now THAT'S a racket.

I chose the wrong calling.

[Oilwellian]

14. God talks to Boykin too

Talking about his darkest hour, Boykin asked God to protect his men when he sent them into Somalia during a 1993 covert operation, which resulted in a firefight that claimed 18 Army Rangers and was portrayed in Black Hawk Down. "My heart was broken," said Boykin, noting that he went to his bunk where he cried for his men and was angry with God. "I said there is no God. If there was a God, He would've been here to protect my soldiers." Then, Boykin said he heard God's voice saying: "If there is no God, there is no hope." Boykin described his change of heart after that.

http://www.geocities.com/genebrooks/pray-war-terror.html

[Aidoneus]

15. where's the outrage..

this is a great deal more important than Mahathir's ravings, but note the extreme difference in reactions.. not any interesting enough soundbyte for the yellow press to run with, or just given a free pass?

[Oilwellian]

16. Ok, I've become obsessed...look at this

Nesmith names Col. William G. Boykin, the Delta force commander, and Brig. Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker, then a member of the First Cavalry Division at Fort Hood, Texas, as the previously unnamed military advisors who advocated the use of CS gas, a potent form of tear gas. Boykin and Schoomaker, Nesmith reveals, were also members of the failed Iranian hostage rescue mission in 1980. Both have been promoted since Waco.

So Rummy promoted someone to 3 star General who commanded Black Hawk Down, the failure of the Iranian hostage rescue and now this?? WTF???
http://www.mcsm.org/waco11.html

[oasis]

20. Onward Christian Soldiers

:scared:

[jumptheshadow]

21. This is the wrong strategy for this job

In order to track down OBL and Saddam we have to rely on human (Muslim) intelligence, cooperation from Muslim countries, and help from the intelligence arms from our allies. And our allies are already deeply concerned about the religious/ideological orientation of the Bush administration.

The appointment of this officer is the worst, most ineffective step we could have taken if we wanted a positive result in the war on terrorism.

[iangb]

22. Why does the US waste its time......

.....making TV comedies?

Your news is much funnier.(If you're into black comedy)