No, Megyn Kelly, Mikey Weinstein Is NOT an Atheist

[cbayer]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chris-rodda/no-megyn-kelly-mikey-wein_b_5240896.html

Chris Rodda
Senior Research Director, Military Religious Freedom Foundation; Author, 'Liars For Jesus'

Posted: 04/30/2014 3:08 pm EDT Updated: 04/30/2014 5:59 pm EDT Print Article

As a former attorney, Fox News's Megyn Kelly should know full well what defamation is, and she should know full well that what she repeatedly said on last Thursday's episode of her show The Kelly File was indeed defamation.

Who is it that Ms. Kelly defamed? Mikey Weinstein, the founder and president of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF). And what did she say that was defamatory? Well, she repeatedly said that Mikey is an atheist and that MRFF is an atheist organization.

In a six-minute segment about MRFF's demand that, due to the numerous military regulations prohibiting such activities (see my previous post), the Department of Defense cancel the planned participation of uniformed military personnel in Shirley Dobson's big upcoming National Day of Prayer shindig, Ms. Kelly verbally repeated her utterly false claim no less than three times, had the same false claim appear on the screen three times, and then repeated it again in the headline for the story on her show's website.

With the words "ATHEIST GROUP DEMANDS MILITARY BACK OUT OF NATL DAY OF PRAYER EVENT" in big capital letters at the bottom of the screen, Ms. Kelly began her lies by saying, "An atheist group is now demanding that no uniformed military personnel be allowed to take part in this event." Then, a few minutes later, she said to her guests, Shirley Dobson and her Focus on the Family founding husband James Dobson, "This is Mikey Weinstein, who is an atheist and challenges a lot of events like yours." And, then, for the rile-up-the-Fox-viewers hat trick, she referred to MRFF as "Mikey and his atheist group." (Mr. Dobson, of course, chimed in in agreement calling Mikey "sort of a professional atheist.&quot

moe at link

[Goblinmonger]

1. Defamation?

I mean, yeah, it was a shitty thing to lie about just to push the buttons of their slack-jawed, mouth-breathing Jeebus-loving viewers, but defamation? It's defamation now to be called an atheist.

[safeinOhio]

2. I think it would be fine if Fox posted

the 10 commandments in the studio. They might catch number 9.

[Jim__]

5. Did you read the letter linked from the article?

According to The Free Dictionary it is defamation if it induces hostile opinions against a person:

Any intentional false communication, either written or spoken, that harms a person's reputation; decreases the respect, regard, or confidence in which a person is held; or induces disparaging, hostile, or disagreeable opinions or feelings against a person.

According to the letter from his lawyers, Weinstein and his family have been the subject of violent actions and threats in the past. The term defamation may be offensive, but his lawyers are trying to prevent both violent acts and threats. The offensive - but perhaps only available - legal term is probably the lesser evil.

[rug]

3. Well, that's interesting.

And your claim that Mikey himself is an atheist? Well, Ms. Kelly, I think you probably know this already, but, just for the record, Mikey is not an atheist. He is Jewish, sometimes describing himself as a Jewish agnostic who still prays three times a day in Hebrew, but definitely not an atheist. He has actually tried to be an atheist, but just can't quite bring himself to do it, jokingly comparing it to his trying really hard to like the Grateful Dead, but just never quite being able to get there either.

[cbayer]

4. I did not know these stats about this organization

or much about Mikey Weinstein, but I found them interesting.

This group has done some very good work in a very thoughtful and inclusive way. It is probably int part because of the diversity in their membership.

[DetlefK]

6. How does one "try" to be an atheist?

"I am not convinced, even though I'm a little bit."

[cbayer]

7. I think that belief or non-belief may be inherent traits in some individuals.

Some people want to believe and can't. Some don't want to believe and can't.

I'm not convinced it is always a choice and what he says there resonates with me.

[rug]

10. Maybe seriously considering it and finding it lacking.

[trotsky]

8. Well you yourself think "atheist" is a bad word.

You won't let others use it to mean "lacking belief in gods" - for you it means someone who actively disbelieves in gods and wants to eliminate religion.

[onager]

9. Ha! He's a "military hating athiest commie leftist"

From the comments to the article. Well, not exactly...

Mikey is a 1977 Honor Graduate of the United States Air Force Academy...His oldest son and daughter-in-law are 2004 Graduates, Mikey’s youngest son graduated in the Class of 2007, and his son-in-law is a 2010 graduate from the Air Force Academy. Seven total members of Mikey’s family have attended the Academy. His father is a distinguished graduate of the United States Naval Academy. Mikey served for more than 10 years with the Judge Advocate General (“JAG”) Corps.

Then there's this...

A registered Republican, he also spent over three years in the West Wing of the Reagan Administration as legal counsel in the White House.

From Weinstein's MRFF bio, so probably accurate:

http://www.militaryreligiousfreedom.org/about/michael-l-mikey-weinstein/

Weinstein appears in the documentary "Constantine's Sword," in which former Catholic priest James Carroll tries to come to terms with the Catholic Church's history of anti-Semitism.

In the docu, Weinstein describes the discrimination his son faced at the Air Force Academy, such as being openly called "Christ-killer:"

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0902270/