A truly eye-opening book that explores just how massively war-making is embedded in American life was released just his year: Turse, Nick. "The Complex: How the Military Invades Our Everyday Lives." New York: Metropolitan Books, 2008.

Tis a very, if not quite sad, read. Here is a quote:

"In the coming years, we're apt to see more previously foreign-deployed aspects of the Complex—such as the use of mercenaries, surveillance drones, and computer-aided tracking technology—appear in the United States courtesy of the homeland-security complex. Meanwhile, fueled by wars and occupations abroad, the Complex will also continue to swell. As this book has tried to demonstrate, it is already an entity light-years beyond the size, scale, and scope of Dwight Eisenhower’s military-industrial complex, and its most powerful aspects don’t have the look of a garrison state at all. From sunglasses to video games, golf courses to doughnuts, hot movies to hot cars, much of the way the Complex manifests itself hardly looks “military” at all.

For most Americans, and many other peoples across the planet, the Complex is a powerful engine that helps to drive our world, a vast system of systems, a real Matrix, hidden in plain sight. The Complex thrives on the very obliviousness of the civilian population to its existence in the world it has made so much its own. But if you look closely, it can suddenly come into focus and be seen almost everywhere: on our TVs and in the movies we watch; in the video games we play and the products we buy; in the coffee we drink and the boots we wear; in the stocks we own and the Web sites we visit; and in almost every other facet of our lives” (271).

pax vobiscum

Hello Deepak and Everyone,

What is the proper role of religion in the military? I think the role of religion is the same whether one is in the military or not, in this Nation, meaning, you are to have a choice, a say, in the matter, meaning you have the religious freedom to practice one or not and no one can force it on you either way.

Yes, the armed services have Chaplains, as they should, for all who want, and, need, and, choose to worship a god, their particular god, their way, in their own time and choosing.

I would have no problem with a group of military men and women choosing to sit in an area in the mess hall and pray together, but I would have a problem if they made me sit with them to pray if I didn't want to.

Deepak, are right, I do not think any Nation will ever take God out of war, I mean, who is going to go to war with the DEVIL or SATAN? Surely not a Christian, Muslim, or Jew, so man's war needs God's selling points.

Let's just say that certain "christians" in the military have had a friend in President Bush, his Administration and his wars, a blind eye to spreading the "gospel of Jesus" has been emboldened these last eight years and these certain "warriors of their christian god" have had a ton of power and leeway in strong arming their religious views in a very inappropriate manner.

Yes, the ACLU should step in and act. If the military is abusing their power and forcing and mandating religion in anyway, they should be stopped so that the young men and women who join the military do not have to put up with this kind of abuse of power.

have a great day, in God We Trust:), ruth

I have a friend, who signed on to be a military chaplain just before the Gulf War. Navy/sometimes attached to the Marines/has spent most of his time in combat zones.
Aside from saying a Catholic Mass, most days, his function would seem to be that of a secular social worker(anger management, marriage counseling, money management, parenting advice, relationship mediation between group members who can't seem to get along).
His least favorite task: (when assigned to large, stateside bases) personal hygiene pep talks to recruits who have never gotten the hang of using a tooth brush.
He does give comfort in times of family crisis, or when there is injury and death resulting from combat, but religious and spiritual discussions are few and far between.
It's not the role he was expecting to play when he signed on. But, he enjoys the comraderie and the personal freedom of not being assigned to a parish in Middle America. Also, that officer's paycheck has morphed into quite the retirement nestegg ;)

Religion is used as a psychological tool for behavioral control. Most of religion is a fictional framework riding on top of truth and spirit. Religion has been corrupted by the ego.

"There is a meme war going on, truth vs. fiction and the battle field is the mind."
~Scene from Infinite Play

The next wave of reality infusion is coming with supporting tangible infrastructure.... perhaps in a few hours some will get a glimpse.

Perish that built on fiction.

Beta Intent looks good. I actually have the intentions.me domain not sure what to do with it yet but I am sure it will fit somewhere in the divine framework of things.

In a moment of silence and under my breathe, I said, "Grace".

In remembrance of those who have gone before us, I paused for a few seconds.

If there was food in front of me, you can be sure I was thankful.

If there was plenty to go around, and abundance became a keyword...?

Deepak,

Thanks for food for thought. Makes me wonder how light will get through all the layers of distortion. Maybe one spark at a time? One ray at a time?

Trish~~

...I would be praying ceaselessly

Aloha Deepak and Everyone

It is time for those employed in war, not to show up. Take a holiday. love patty

And that is of course a paid holiday. It is called karma evolution. love patty

People should be allowed to pray to their God, as well as worship their God, which includes the choice not to pray or worship God. Isn't that what freedom is all about and why we became the United States? It was all about FREEDOM and that's why state and religion were separated. The freedom to choose is our right.

Love, Char

I don't like to discuss my recent explorations in the time tunnel of life, but this discussion does make me want to share my recent observations about my learning of past lifetimes.

I have come to relive lifetimes past and in each of these lifetimes I had been a military leader, and my conclusion finally after having learned so much about these particular personalities is that each has had to suffer through a variety of different religious beliefs in each flesh life.

For that reason alone, I will add my two cents worth to this discussion.

First of all, Deepak hit the nail on the head about the importance of a faith in a god of some kind for men who are willing to make the supreme sacrifice.
In order to take another's life, one must have respect even for the loyal opposition or adversary no matter in which civilization the individual may live.

In the case of the present situation, Americans have been taunted by the Muslims that Americans are afraid to die whereas the Muslims are not afraid to die. That is of course a ridiculous taunt, but goading is a natural way to insure that a Muslim can become a martyr if he can somehow or other hoodwink his adversary into fighting him.

So from my long study of the life of military men of the past, many of whom I have lived in a study of past lifetimes, I believe that while religion was very important to each and every one at the time of their ongoing struggles, that the end result is that somehow or other, they all ended up being finalized in me in this stage of life where I have come to know and learn of them. Does that mean that this life is the Heaven for them or the Hell for them? I think of that concept a lot too with regard to a belief in a reborn spiritual life in a new kind of flesh experience.

So for that reason alone, I believe that each military group whether Muslim or Christian should have the right to understand why he has a religious background and how that religious background contributed to his being where he is now, fighting an adversary for whatever reason he is involved in that fight.

In other words, let the men pray, let them believe, and tell the ACLU to worry about other things than whether a man who is willing to lay his life down has the right to say Oh God Help Me Through This Ordeal!

greetings,
God can be the core self, Atman for the Hindus, or the ego, which is simply a reflection of the self, a representation. People worship both. The spirit dwells in the mind, as the core self, but is masked by the ego, which falsely claims to be spirit (http://www.psychocience.com). So we find all kinds of things being done by "religious" people.