The information contained in this newsletter represents the views and opinions of the original creators of such content and does not necessarily represent the views or opinions of STARRS. The mere appearance of content on STARRS’ site does not constitute an endorsement by STARRS or its affiliates of such content. STARRS makes such content available for informational and educational purposes only and does not make any representation or warranties as to content. The appearance of hyperlinks does not constitute endorsement by STARRS of any information, products, or services contained at those sites. While STARRS may reference these sites for additional information, STARRS exercises no editorial control over any information found at these locations. | |
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Rep Matt Gaetz (R-FL) confronts Secretary of Defense Austin at a DoD budget hearing about recent military failures and several other issues including West Point teaching Critical Race Theory and the National Defense University hosting a lecture advocating that is time for Socialism. Gaetz suggests that our military would be more effective if it focused “more on strategy and less on woke-ism.”
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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!
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If you have experienced the impact of corrosive, racist, neo-Marxist ideology and/or government tyranny, please share your story and observations. | |
Boots on the Ground Perspectives
on Racism and Radicalism
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1. A STARRS supporter reported his friend, “an A-10 pilot and 2013 USAFA grad, informed me that he had his Board of Inquiry (BOI) on 4 March. The BOI was for the mask and COVID testing violations, and “insubordination” (aka preaching the Gospel in Letter of Reprimand (LOR) rebuttals). It looked a lot like a judicial proceeding, but it was not. The pilot planned to make statutory arguments, procedural arguments, and a lot of EUA arguments. The Legal Advisor (judge) ruled prior to the board that all of the orders were legal and he would not permit anything to the contrary to be argued.” The board voted to recommend separation with a General (Under Honorable Conditions) categorization.
2. The parent of a West Point applicant alerted Col Mike Pefley, STARRS VP of Communications, that the assigned admissions officer (a female USMA graduate) discouraged the applicant from applying after finding out she had conservative views. The parent stated this happened to two applicants that they know of. The applicants’ political leanings were learned through surveillance of their social media conversations. The admissions officer told the applicant she would likely fail the physical aptitude test, and also told her about an event (specifics unknown to STARRS editors) that had happened at West Point that could indicate there was cause for concern for one’s physical safety.
Additionally, the Admissions Officer learned that the applicant also applied to Annapolis. She contacted her USNA counterpart to advise them the applicant was unacceptable and recommended Annapolis offer the slot to another candidate.
Because the applicant is now in the Corps of Cadets at West Point and due to fear of retribution, she remains unidentified.
3. Lt Gen Bishop recently sat next to a sailor who had just finished basic training. Gen Bishop related, “‘It was too woke’ he told me....and then added "and I think it makes us weaker.””
4. STARRS requested the USAFA provide each cadet a copy of Lt Col Matt Lohmeier’s, USAFA ’06, book, Irresistible Revolution, Marxism’s Goal of Conquest & the Unmaking of the American Military to provide a counterbalance to last summer’s One Book, One USAFA selection by George Takei, They called us Enemy--which is over-the-top partisan political and not an honest presentation of complex border issues, yet issued to every freshman cadet in Jun of 2020. STARRS had even identified a donor willing to buy a copy of Matt’s book for each cadet. As a reminder, Matt is the former Space Force squadron commander that was fired for writing the book after it had been reviewed and cleared through appropriate channels per DoD regulations. The superintendent refused because it was “too controversial.” Yet George Takei was given prominence at the premier National Character and Leadership Symposium as the opening speaker--made mandatory for all cadets and held at the only indoor facility that holds the entire cadet wing. According to multiple cadets, Takei "went off the rails" in answering some questions--"totally inappropriate" political comments, untruths told about "Trump's border cages" and "Trump's Muslim Ban,” and a kindergarten-level understanding of complex border issues. We have pressed USAFA to set the record straight and not leave a false impression on the minds of so many of our future leaders--all to no avail. Some have said--"integrity first", the USAF first core value, is but another casualty of today's ideologues.
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The DoD’s Radical Vaccine Mandate | |
Cadets On Verge of Expulsion After Religious Exemption Appeals Were Denied; STARRS Is Helping | |
By Tracey Meck, Col, USAF (Ret), USAFA ’87, STARRS Newsletter Editor-In-Chief
Only the “best of the best” are offered appointments to the U.S. service academies. The competition is tough. Of around 11,000 that start the application process, only a little over 1100 take the oath of office on the first day of Basic Cadet Training.
Now, many of these cadets, several nearing the end of their senior year, are on the verge of losing not only their dream of graduating from a service academy, but also their patriotic desire to serve their country as military officers. Why? Because they chose not to receive the COVID 19 vaccine based on religious or medical reasons. STARRS is focused on helping them!
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The Military’s Radical Imposition of Mandatory
COVID-19 Vaccinations
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By Scott Sturman, MD, USAFA ‘72
Rod Bishop, Lt Gen, USAF (Ret), USAFA ’74, STARRS President & BOD Chairman
Sen (Ret) Mike Rose, Maj, USAFR (Ret), USAFA ’69, STARRS VP of Legal
Medical doctor and STARRS member Scott Sturman teamed up with our President and Vice-President of Legal to conduct a study of shocking medical and legal facts that are being ignored about the dangers and effectiveness of the vaccines and the mandates. Their analysis concluded that the risks of the COVID vaccines outweigh the benefits for military members, the primacy of protective natural immunity is being disregarded, the legality of the mandates and the accuracy of the data supporting them are credibly disputed, and the recipients’ basic human rights are being ignored. Therefore, compulsory administration programs which ignore the emergency use authorization’s informed consent rules, with career-ending consequences for non-compliance, are radical in our opinion.
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Military Doctor Testifies in Court: High-Level Command Ordered Her Silence Over Frightening Vaccine Data | |
While on the stand in court, Lt Col Theresa Long testified she was ordered by her military superior not to testify in court about military data showing adverse reactions to the COVID vaccine. Nearly in tears, she looked at the judge and continued, “I have so many soldiers being destroyed by this vaccine. Not a single member of my senior command has discussed my concerns with me….I have nothing to gain and everything to lose by talking about it.” She added, “I’m OK with that because I am watching people get absolutely destroyed.” She said pressures to get the shots have resulted in at least two suicides she is aware of.
Lt Col Long is in contact with STARRS’ Mike Rose. She is one of the three military doctors who signed affidavits describing excessive adverse reactions to military personnel due to their having received the COVID vaccine, and the military’s misreporting of its data showing these adverse reactions. These problems are described in a letter from Senator Ron Johnson to Secretary of Defense Austin asking questions about the accusations attested to by these military doctors. Our understanding is that SecDef Austin has not responded to Senator Johnson.
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The Black Community Has a Decision to Make | |
By Ken Battle, CMSgt, USAFR (Ret), STARRS Board of Directors
Many black people in this country, including numerous so-called black leaders, still feel and believe they are not free. When questioned concerning this “feeling and belief,” the answer is more about emotions than physical bondage. Pope John Paul II stated, “Freedom consists not in doing what we like, but in having the right to do what we ought.” We ought to teach our children not to steal. We ought to teach them not to kill, and about the tremendous importance of respect for life. We ought to teach them to tell the truth, and to honor their mother and father. These basic building blocks have been removed from our culture. We must decide to put them back.
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How Today’s “Diversity” Damages our Military | |
By BG Chris Petty , USA, (Ret), STARRS VP External Affairs
Diversity sounds great. That’s part of the problem. Today’s “diversity,” however, isn’t what it used to be. Rather than diverse experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives that promote healthy group decisions and outcomes, “diversity” has come to mean only race, ethnicity, and gender. Unfortunately, today’s “diversity” is replacing our long and largely successful journey towards equal opportunity. We have moved the goal posts to the end of a new field ‒ a field where equal racial and gender outcomes determine the score. In this new world, “diversity” has become an end unto itself, undermining the purpose of our military: winning wars.
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BG Petty sat down with LTC Denny Gillem, USA (Ret), USMA ’64 for a discussion about this article on the The Frontlines of Freedom radio show and podcast which reaches 180,000 listeners nationwide each week. | |
Our Educational Mission in Action
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In this two part interview, Lt Gen Rod Bishop, STARRS Board President and CEO, sat down with Frank Gaffney, Center For Security Policy, for an interview on Securing America. The discussion provides a great summary of the issues that STARRS is dedicated to resolving in order to ensure the US military maintains its historical status of excellence, honor, integrity, unity, and progress through merit, all of which affect military effectiveness. Specific topics discussed include Critical Race Theory, support for Black Lives Matter (a Marxist organization) and how the military’s radical vaccine policy is hurting readiness. The DoD has denied the vast majority of vaccine exceptions including requests based on natural immunity and sincerely held religious beliefs. Recently they started discharging military members with years, even decades, of experience, combat deployments, and countless dollars’ worth of training for refusing to take the vaccines after their appeals have been denied, even though the vaccine does not prevent infection from, nor transmission of, newer COVID variants, nor does it prevent serious illness.
Part 1: Rod Bishop talks about the woke culture within the service academies
Part 2: Rod Bishop talks about the US military’s vaccine mandate policy
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The Intellectuals Episode 8
Interview With Historian Jane Hampton Cook
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STARRS’ VP Dr. Ron Scott interviews historian, author and STARRS Board of Advisors member, Jane Hampton Cook. Jane was working at the White House on 9/11 and was evacuated due to fears the White House would be the next target. She is an award-winning author who has published 10 books. Through the passion for patriotism she developed from serving in the White House and living through 9/11, she began researching and writing historical books based on in-depth study of original sources. They first discuss her book Battlefields and Blessings, a 365 day devotional written in the words of those who lived through the Revolutionary War. Jane then explains how the original writings of the founders are now available on line and can be studied by anyone. Those writings clearly dispute recent radical ideologies like those portrayed in the 1619 Project. One point she emphasizes is that George Washington never used the word “democracy;” instead he always referred to our government as a Republic. Dr. Scott points out that memoirs of former communists say that democracy is the key to socialism because people could vote in the tyrants that would usher in communism (note: Hitler was elected). They then discuss why she is so motivated to help with the STARRS mission and how Cancel Culture is not new. Benjamin Franklin even had to fight it to get his writings out to the public. They also discuss the history of the abolition movement slavery and how the Constitution was crafted to achieve this goal, and how CRT and other ideologies are eroding the military today.
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Evidence of Indoctrination and Radicalism in the Military
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Army Captain Placed in Mental Hospital for Accusing Commanding General Patrick Donahoe
of Pushing Illegal Vaccine
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By Joe Hoft, Gateway Pundit, 5 Apr ’22
On Apr 4, an Army captain at Fort Benning went to the Criminal Investigation Division (CID) office to file a criminal complaint against the base’s commanding officer for fraternization and a pattern of harassing junior female officers. Instead of taking the complaint seriously, CID contacted the CPT’s unit who sent an escort to take him to the brigade headquarters to talk to the Deputy Commanding General who then sent him under escort to the post hospital for psychiatric evaluation and a drug test. The behavioral health provider asked him about his opinion of Jan 6, the validity of the election and voting irregularities. She accused him of being part of an unnamed “organization” and tried to portray him as an extremist. She admitted him to the hospital for “monitoring and treatment.” His family believes he is being punished for standing up against the illegal vaccine mandate (whether or not their assumption is accurate is yet to be confirmed).
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Dr Lee Vliet explains she intervened on the day of the incident on the captain’s behalf. After ER doctors cleared the captain of a mental disorder, Dr Vliet and a civilian lawyer convinced doctors that it was unlawful to involuntarily commit him and he was allowed to leave the hospital; only to later be surrounded by MPs with his wife and young children in the car. The MPs had orders to return him to the hospital for involuntary confinement. After an extended period of time, the captain’s lawyer convinced the MPs and their command that they had no legal grounds to confine him and he was allowed to proceed on leave with his family as planned. Dr Vliet is concerned about the use of left-wing rhetoric and key buzz words that indicate they are trying to portray and prosecute him as an extremist. She has contacted Sen Johnson who has initiated actions to help. | |
By Jim Tulley, CAPT, USN (Ret), USNA ’69, member of The Calvert Task Force Board of Directors
Racial diversity for its own sake weakens the effectiveness of any organization. There are numerous indications that the United States Naval Academy is purposely setting out to make the Brigade of Midshipmen “look like” the Fleet and perhaps the nation. Facilitating this goal is a Naval Academy Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (ODEI). The Naval Academy’s ODEI mission web page, states goals of making the Academy an “inclusive campus,” ensuring “equitable access’” and addressing the “challenges of underrepresented populations.”
This reads like political correctness at an institution where the real mission is to train combat leaders. How and why does your new diverse culture make our Navy a stronger fighting force? Why does the Naval Academy now seem more concerned with ensuring “equitable access’ and addressing the “challenges of underrepresented populations.” These are issues in our society that should be addressed elsewhere.
So, to all leaders who claim it to be so, we ask again, why is racial diversity a strength? What about that paradigm makes our Navy a stronger fighting force, better prepared to win our nation’s wars?
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CRT, Wokism & Radicalism
in the Community
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Biden Undermined Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s Credibility by Politicizing Race | |
By: Jennifer-Ruth Green, a lieutenant colonel, Air Force Academy graduate and candidate for Congress in Indiana’s 1st Congressional District
[Recently] President Biden announced his choice to fill Justice Stephen G. Breyer’s seat on the United States Supreme Court, and I could not help but think about Martin Luther King Jr.’s famous words: “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” The pandering on race for political gain has demeaned the significance of her nomination and many Americans will recognize Judge Jackson as an African American and as a woman long before they will recognize her as a competent judge qualified to decide the highest cases in the land.
As an African American woman, I speak from personal experience, and I feel it does a disservice to her lifetime of hard work and I would not want to be put in this situation myself. As a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force, I want all who serve under me to know that I am their commander because of my skills and competence. The American people need to know that the judges handing down decisions that have enormous impact on our nation are the best of the best professionally.
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Poll: Almost Forty Percent of Americans Say That They Would Rather Flee Than Defend the United States | |
Parents Chant ‘Racist’ While Asian Mother Shares Anti-CRT Book During Fairfax County School Board Meeting | |
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