If a nontheist falls in a war, and no Congress member is there to hear it, does his death make a sound? The silence surrounding the killing of Pat Tillman, professional football star turned volunteer soldier, is deafening. First his family is kept in the dark about the true circumstances surrounding his death. Next, the military is slow to respond to a Congressional request for information regarding what–if any–punishment was meted out to the military commander who insulted the family for even seeking the truth (he claimed they would just let it go if they believed in anything beyond their child becoming “worm dirt”). See: An Un-American Tragedy

Now the military claims it needn’t testify under oath in Congress regarding the original cover up. It is amazing to me that, according to the Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers, nontheists are overrepresented (compared to their estimated numbers in the population) in the military. See: http://www.maaf.info/ (citing a report by the Population Reference Bureau.) Given the way they are treated, one would think it might make a nontheist think twice about joining the volunteer military. But, like lesbian and gay soldiers who must contend with the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, there are many men and women in our nation whose desire to serve their country goes beyond the discomfort and discrimination they must endure as part of this system.