As I wrote last week, some of MRFF president Mikey Weinstein’s “Spirit-filled born again Christian” classmates attempted to scare Mikey away from Colorado Springs by threatening to pray imprecatory prayers against him and his family if he attended his 35th class reunion at the Air Force Academy this week. These “spirit-filled” classmates also demanded that Mikey cancel his speech to the SSA chapter at the University of Colorado – Colorado Springs that he was scheduled to give while in Colorado Springs for his reunion.
From Mikey’s “spirit-filled” Air Force Academy classmate’s email:
“On behalf of our classmates, I ask and beg you to publicly announce that you are withdrawing from the speech at UCCS. And that you and your wife Bonny will not be attending our Class of 1977 Academy reunion. We will give you until this Wednesday night to do this. If you refuse to do it then we will pray the Psalm 109. We will pray at home and at church. Our families will pray it together. We will pray to the Lord to stop your poison. We will pray the Psalm against you and your wife and all those who give you sanctuary and protection in Colorado Springs.”
Mikey’s response, of course, was “fuck you,” as he told the audience at UCCS in his speech, which he gave on Wednesday. Mikey is now at the Air Force Academy, where his “spirit-filled” classmates are no doubt huddled somewhere fervently praying for his demise as he enjoys his reunion.
Here’s the video of Mikey’s speech to the SSA at UCCS:
25 comments
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jaxkayaker
October 26, 2012 at 12:11 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Since God always answers prayers, maybe his answer in this case was, like Mikey’s, also “fuck you”.
Or maybe, just maybe, there is no god and prayers are the equivalent of wishing on a star.
usingreason
October 26, 2012 at 12:24 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
This Christian religion of Love, Tolerance and Understanding continues to be a shining example to others.
ashleybell
October 26, 2012 at 12:53 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
I fucking love this guy. Fighting against religion in the military will have profound effects on the quality of its policy and the quality of the people serving in it. The military is a natural breeding ground for authoritarianism, understandably and somewhat necessarily, but that authoritarianism needs to be tempered and Mikey is on that thang!
marcus
October 26, 2012 at 1:25 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Oh my fucking dog, Mickey must be terrified of the terrible wrath about to be unleashed on him by this nonexistent being. Stay strong Mikey!
busterggi
October 26, 2012 at 1:26 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Oh noes! Mikey, do you know what you’ve done???
Imprecatory prayers were aimed at you and now some anonymous sucker on the other side of the planet will feel god’s wrath for he is an awesome god with crappy aim.
Marcus Ranum
October 26, 2012 at 2:50 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Wait – because of something Mikey did, they attacked his family too?? That’s so … (shudder) bronze-age.
Marcus Ranum
October 26, 2012 at 2:52 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
If I believe that my prayers are going to work, have I committed assault if I pray that you get hurt? If I have a gun and I believe it’s real and believe it will go off, if I point it at you and pull the trigger, I am a very naughty boy.
mechtheist
October 26, 2012 at 3:05 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Thanks so much for posting this, Weinstein is a powerful voice that needs to be heard by everyone. After hearing him discussing his book “With god on our Side” a few years ago, I never thought the problem would grow worse over these last few years, especially with the near Dominionist president Shrub gone. He really nails it when he singles out those who believe their beliefs trump the law and The Constitution, they are the real dangerous ones, the ones who are praying for Armageddon to hurry up and start. And now I find out how rife they are in the nuke forces and I start to sweat a bit more. But, I’m afraid I’ll never achieve any of that respect Weinstein asks us to have for the religious beliefs of others, there just isn’t anything there to respect.
Moggie
October 26, 2012 at 3:14 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
busterggi:
Somewhere, there’s a Mickey Weinberg who is having a really bad day.
Gregory in Seattle
October 26, 2012 at 3:26 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
The religion of peace strikes again.
Marcus Ranum
October 26, 2012 at 5:29 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
“yuour soundtrack…” you need to listen to it.
fucking a!
Marcus Ranum
October 26, 2012 at 5:31 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
now I find out how rife they are in the nuke forces and I start to sweat a bit more.
At least they aren’t (shudder) Iranian!!
F
October 26, 2012 at 9:53 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
This must be why the military hasn’t been cut back to some nice housing for a lot of faithful and devout Christians. Who needs any navy, or Predator drones, troops, an air force, and nukes when they could pray at the enemy? Could you imagine the savings?
Forbidden Snowflake
October 26, 2012 at 10:04 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
I think imprecatory prayer should have consequences. Like, if nothing happens to the victim, the person who prayed should have to deconvert, or something similar.
Gvlgeologist, FCD
October 26, 2012 at 11:08 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
I’m quite certain that, when nothing happens to Mikey Weinstein despite the power of the imprecatory prayers, that the people doing the praying will realize the error of their ways and that prayer has no power, and will become atheists. Amirite?
yellowsubmarine
October 27, 2012 at 2:39 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
“On behalf of our classmates, I ask and beg you…[or else]”
Funny that this guy doesn’t seem to know the difference between asking and threatening. He sounds…. abusive. At least his threat is empty, I guess. Ugh.
Freodin
October 27, 2012 at 4:59 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Oh, but the prayer WILL work. Mikey will get sick with the flu, or perhaps even stub his toe! Hard!! And he will die!!! With certainty!!!111one
Sooner or later it will happen to him! And his wife! And his pet gerbil! And… hm, and to all of these nice, peaceful, loving Christians.
I wonder which God they pissed off?
DLC
October 27, 2012 at 7:32 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Everybody named Weinstein should run for the hills.
But what if I were to return the favor and prey back at them ?
Even though I don’t believe, would it not set up a prayer gap ? a prayer-arms-race ? Would we have to fear Mutually Assured Dumbstruction?
MarkNS
October 28, 2012 at 1:54 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
It may not have been much but today I did my bit for you Yanks and your first amendment rights in the military: http://justdfacsmaam.wordpress.com/2012/10/28/we-are-not-amused-well-ok-maybe-a-little/
frankb
October 28, 2012 at 9:35 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
MarkNS, I applaud your efforts against bottle pissers and kid snorkels in the desert. I applaud Mikey too for his stand against imprecatory prayer.
scott
October 29, 2012 at 1:24 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
#7- Well, if some wannabe terrorist tries to set off a “bomb” the FBI gives him, they still throw him in jail even though the weapon was fake.
Some jurisdictions call threatening violence or putting someone in fear of violence as assault, but it appears (via google) that in CO actual harm has to be done. So it looks like the interesting question of what happens if you zap me with magic I don’t believe in isn’t going to come up there. (Or the even more interesting question- what if I say magic words I don’t believe in, but you *do*, and it puts you in fear of harm?)
=8)-DX
October 29, 2012 at 4:46 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Hey! Unlike prayer, wishing on a star is actually a perfectly legitimate childhood fantasy, and a varied and stimulated childhood imagination is arguable beneficial! (It’s not as if parents are indoctrinating children with obscure theology of wishing on stars, or scolding them for not showing reverence and pious respect when imagining distant suns).
If prayer were just wishing on a star without the hypocrisy, self-delusion and pimped up importance it carries as baggage, we’d have won.
davidct
October 30, 2012 at 8:02 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
It seems that these Air Force Academy graduates depend on bombs and bullets when actually doing their jobs. It is a pray softly but carry a big stick mentality. In real situations faith just does not seem to be enough. A bit like lightning rods on a church.
bradleybetts
November 2, 2012 at 8:17 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
If I have a knife, and I know the knife’s real, and I know you are real, and I know that sticking the knife in you will cause pain, injury and possibly death… then if I stick the knife in you, I am guilty of assault, at the very least. These people know Mikey is real, they belive God is real, and they believe that these prayers will do Mikey and his family real harm… so surely they should be guilty of at least attempted assault?
edlynch
November 4, 2012 at 11:53 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Oh no! Not Psalm 109! That’s even worse than a Triple Dog Dare.