Air Force affirms Colonel’s religious beliefs
According to Stars & Stripes, the Air Force decided in favor of Colonel Leland Bohannon who decided that his religious beliefs prevented him from signing a certificate of appreciation for the same-sex spouse of a retiring master sergeant in his command. Instead he handed it to his commander to sign.
The retiring master sergeant who felt that Bohannon had slighted him and his partner filed an EO complaint and Bohannon was removed from his command position and from the promotion list as a result of the complaint. Bohannon appealed the decision on the basis of his religious beliefs;
The Air Force said that Col. Leland Bohannon “had the right to exercise his sincerely held religious beliefs and did not unlawfully discriminate when he declined to sign the certificate,” according to a letter sent Monday by Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson to members of Congress who supported Bohannon.
“The Air Force has a duty to treat people fairly and without discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, or sexual orientation and (Bohannon) met that duty by having a more senior officer sign the certificate,” Wilson said.
I guess Bohannon is lucky that he wasn’t required to bake them a wedding cake.
Category: Air Force
Just because you can have a gay wedding doesn’t mean you can compel a church to perform the service. The Air Force is right, and he didn’t prevent the certificate of appreciation (seriously?) from being issued or signed.
Ummmm, The Other, what do you think the Certificate of Appreciation was for?
Attention to Orders: This Certificate of Appreciation is presented to (insert name of the queer) for perform sex acts with a member of the same gender? For excellence in cock sucking? For outstanding performance wearing a strap on? For muff diving above and beyond the call of duty?
Let’s make the certificate a little more official by using the more formal phraseology of “sucking of cock” or “diving on muff.” After all, this is a formal military ceremony showing “appreciation” in conformity with the “needs” of the service member and the call of doody.
” the call of doody”
Spew alert, please, before posting shit like that!!
The certificate was for the retiring MSG servicing members members.
Certificate of appreciation? for what? being a freaking pervert? Time people quit turning away from this perversion, they are sick..and need to know they are about 1% of this society and rest of us are tired of hearing about it!imho
This is an amazing turn of events in the USAF. Two years ago there would be no way this common sense ruling could have occurred.
Interesting what happens when adults are put back in charge…
Amen.
You bet…obozo would have cheered on his fellow perverts!
I thought the same. Reading the post above, I couldn’t believe this was coming out of the Air Force (no offense to our zoomie friends). They have been the most “progressive” lib God-haters of all of the services. I guess word got out that the C-n-C doesn’t promote assholes only on the basis of the commie-lib credentials anymore.
Umm must be The Anal Achievement Award
I couldn’t imagine being gay (in the first place, not that there is anything wrong with it), but being gay and forcing someone to accept my gayness. I guess I’m more of the type who thinks if you don’t like me then GFY. That’s just me.
Yeah, but his career is still pretty much toast.
That’s still a problem. He should be able to seek damages.
I believe something called the Feres Doctrine prohibits that, TOW. I’ll let some of our lawyer types weigh in if I’m wrong.
How long does the Colonel have until retirement?
He is a 1994 Academy graduate, so he was probably eligible in 2014.
The proper thing for the Air Force to do would be to restore the colonel to his prior spot on the promotion list, and to his command, and to do it posthaste.
They probably won’t, but they certainly should.
Was he confirmed by the Senate for the promotion?
Yessir! and if not, he needs to call the whitehouse hot line and contact his senators and congressmen!
_____
Is exactly what that worthless E-7 and his dependa deserve after trying to kill a man’s career over their sexual orientation.
You have a certificate…who cares who signed it?
Exactly. It wasn’t about the certificate it was about forcing people to celebrate his homosexuality. Who gives a fuck who signed your certificate, especially one as lame as a certificate of “appreciation”. I didn’t whine about my retirement certificate even though it has BHO’s signature on it, a man whom I loathed with all my being. He was the Commander in Chief, unfortunately, when I retired and so his name was there. In the big scheme of things it matters not that his name was there. I still get a check every month as long as I still breathe.
MK75:
I was a bit…miffed….at my retirement. I retired in May of 2017, however dropped appendix J in June of 16. BHO signed my cert. I made sure the narrator read DJT during the ceremony. The certs are still sitting in the top of my closet a year later. I haven’t looked at them since that day.
Have you considered applying for a replacement certificate? The current signatory might be more worthy of display in your home.
Any idea how? All I see on the website is for current AD folks.
And it was signed by a Major General, not a mere Colonel! Obviously the added appreciation wasn’t appreciated.
But, but that E-7 (shame be upon him) is a gay activist/social justice warrior(but not a warrior). It is the function of the SJW to whine about every perceived slight, while claiming it is proof they are being “oppressed.”
Gee, I wonder why they referred to the aggrieved as “a master sergeant” or “airman” and his wife or husband as spouse? Why weren’t they named? They had no qualms about identifying Bohannan. Even provided a picture of him. No problem there, so why not the two fags?
That’s gay and retarded!
Am I correct in making the observation that the Air Force seems to have the biggest problem with Christianity?
Queers gonna be queer about being Queers.
“But, sweet pea, I’m just going out with the boys.”
“So, you admit it! You’re cheating on me!”
——————————————–
“No tonight, dear, I have a hemorrhoid.”
I’m going to wade in here, regardless if I get burnt.
Why not sign the damn thing? Be the, um, bigger man. I’m sure the Colonel’s head and heart were in the right place by using his religion as a bases for the decision.
But you open yourself up for crap like this.
While in the Army I can’t tell you how many times I did things I didn’t necessarily want to do to achieve my number one goal, to not get yelled at.
Principles are paramount but not getting f**ked with is priceless.
*basis.
Because as a Christian he has a responsibility to be obedient to God before and beyond even the U.S. Air Force, and our founding fathers had the wisdom and experience to recognize that was a right and a freedom which must be protected at all costs.
By living according to his faith and duty to God, he did prove himself the bigger man. He was willing to, and did, suffer retaliation, was emotionally and financially harmed, all because he put God first and over all.
I would much rather have a cadre of men who will not violate their duty to God as they see it, than the bunch of CYA politicians infesting the Five-Sided Puzzle Palace that we have courtesy of the prior administrations. Men and women who will do their duty regardless of the price they have to pay – and in doing so place their duty to God above all other duties.
If one is willing to compromise one’s duty to God, then one is not dependable.
Some of the most dependable Airmen I have had the pleasure of serving with; were also some of the most Godless.
Cheers,
MrFace
Same with grunts…
So?
“…nor the free expression of..”
“..no religious test…”””
We all swore an oath to defend the Constitution. It -explicitly- protects Religious belief and expression.
We cannot, -shall- not, allow one faith or group of faiths to be excised from free practice.
That means, you have to put up with folks you do not like. It does -not- mean suppression to some sort of muddle, or declaring one system acceptable because it is phrased “is not”.
This is the nation of Liberty. The whole reason we exist is for that Liberty.
Mailclerk, your comment is astute. As opposed to saying one who does not believe the same as you as being non-dependable; actions dictate if you are dependable, not faith. And a beautiful thing Liberty is, one which allows us to have these conversations without reprisal. A faith test should not be administered and incorrect action(maybe even punishment in this case) of relieving of a command should not have happened, IMO.
Conversely, no action presented to the public arena is beyond criticism. If you are willing to put yourself out there(correctly or incorrectly, and I do believe he did the correct thing by relaying it up to a higher authority), you should be ready to face consequences(whether for your benefit or not.)
Cheers,
MrFace
Technical difficulties and other responsibilities prevented a quick reply, for which I offer my apologies.
As a point of clarification, however, let me add that who or what one worships as one’s god is irrelevant to the point of putting one’s duty to God first. An otherwise godless Marine (to use your example) may be considered to have made the Marines his or her god, and put duty to the Marines above and beyond all other duties.
The problem is when one makes oneself and/or one’s career one’s god. And in a sense one can then depend upon them to Blue Falcon anyone whose interests interfere with their own.
I agree.
The Colonel here probably had a few more stones than I would have, being as he stood with his religious convictions on it. However, I have never placed that big of a deal on religious things. Therefore, I probably would’ve signed the COA. In the end, both sides of the coin seem to be having the same issue. The homosexual partnership, which wanted to basically ruin a dudes career, wanted the same thing the Col. wanted, their preferences be above what the initial incident(the retirement) was all about.
Colonel – Sign the paper and give the spouse(is that the right term?) some appreciation, as families suffer just as much as members when it comes to deployments.
Homosexual partnership – Retire with some dignity and a pat on the back, good job serving full term.
I personally believe both kind of over-reacted to such a simple thing.
Cheers,
MrFace
Would you screw over your buddy who saved your @$$ in the field to avoid getting yelled at? For Christians, Jesus is the guy who died so you could go home to your family, the one who jumped on the grenade. That’s literally what Easter is about.
Bohannan kept the faith and wasn’t a Blue Falcon to Jesus. He also didn’t stop the retiring dude from getting a certificate – isn’t having a higher-ranking officer sign it an equal honor?
Good points.
There’s no good that came out of raking this Officer over the coals for making accommodations for his subordinate, save the conversation is reaping.
My heart goes out to Colonel Leland Bohannon and his family.
If they were serving ham sandwiches, or beer, and someone deferred passing one to another because of religious observances, would the hammer fall?
What if someone won’t sign a “congratulations” because they think the recipient is a toad, and decline hypocrisy of a false speaking ?
Are we really going to make it mandatory not to offend folks? Because our armed forces will wind up a handful of laconic EMs and the one O-1 who never said anything ever.
Indeed….
Two thoughts here, it’s an optional letter so big fucking deal it didn’t get signed…and once again neither side can be the one that lets it go…the gay couple could have said well it’s optional so no biggie, or the colonel could have signed it…but no that’s not what we do now.
Regarding the good colonel however, one wonders if he gets a special release from working on the Sabbath…after all that’s number three on the big ten list so not working on the Sabbath and keeping it holy would seem far more important than just signing some gay dude’s appreciation letter…one wonders if the good colonel would sign a letter like that for a hetero couple if the military member has tattoos which is another biblical no-no….one wonders if the good colonel is just a fucking bigot using his religion capriciously to justify his bigotry as opposed to actually being part of a rigid adherence to his big book of instructions.
I meet a lot of christians who like to quote the parts of the bible that justify their actions while ignoring the parts that condemn their actions.
I am often reminded of a quote attributed (perhaps falsely) to Ghandi, “I like your Jesus Christ, he is so very unlike your Christians”
I am sure if the Col. had been a bigot the MSgt, or someone else, under his command would have known and complained about it before his retirement.
“I like your Jesus Christ, he is so very unlike your Christians”
Yep. The theory of Christianity is that He is the role model all Christians admire and attempt, however imperfectly, to emulate.
“Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp,
Or what’s a heaven for?”
Robert Browning
Precisely.
I often say that if you look at me for an example of a perfect Christian, you will be sorely disappointed.
I am a decent example of how a failure to be a good Christian can still work to improve and recover from failure.
I’m not looking for perfection, but it would be nice for some of these folks to treat their bible like an actual set of instructions as opposed to a Chinese Menu where they pick some from Column A and some from Column B and then ignore the things they don’t really wish to adhere to.
When people regularly ignore the ten commandments but claim homosexuality is a bridge too far for them it all appears a bit, convenient for them perhaps?
Also reminds me of this verse, “Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.”
Or my other favorite from Mr. Shaw, “No man ever believes that the Bible means what it says: He is always convinced that it says what he means.”
“…but it would be nice…”
It sure would. It would also be nice if ……..(a lot of things).
It’s a good thing you are not looking for perfection, because the species you (and we) belong to just ain’t.
Hypocrite?–My middle name. I can justify my delusions and overlook my own shortcomings with the best of them. It’s fun, and I get tired of self-flagellation sometimes.
Well, FWIW, I begin teaching a “How to Study the Bible” course tonight at my church.
Y’all are welcome to come join us. Every Wednesday night in April.
Might just find out there are a lot of folks who take the entire Bible seriously.
Wellllll … I am a traditional Catholic and cannot abide homosexuality, nor can I be made to accept it. HOWEVER — in the military we do what is military:
Although I find “alternate lifestyle” abhorent, Caesar accepts it; and since we are Legionarii, Optiones, and Centurios under Caesar, I would therefore “sign ze papers, old man.” [Then go to confession … just in case.]
If you’re too young to know “…And why cannot you sign ze papers old man?…”, listen closely:
Just had to mention this part; starts about 0:40
“It’s a horror movie, man”
“A horror(?) movie?”
“Yeah”
” Oh, wow, is that Jane Fonda?”
“No,no not that kind–a scary one–you know…”
Cheech & Chong–ah, memories.
Ghandi also said that “an eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind.” The phrase refers to proportionality in punishment, not a demand for revenge, which proves he didn’t know much about Christianity. One of his supporters once said “it costs a lot to keep Ghandi in poverty”.
true, but he has plenty of company.
My favorite (alleged) Gandhi quote;
Journalist: What do you think of Western civilization?
Gandhi: I think it would be a good idea.
From a man who owed his continuing existence, and that of his followers, to the self-imposed restraints of Western civilization.
https://www.commentarymagazine.com/articles/the-gandhi-nobody-knows/
May be worth the time to peruse.
So is fucking back Roh Dog, and I did that many a time in the Marine Corps. I never made it past E-6 but I almost always went home with lower blood pressure than those who fucked with me.
Went home with lower blood pressure. That’s GOLD!
I pulled the pin at E7. I was in zone for E8 but my sanity wasn’t worth it.
Because he would be giving his tactit approval of a perverted activity that is an “abomination” in the eyes of Almighty God…he did the right thing…..scares the hell out of a lot of people….doing the RIGHT thing that is!
Thank God for that.
Can I still do that?
So mote it be.
As long as it is between consenting adults in the privacy of their own homes or designated religious safe spaces.
So far.
So the colonel is cleared to receive his star ? It’s going to be very awkward if Col Bohannon ever crosses path w/ Lt Gen Anthony Rock. Could be the shortest conversation ever.
It’s not like his Spouse did not get a Certificate.
I once had a Company Commander who refused to do the promotion ceremony for one of my Marines who was getting Sergeant.
The Marine had a bad rep with the CO but nothing that prevented him from being eligible for promotion. He had the cutting score and was recommended so he was selected and the Bn Commander signed off on it.
The Platoon Commander and I just promoted him during a field op in front of the Platoon.
I think it actually meant more to him that way.
The guy turned out to be just below average, but he could be worked with.
He was relieved for not signing a certificate of appreciation for a dependa? What in the actual fuck, A-A-Air Force
Well, it is the Air Force. They have different priorities than the other branches of the military. Hack was Joint Command at The Pentagon, and they had some of us Senior Staff NCO’s together to pick a Service Member Of The Quarter. The Air Force guy was harping on how much community service the candidates performed. Hack was just asking how much they did to help the warfighter.
If you help the civilians through community service, and are in any branch other than Civil Affairs, then you are masturbating without the happy ending.
How else you going to get that much coveted military outstanding volunteer service medal?
I forget the exact play out, but do recall getting promotion points (in the AFRES) for things such as attending the annual Air Force ball, getting your CCAF degree, and the like. It was more about what you’d done to check the boxes than actually be competent at your job.
To me, the very notion that there can be a straight-faced discussion regarding men who marry other men is insane. I will not go out to pasture but I know that sooner or later I will be buried in what was one. At that point, I guess I’ll be good with this and all of the other craziness of this world and the 2018 American culture.
I don’t care what you do with your nethers. It’s none of my business or anyone elses. I don’t care if you like men, women, plastic, or small furry creatures; it ain’t nobody’s business but yours and whatever you enjoy in/on your naughty bits.
If you tell me, show me pictures, insinuate, or anything else, you should expect the same amount of ridicule that I’d give to anyone else who mentions their shortcomings.
Sorry, but it is my business. I am a member of this society and the acceptance of perversion should be everyone’s business. Marriage is a sacred compact between a man and a woman, upon which a civil society is dependent for its very life through the gift of children. You say that you don’t care whether one’s perversions include furry creatures. I will give you credit for that bit of honesty. The fact that you see nothing wrong with bestiality is open acknowledgement of what a society can expect when its morals collapse and anything goes. You and those who share your view have relegated the most fundamental requirements of a healthy society to no more than one’s preference in ice cream flavors. I reject that, without reservation.
So making society conform to your opinion of morality by the suppression of perverse actsmakes you different from [insert illiberal group here] how? Maintaining a ‘healthy society’, that’s a scary proposition.
Maybe we should make up nifty arm bands to identify party members that are arbiters of morality, a cool salute too!
You really don’t get it at all, do you? And that thinly veiled reference to Nazi arm bands and a Nazi salute is really something. Nice work.
I don’t expect to change anyone’s mind, but I will make myself as clear as I can. There’s this thing we call society. It is comprised of people, most of whom share certain commonalities. Social scientists and philosophers have always had much to say about society, with the former largely studying its components and the latter largely analyzing its purpose. Both agree that society has a structure and that the basic building block of that structure is people. If there are no people, there can be no human society. In order to produce people, a man and a woman procreate. The two need not be married to do this, but our society has long valued the institution of marriage. Until most US states had certain of their marriage laws nullified by a few lawyers in black robes, these states reserved the institution of marriage to one man and one woman. Why did the states do that? Were they all Nazis who should have been rendering stiff-armed salutes to one another? No, they did that because the wisdom of the ages dictated that a healthy society that has shared values, traditions, and institutions begins with a family consisting of a man and a woman who marry and later become Dad and Mom. Now, in this family there is structure. Traditionally, with exceptions, Dad is the disciplinarian/protector and Mom the more understanding and forgiving parent. The two parents teach their children to contribute to the family good, follow rules, meet obligations, and respect the privacy and the property of others both within and without the family, and so forth. This family models the larger society and what most of us would have it be. So, what happens when, say, two men decide they not only want sex with one another, but the main messengers in the society, the media, determine that their desire is to be honored? To me, it is another nail in American society’s coffin and it is part and parcel to so much of our society’s degradation it has been my misfortune to witness in my lifetime.
I admit, I was pushing buttons. Using the free exchange of ideas is necessary for our Republic to endure, to that point: ideas should be attack lest people are. I want to challenge that notion of States recognizing same sex couples as decay.
I’m not seeing anyone joining in homosexuality because it’s fun, Hell, heterosexual relationships are hard enough.
I respect your logic, not that it should matter. Mea culpa for the offense.
I took no offense and was only surprised by the undeclared Nazi reference. No problem. Done is done. Next item
Legally permissible does not imply that the behavior is either “normal” or desirable, Roh Dog – or that society must accept it as either normal or desirable. In general, lying and cheating on one’s spouse are both legal. They’re also both morally abhorrent, and we each have the right to disapprove such behavior. So does society – and does, in ways that don’t amount to making either behavior outright illegal (condemnation and grounds for divorce for cheating, bad rep for liars).
I don’t think consensual homosexual conduct should be made unlawful; if someone wants to engage in homosexual conduct, that’s their business. (Bestiality is more problematic, as determining consent there is kinda difficult; IMO that can legitimately be prosecuted as animal cruelty.) However, I rather strongly object to being forced to “accept it as normal” – as well as being forced to subsidize it financially. It’s not normal behavior; it’s aberrant behavior. And IMO society has every right to say, “We won’t prosecute it, but we also won’t condone it or support it financially.”
And yeah, I do mean “support it financially.” We’ll all do exactly that soon. Remember “spousal benefits under Social Security” and “Medicare eligibility for nonworking spouses”?
It’s not really about “rights” any more; since US v. Griswold, homosexual conduct has been legally permissible nationwide. Today, it’s about forcing everyone to accept deviant behavior as “normal” – and about the Benjamins that go with such acceptance of deviant behavior as “normal”.
For the record: I feel pretty much exactly the same about those living together without being legally married. I’m opposed to extending “spousal” benefits (e.g., insurance coverage, etc . . . ) to those couples also.
That is the issue in its entirety: Most of us just do not care what consenting adults do privately. We are very happy to have other adults make their own choices and live with the consequences of their choices. Liberty can be hard because it is followed by responsibility for and consequences of your choices.
Some of us are getting tired of paying for the expensive choices that others make.
Wouldn’t it be great if everyone contributed black ink to the ledger sheet.
Do we end spousal rights when the female’s eggs have left?
Should we?
What about infertile couples?
Couples that have a high likelihood of producing children with crippling diseases?
(these are rhetorical questions brought to you by too much Brave New World and Socrates)
Yep. Or no, depending.
What my silly upbringing demanded of me was to consider that what others do is their business as long as they keep in in their house and pay for it themselves. Crazy concept, huh?
But how far is that detached indifference permitted to go?
What if the government subsidized behavior does erode the nation via an unintended and unpredictable consequence?
Would defaulting to an utilitarian view, ie marriage is for babies, be reparative?
I think that may have been Griswold v. Connecticut, which was about access to contraception. The Supremes recognized a right to privacy for the first time.
Lawrence v. Texas struck down Texas’s sodomy laws, partly on the privacy argument used in Griswold.
WELL SAID! Thank you, it IS someone elses business….Almighty God will have a LOT to say about this on their judgement day!
Well, I disagree.
Liberty is the core American value and I don’t see why this cannot be applied to sexual orientation. Whatever consenting adults do in the privacy of their property is their problem.
Where the conflict begins, is when those people start to push their values on the rest of us, when they want not just tolerance, but acceptance. That I cannot give them. They want to be weird, they can that all day, I will still point and laugh. Why should anybody be protected from being offended?
Because in all cases, Liberty is not License.
There is the misconception that what one does in the privacy of one’s own home has no impact on others. More than most people care to admit or recognize, we are interconnected, and impacted by the decisions of others.
A’s decision to leave after A gets B pregnant, resulting in C being raised without a father, leads to C having problems growing up and, too often, to C becoming a criminal. A’s decision impacts me when C takes my property, assaults me, or makes me pay for C’s incarceration through taxes.
The breakdown of marriage and the family is what is behind so much of the inner-city crime today. All from “personal decisions” that we are told are none of our business.
Yeah. Riiiiight.
You are going to have to do better to dispel my misconceptions. Particularly
if, as you imply, sexual activity between husband and wife is any of your business.
Please tell,us, we don’t have to go on their ‘Honneymoon’ with them
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I am not particularly religious but I also am very glad I retired before this kind of crap became acceptable.
I do wonder though about the good Colonel, how did this even become an issue? If he did not want to sign it and had higher sign it, why did he say anything about it? I mean, how did it become known he refused to personally sign it on religious grounds?
How did it become known? I’d guess the proverbial “rumor mill” (e.g., someone may well have overheard the man mutter something to the effect that his beliefs wouldn’t allow him to sign it and he was sending it to higher instead), followed up by someone asking the Col about the matter and him being honest. But I could be wrong.
The Colonel DIDN’T say anything about it! The perverts raised the issue and charge him!
Sad: The foot stomp heard ’round the Pentagon.
I supposed the now retired USAF Master Sergeant
submitted for VA disability over the “outrage and hurt feelings/foot”.
Hopefully the colonel will have his name placed back on the promotion list.
He didn’t violate anyone’s rights… the guy got his certificate. The Col had the balls to get his boss to sign the certificate and more than likely he (Col) did not broadcast that his boss signed.
The butt-hurt MSG (no pun intended) made spectacle and brought unnecessary (or maybe desired) attention to the situation.
BTW, $5 bucks and that certificate will get you a choco mocho latte at Starbucks…
I’m gay and I thought the colonel handled the situation in a respectable manner. If it had been me and my husband, I would have accepted the major general’s sig on the certificate and gone on with my life. The SSG comes across as a bitchy queen who craves attention. I pity his husband.
ooops. It’s MSgt Bitchy Queen, not SSgt.