25 Jun 2022

Flashback: Reagan Commemorates D-Day Invasion

On 6 Jun 1984, President Ronald Reagan spoke to D-Day veterans on the 40th anniversary of the Allied Invasion of the Normandy beaches in France

STARRS Annual Meeting, Tues 28 June 2022

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Air Force Academy Track and Field Coach Terminated for Refusing COVID Vaccine

   Award winning 2006 Air Force Academy graduate, Afghanistan veteran, Gold Star widow, and currently the only woman track & field coach at the Air Force Academy, Dana Lyon received a “Notice of Termination,” after refusing to take the COVID vaccine. The letter, dated 31 May, stated, “This is non-disciplinary and not personal to you.” Dana submitted a request for reconsideration, informing them that the termination date was two months shy of her being eligible for federal retirement benefits. STARRS sprung into action, lobbying the Academy on her behalf. We also spread the word through newspaper articles and video interviews, including a segment on Fox and Friends.

   On 8 June, the Executive Director of AFA Athletic Programs followed up with an e-mail stating:

“To be clear, the decision not to renew your contract was based on performance and the department’s wish to go in a different coaching direction with the track & field team, not on your vaccination status. At the time of your notification, we were not aware that you were only two months shy of five years of active civilian service, which we now know is important for your retirement eligibility. Given this new information, I will extend your employment contract until 31 August 2022, so that you will be eligible for a federal retirement.”

  How did this situation evolve? After the Jan 2021 court injunction prohibiting the termination of federal employees who refuse the vaccine, Dana explained:

"They called my boss in (without me) on 7 Feb and said, “Now that we can’t terminate her based on her shot status, what’s her job performance like?” He, of course replied, ‘Outstanding, exceeds expectations—invaluable to our program’s success.' One month later, he tragically passed away unexpectedly…since he was the only one that had my back, and is now gone, they want me gone too. I am the only coach in the entire department who didn’t get the shots."

   As a testament to her superior performance and the respect she garnered from cadets she worked with, we received the following from a former AFA athlete:

“Dana is so amazing. She gives her heart and soul to everything she does. Spends her own money buying implements for the track team. When they wouldn’t let her travel to meets, she took leave and drove herself hours to be there for her kids.”

Her coach from her cadet years (and father of a current cadet) also wrote about his impressions of her:

“Dana was my star thrower. 2 Time NCAA javelin National Champion, and inches away from making the US Olympic Team. You won’t find a more honorable, amazing human being anywhere. This was an absolute gut punch reading the news of her termination. The stories my cadet (arrived home on leave yesterday) tells of Dana’s super-human dedication to her country, the AF, and her cadet athletes, nearly brought me to tears. I’m utterly disgusted beyond words at the AD for doing this.”

   The Gazette newspaper article presents the basics of this story and discusses more detail about her accomplishments working at AFA. There is no negative piece of documentation in Dana’s personnel file. Lyons is not in a deployable position. It clearly appears she is being terminated on a false pretext for the real reason, - that she will not take the vaccine. Click on the link to read the newspaper article: 

Additionally, Dana and her attorney (and STARRS General Counsel) Mike Rose were interviewed by Brian Kilmeade on Fox and Friends. Moreover, Colorado Spring’s television station 13, KRDO, published an investigative report on the situation. 

Help the Senior Cadets Denied Commissions Fight for Their Careers in Court

A Call To Action

Thank you for expressing interest in STARRS.  We encourage you to take an active role in our mission, to include educating your elected representatives at the local, state and national levels, and expressing your concerns.  We also encourage you to educate your fellow citizens by speaking at gatherings, writing editorials for local papers, talking to school boards and encouraging others to join you and STARRS.

STARRS is an all-volunteer organization, but we have financial obligations to maintain webpages, subscribe to software, pay travel costs associated with presentations, as well as fund other related matters.  Your donations make all this possible and are greatly appreciated!

Why DoD’s Vaccine Mandate is an Illegal Order

   In September 2021, the DoD mandated the Pfizer vaccine for all service members after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) declared its variant COMIRNATY as fully licensed for usage. The wording on the FDA fact sheet clearly indicates they are not the same product. The DoD memo went on to indicate that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine was interchangeable with the vaccine labeled “COMIRNATY,” but Pfizer has denied this in their own corporate communications. Incidentally COMIRNATY is currently unavailable in the United States, which is why the DoD is stating that service members have the option to take an "interchangeable" vaccine. The problem is that all other COVID vaccines, which are declared interchangeable are actually emergency use only (EUA). Ordering members to take a vaccine that is not fully licensed is illegal. Currently there are legal filings on this specific issue.

Navy Retains Officer Who Refused Order to Take COVID-19 Vaccine

     A US Navy administrative separation board voted unanimously to retain Lt. Billy Moseley an officer who refused to comply with the military's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The board’s decision was supported by a legal finding that there are no FDA-approved vaccines available, only interchangeable vaccines. If there are no FDA-approved vaccines available, then President Biden would have to authorize the non fully-licensured vaccines that are currently available. The latter has not happened. 

Moseley, who has been an officer for 22 years, could have chosen to retire from the military when he was ordered to receive the COVID vaccine. He also could have submitted a Religious Accommodation Request, since he objected to the vaccine for religious reasons.

     Risking his retirement, Moseley chose instead to take his case to the administrative separation board after learning "that the Navy and the other services intended to implement a blanket denial policy," according to a press release from his attorney, R. Davis Younts.

Fighting Windmills: The DOD’s Battle Against COVID

    Scott Sturman, MD, USAFA ’72 and graduate of the University of Arizona’s School of Health Sciences Center practiced medicine for 35 years. In this article, he criticizes DOD policies on COVID 19, arguing the Omicron variant is a different enemy with different strengths and weaknesses that requires adaptable leaders willing to apply solutions based on real time information. Sturman evokes General George S. Patton, “If everybody’s thinking alike, then somebody isn’t thinking.” The DOD mindset of applying obsolete information and measures to contemporary, rapidly changing problems threatens the defense of the country more than COVID 19.

Whistleblower Lawsuit Claims SECAF Ordered Corona Attendees to Deny Vaccine Exemptions

   A federal lawsuit alleges that Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall or “his designees” ordered junior personnel out of a conference room during the Air Force Corona conference last October in order to tell the service’s senior leaders — including many of the top generals in the Air Force and Space Force — that they were expected to reject COVID 19 religious exemption applications from any airmen “who would be remaining in the Department of the Air Force.”

The accusation comes in a May 3 federal filing as part of a lawsuit, Doster v. Kendall, filed on behalf of more than 200 Air Force members who refused to take the COVID-19 vaccine, citing religious beliefs. The lawsuit presents a claim by “whistleblowers” that Kendall or “his designees” delivered those “expectations” at a conference of senior Air Force leaders in October 2021. Data from this spring showed the Air Force had approved less than 1/2 of 1 percent of well over 4000 religious exemption requests.

STARRS VP Ron Scott Interviewed By Pray In Jesus Name (PIJN) News

   Gordon "Chap" Klingenschmitt, USAFA ’91, hosts STARRS Vice President Ron Scott, PhD, who states up to 32 cadets are being dismissed for religious convictions, and describes how you can help them fight back.

STARRS President, Attorney Appear On “The Rob Maness Show”

     Is the DoD’s vaccine mandate about safety, or is it about saving face and insisting on compliance for the simple sake of compliance itself? The law requires anyone considering taking an EUA vaccination be given informed consent information, including the fact that they have the option to refuse the vaccination. There is a break-down in the process when members are not provided this information. Rob Maness asks these questions with respect to an order being given to troops to take a vaccine that has safety concerns. USAF Lt Gen (Ret) Bishop and STARRS Attorney Mike Rose discuss with Rob Maness concerns associated with this DoD vaccine mandate, as well as why very qualified people are being pushed out the door for refusing to be vaccinated.

STARRS President's Eight Key Points Why the DoD Vaccine Mandates Demonstrate Radical Politicization

Lt Gen (USAF Ret) Rod Bishop offers up his fundamental reasons why the DoD COVID 19 vaccine mandate represents radical politicization.

• DOD ignoring/covering up/”playing a shell game” with respect to the potentiality of the legality of the order;

• Only the COMIRNATY variant of the Pfizer vaccine, unavailable to US consumers, has been formally approved by the FDA;

•  All vaccines available to US Consumers are Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) only;

•  An order mandating a EUA-only vaccine is dangerous and unlawful;

•  Trampling of First Amendment Rights and ignoring the Religious Freedom 

      Restoration Act;

•  Turning a blind eye to an ever growing body of evidence on the safety of the vaccine and ignoring natural immunity;

•  Harsh and tyrannical treatment and psychological coercion to get people to get the shots; 

•  Impact on readiness on two fronts—good people being eliminated and loss of trust in leadership.

Flag Day, June 14:

What Does the Flag Mean?

Published with permission from the author

   In the spirit of Flag Day, celebrated on June 14^th, Jane Hampton Cook writes this historically interesting piece discussing the meaning the founders intended for our U.S. flag. On the first flag day, Congress didn’t explain the meaning of the colors, red, white, and blue. But in the days and weeks ahead, Congress would come to know the meaning of these colors through the valor and perseverance of George Washington’s army and others who contributed to the cause of liberty.  

RIP, Moral Courage in the Military

By Mike Pefley, STARRS VP Communications, USAFA ’74

   Our nation was founded on the moral courage of patriots in order to free themselves and future generations. The paragon of moral courage for the seekers of freedom was George Washington. His courage in battle was demonstrated long before there was even an inkling of an independent nation in the new world. Why did the powers that existed call it “the New World?” Was it because of the mysteries it held which “civilized Europe” felt drawn to unlock? Perhaps it was the call of unrestrained opportunity that drew courageous people from all over the world to the land of opportunity.

   Fast forward 400 years from the first settlers arriving predominantly from Europe and you’ll find that same optimism and the courage to take a chance on a now known land of opportunity by millions of seekers for a better life. Just to dispel the drum-beaten Marxist narrative that is a bald-faced lie, America is NOT a racist nation. People don’t gravitate toward oppression; they flee from it. That’s why Venezuelans, Cubans, Africans, Haitians, Chinese, N. Koreans, Salvadorans, Afghans and many more risk everything to live, work and establish families in the United States of America. These teaming masses strive for the opportunity while demonstrating the courage to leave behind the known in seeking the unknown of the New World.

You might be wondering, what does all this rhetoric about foreigners immigrating to the United States have to do with the military? I’ll tell you, this American tradition of courage, established in the 1600s was, and is, the hope for freedom and liberty for the entire world. American courage was demonstrated in the founding of the nation in 1776. It was continually re-established in our American Civil War, World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq. Never in human history has any nation of citizens gone to the aid of so many people at home in America and in such far distant lands. What is it about Americans that drive them to sacrifice for so many others? I believe that the driving factor is American exceptionalism and American courage.

   Because of my years of service in the US Air Force, I’m going to also point to the USAF Core Values. They are: Integrity First, Service Before Self and Excellence in All We Do. Once you hear those values, you have to admit, they are about personal and organizational courage. They are the values of George Washington, America’s first and foremost soldier. They are the values of our Founding Fathers. They are the values of the legions of American men and women that fought for the end of slavery, for Civil Rights, for freedom for others in countless wars. It is courage that drove them and courage that sustained them when it appeared the odds were against them.

   Last month, the US Air Force Academy graduated its 64th class and commissioned all but a handful of those that have strived for the past four years. The fact that a few won’t be commissioned is probably not a big deal in the minds of many. It is inconsequential to the general officers at the Air Force Academy and throughout the Air Force; because they lack the moral courage to stand up to planned aggression against anyone that dares to question DoD leadership in their planned purge of those that will not bend to an illegal, illogical and yes, evil order to be vaccinated. “Comply or we will crush you.” What do they care that the youngest, most idealistic and newest members of the Air Force are demonstrating courage? They are saying to themselves, “I don’t need to show courage, I’m a general, I want my next promotion or I’m going to retire.” Courage is no longer in their make up because they have nothing to lose by not doing the right, moral and courageous thing.

   One last point, for all the silent general officers that have retired and are happy being in the “NO Courage Club,” because to stand up and speak out against tyranny may cause you to lose some “feather in your nest” income or wonderful personal opportunity, “Shame on you!”

...RIP Military Leadership Courage. 

Stand Up America: MG Paul Vallely Interviews USAF F-16 Pilot Denied a Vaccine Exemption

     At the 27:10 minute point of the show, 1LT John Bowes, an F-16 pilot and 2019 graduate of the USAF Academy, talks about his pending case regarding the forced vaccinations in the military. 1LT Bowes was denied a religious exemption by the USAF. He’s been grounded since September 2021 for exercising his First Amendment Rights and refusal to take the vaccine. He is awaiting discharge. 

     STARRS President Lt Gen (Ret) Rod Bishop states: “As American taxpayers we should be concerned about all this wasted money we have spent training him to this point. As American citizens, we should be worried about the negative impact multiple decisions like this are having and will have for years to come on our readiness to defend our nation. As defenders of the constitution, we should all be upset that our country's leadership could (according to press reports and at least one lawsuit) be premeditatively deciding to trample an individual's First Amendment rights by announcing ahead of time that "no religious exemptions could be or should be approved."

     STARRS is aware of 11,877 religious exemption requests submitted, with only 81 approved (data obtained from documents supporting a lawsuit filed three weeks ago). All 81 granted requests went to service members who were already exiting the Air Force, according to the lawsuit.

Military Base in Germany to Host Drag Queen Reading Hour After Initially Being Cancelled

     STARRS has learned that less than a month after the USAF Ramstein Air Base in Germany cancelled a series of drag shows, including a Drag Queen Story Hour for kids, nearby army base Kleber Kaserne is hosting its own drag story time event, for kids.

     The event is being hosted by the Kaiserslautern Military Community (KMC) Theater Guild on June 30 and will feature "Drag Story Time for all ages, a history of drag," and a "discussion on theater inclusivity."  It will be held live on stage, and advertised as a "family friendly Pride event."

     In May, a proposed reading time with drag queens reading stories aloud to children, and hosted at Ramstein Air Base library on a US Air Force installation, came under fire from Sen Marco Rubio (R-FL).

  “These inappropriate events are extremely divisive at home for good reason; in all cases, they place young children in close proximity with adults who are intentionally and explicitly sexualized,”  Rubio wrote in his May 27 letter to Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall.

Inset photo above is Ramstein Air Base Library’s 2021 Poster Announcing Drag Queen Story Time reading event to children. The poster features an inset of cross-dressed adult cartoon figures with the caption, “The Hips on the Drag Queen go swish, swish, swish.” Critics of these events argue the DoD is using public funds to sexualize children. A drag queen, historically, is a person, usually male, who uses costuming and makeup to imitate and often exaggerate female gender signifiers and gender roles for entertainment purposes. Often, drag queens have sexualized names, like Penny Tration.

USMC Helicopter Pilot Grounded for Refusing the COVID Vax Interviewed By

The Gateway Pundit

   Jim Hoft of The Gateway Pundit interviews Marine Pilot Capt Tom Stewart, a 13 and a half year veteran, grounded after submitting formal requests for religious exemptions from the COVID vaccination, according to service policy. He explains how the military is wasting a vast amount of money by not letting them do their jobs and describes the life threatening effects a couple pilots he knows experienced after getting the vaccine. Interestingly, none of the grounded personnel he is serving with has had COVID since they were taken off the flight schedule. (Note: Scroll down on the linked page to get to the 28 May video)

SUMMARY POINTS OF INTERVIEW:

• Pilots and other servicemen seeking religious accommodations to the vaccine are first penalized; life is made a living hell.
• Refusing the vaccine for religious reasons, Capt. Stewart was grounded and made to do menial work – even janitorial work!
• Vaccine refusers are humiliated – their careers are destroyed.
• Naval Academy graduate pilots are literally being prosecuted under the Uniform Code of Military Justice for refusing the vaccine for religious reasons – and stand to be discharged from service and forced to repay their scholarships!
• Religious accommodation requests are denied without reason or legitimate deliberation.
• Tens of THOUSANDS of careers are being destroyed.

          o The first female F-35 pilot refused the vax and is getting discharged.

• This causes massive holes in US National Defense due to losing highly skilled helicopter and jet pilots and pilot trainers.
• It costs ~$9 million to train a US naval jet pilot.
• It costs nearly $1.5 million to train helicopter pilots.
• All of this money is being flushed down the toilet.
• NOT PUBLICIZED: vaccine injuries and deaths among young soldiers. 22 year-olds getting strokes! Close colleagues of Capt. Stewart have died or been seriously injured following vaccination!!
• NOT PUBLICIZED IN US: Russia, United Kingdom, CHINA, and many other nations are NOT REQUIRING MILITARY TO GET VAXXED!
• NOT PUBLICIZED: Officer ranks are rubber stamping the vaccine mandate for fear of losing their pensions. “They had an opportunity to stop this.”

STARRS President and Vice-President Interviewed on His Glory Presents: Take FiVe

     Lt. Gen. Rod Bishop, USAF (Ret.) & Dr. Ron Scott, PhD, Col, USAF (Ret) showcase examples of the DoD’s divisive over-emphasis on race and other manifestations of CRT and DEI at USAFA and the tyrannical DoD COVID vaccine policies that seem to ignore scientific data. They also discuss the vaccine lawsuits STARRS is participating in to help affected cadets. The interview starts at the 8:35 point in the linked video.

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