How should the military celebrate Memorial Day?

With a religious spectacle obviously.

A scheduled three-day celebration of the US Air Force's 60th anniversary, sponsored in part by evangelical Christian organizations, has prompted a military watchdog group to threaten legal action against the Department of Defense.

The controversial event, sponsored by Task Force Patriot USA, an evangelical organization, and LifeWay Christian Resources, the publishing house of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), was described by the official publication of the Robins Air Force Base as "an official US Air Force 60th Anniversary event." The paper stated that the religious groups and the United States Air Force "have joined together to create a three-day celebration ..."

Slated for the Memorial Day weekend, the "Salute To The Troops, Memorial Day Celebration" will take place at Stone Mountain, an Atlanta, Georgia theme park. The event is supposed to feature hourly flyovers by Air Force planes and parachute jumps by the US Army's Silver Wings Parachute Jump Team. Scheduled speakers include former SBC President Bobby Welch and US Air Force Major Brian "Jethro" Neal, a B-2 pilot, who will speak during a worship service that was to feature a flyover by a stealth bomber. SBC officials stated that special Bibles for military personnel would be disseminated at the gathering.

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Lynn added, "Military personnel and veterans come from many religious traditions and no religion at all. So it is wholly disingenuous for the organizers of this evangelical Christian gathering to promote it as a salute to all our troops. It is anything but."

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In preparation for the lawsuit, Weinstein told Truthout: "I'm advising the DOD to save all their emails and all of their correspondence relating to the planning of this event." He warned the DOD not to "try and pull a Karl Rove and get rid of any of these emails. If that happens, we will move forward with obstruction of justice charges."

Weinstein is intimately familiar with military law. Serving as White House counsel, he defended the Reagan administration during the Iran-Contra investigation. Since he launched his watchdog organization 18 months ago, Weinstein said he has been contacted by more than 4,000 active-duty and retired soldiers, many of whom served or serve in Iraq, who told Weinstein that they were pressured by their commanding officers to convert to Christianity.

"The rise of evangelical Christianity inside the military went on steroids after 9/11 under this administration and this White House," Weinstein said in an interview. "This administration has turned the entire Department of Defense into a faith-based initiative." He recently published a book on the issue: "With God on Our Side: One Man's War Against an Evangelical Coup in America's Military."

The Air Force and Army issued statements amending their previous endorsement and coordination, and scaling back their equipment demonstrations. The statement issued by the Air Force said that it is "not a sponsor" of the event and that the Air Force was "not aware until recently of the religious connotations surrounding Task Force Patriot's participation."

According to Task Force Patriot USA's web site, the organization exists "for the purpose of sharing the fullness of life in Jesus Christ with all US military, military veterans and families." The web site states that "Christ is our Commander-in-Chief."

According to the Washington Post, the Air Force will still participate in the event, but its flyovers "will not be timed to coincide with religious services." Also, according to Air Force representatives, active-duty Air Force officers will not be allowed to wear their uniforms while speaking during the prayer services. It is unclear whether Air Force recruiters will attend as previously scheduled.

The Army has canceled participation of the parachute team and said it is "unaware of any other Army involvement."

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The fact the army has pulled out in full is nice. But the fact they were so casually eager to join in at the start is something to be sure the military and public do not forget. And the Air Force...What do we say. They have been too entwined with Evangelicals for a while now. Many are based in Colorado Springs, and easily commune with the academy there. And their influence is easy to see.

It is sad to see the stories of volunteers, eager to serve, being pushed to join someone elses faith, and/or warned that the choice may affect their chances of promotion.

What is it we are fighting for again? What is it that the administration says the terrorist hate about us?