The Loft: Atheists Complain; Air Force Responds by Removing 'God' from Logo

[Patricia M. McBride]

This is totally rediculous, and a congressman from Virginia has written a letter asking this to be reversed.  You can't write and thank him on his web site, because you don't live in his district.  You can, however, go to his facebook page and thank him and he has a comment on his page about this.  I am including the article, and below it is a copy of the letter he wrote.  If you approve, you can go here http://www.facebook.com/randyforbes?sk=wall  and thank him if you are signed up for Facebook.

 In the liberal world of political correctness, I guess the motto is "Offend the Masses." To these liberal elites, it's much better to support a complainer than to take a stand and support the majority. That's exactly what's going on with the Air Force after a group of atheists complaining about a patch that includes a Latin reference to God. The Air Force's response was not to tell them to take a hike. Instead, they changed the patch.

As noted in a press release, Rep. Randy Forbes sent a letter "to Air Force Secretary Michael Donley and Air Force Chief of Staff General Norton Schwartz expressing his concern over recent news that the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office (RCO) changed its logo to remove a Latin reference to "God." The RCO made the change in response to complaints from the "Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers (MAAF).

The text of the letter is as follows:

It has come to our attention that the U.S. Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office (RCO) has modified the logo on its official patch to remove its reference to "God," following a complaint from the Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers. Because such alteration certainly was not required by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, we call on you to reverse this troubling decision.

As Members of the Congressional Prayer Caucus, a bipartisan group of 103 Members of the U.S. House of Representatives dedicated to protecting religious freedom in America and ensuring that our nation is not stripped of references to its spiritual heritage, we are deeply concerned that the RCO capitulated to pressure from an outside group that consistently strives to remove references to God and faith from our nation's military.

The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prohibits the establishment of religion; however, the mere mention of God certainly does not rise to this level. The action taken by the RCO suggests that all references to God, regardless of their context, must be removed from the military. As we are confident that your legal advisors would not suggest that censorship is required for compliance with the First Amendment, we ask that you reverse this perplexing decision.

As you know, courts consistently have upheld the constitutionality of our national motto, "In God We Trust," despite its obvious mention of God. In fact, that motto appears on our nation's currency and is inscribed above the Speaker's rostrum in the U.S. House of Representatives. In light of these and numerous other instances of prominent references to God and consistent affirmations of their constitutionality, we ask that you reverse the decision to alter the logo. Thank you for your attention to this matter and we look forward to receiving your prompt response.

The inscription on the Air Force patch read "Opus Dei Cum Pecunia Alienum Efficemus," which translates to "Doing God's Work with Other People's Money." After the complaint, the Air Force changed it to "Doing Miracles with Other People's Money."

This is yet another example of political correctness gone crazy, and it must stop! If God is good enough for our national motto, He's good enough for the Air Force.

Forbes' letter was cosigned by 35 other Members of Congress. Please let him know you support his actions. Enough is enough!

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LINK  http://www.gopusa.com/theloft/2012/02/08/atheists-complain-air-forc...

 

Letter:

February 6, 2012
Honorable Michael B. Donley
SAF/OS
1670 Air Force Pentagon
Washington, DC 20330-1670

General Norton A. Schwartz
HQ USAF/CC
1670 Air Force Pentagon
Washington, DC 20330-1670

Dear Secretary Donley and General Schwartz:

It has come to our attention that the U.S. Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office (RCO) has modified the logo on its official patch to remove its reference to “God,” following a complaint from the Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers. Because such alteration certainly was not required by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, we call on you to reverse this troubling decision.

As Members of the Congressional Prayer Caucus, a bipartisan group of 103 Members of the U.S. House of Representatives dedicated to protecting religious freedom in America and ensuring that our nation is not stripped of references to its spiritual heritage, we are deeply concerned that the RCO capitulated to pressure from an outside group that consistently strives to remove references to God and faith from our nation’s military.

The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prohibits the establishment of religion; however, the mere mention of God certainly does not rise to this level. The action taken by the RCO suggests that all references to God, regardless of their context, must be removed from the military. As we are confident that your legal advisors would not suggest that censorship is required for compliance with the First Amendment, we ask that you reverse this perplexing decision.

As you know, courts consistently have upheld the constitutionality of our national motto, “In God We Trust,” despite its obvious mention of God. In fact, that motto appears on our nation’s currency and is inscribed above the Speaker’s rostrum in the U.S. House of Representatives. In light of these and numerous other instances of prominent references to God and consistent affirmations of their constitutionality, we ask that you reverse the decision to alter the logo. Thank you for your attention to this matter and we look forward to receiving your prompt response.

Sincerely,

LINK:  http://forbes.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=278608