A new meaning for recruiting

Sure, it's hard to get people to enlist in the military and go get their butts shot off for Dubya in the deserts of Iraq. But once you do get them to enlist, the recruiting is apparently not over. It's not good enough just to be in the military. You also need be recruited into the ranks of evangelical Christianity.

The Air Force said yesterday it is creating a task force to address the religious climate at the U.S. Air Force Academy, following allegations that its faculty and staff have pressured cadets to convert to evangelical Christianity.

The report said that during basic training, cadets who declined to go to chapel after dinner were organized into a "Heathen Flight" and marched back to their dormitories. It said the Air Force's "Chaplain of the Year" urged cadets to proselytize among their classmates or "burn in the fires of hell"; that mandatory cadet meetings often began with explicitly Christian prayers; and that numerous faculty members introduced themselves to their classes as born-again Christians and encouraged students to become born again during the term.

When launching a jihad, it's very important to make sure that you have an iron grip on the military in case you have to twist some arms. What better way to ensure this than by forcibly converting all of their leaders to your religious persuasion?

Is anyone really surprised?