ShocksNews

In the never ending pursuit of controversy and shocking stories in order to capture the attention of viewers and related ad revenue, sometimes the news media just goes to far.

Just again yesterday I was talking to someone who was outraged and shocked that the VA was banning the traditional flag-folding recitation at military funerals because some evil secularist complained about the religious and specifically Christian themed lines.

Yet another link in the long chain of abuses of those damned ACLU types trying to ban Christianity from our nation no matter who it harms!

He heard it on FoxNews... so it must be true:

Furor After Ceremonial Flag-Folding Readings Pulled From Military Funerals

A group of congressmen has asked the Department of Veterans Affairs to retain the tradition of reciting the significance of each fold in the flag-folding ceremony at military funerals.

"The flag folding recitation is a longstanding tradition which brings comfort to the living and honor to the deceased," Rep. Heath Shuler, D-N.C., writes in his letter Tuesday signed by 11 other congressmen. "The recitations accompanying each fold pay tribute to the service and sacrifice of our veterans and their families, the nation they proudly serve, and the beliefs that they hold dear."

Veterans Affairs has a policy that allows for a full military funeral, which includes the playing of taps and the folding of the flag in respectful silence. Upon request, family can have honor guard read special recitations, which include religious symbolism.

A complaint was filed to the White House after one of those recitations was read incorrectly. Steve L. Muro, the director of the National Cemetery Administration's field programs office, ordered cemetery directors to stop the readings.

The article continues on to make it clear that there is a "ban" and the readings have been "stopped" and that people are demanding that the VA allow families to continue to request the recitation, and even some implication that it has been criminalized:

"There are no federal laws related to the flag that assign any special meaning to the
individual folds of the flag," Muro wrote in a memo obtained by FOXNews.com. "The National Cemetery Administration must not give meaning, or appear to give meaning to the folds of the flag by endorsing or distributing any handouts on 'The Meaning of Each Fold of an Honor Guard Funeral Flag."

The stopping of the recitations has caused a furor among veterans. Members of the American Legion have been flooding national headquarters since the decision, according to Ramona Joyce, an organization spokeswoman.

...

A complaint about the recitation for the 11th fold — "in the eyes of a Hebrew citizen, represents the lower portion of the seal of King David and King Solomon, and glorifies, in their eyes, the God of Abraham, Issac and Jacob" — garnered a complaint and prompted the ban.

The Sept. 27 ban was an effort to create uniform services throughout the military graveyard system, spokesman Mike Nacincik said, adding the 13-fold recital is not part of the U.S. Flag Code and is not government-approved.

"We definitely think it is a matter left up to the families," Joyce said. "It's a nice ceremony; we've been doing it for years. Our honor guards have been doing it," she said.

"It's respectful and it's something the family should be able to choose to have done if they so wish for their veteran," Joyce continued.

Lloyd thinks it's a matter of political correctness gone wild.

"The entirety of this issue is an absurdity that shows political correctness and secular cleansing run amok," Lloyd said. "This is about families of deceased veterans putting to rest their loved ones. No one should interfere with their choices."

...

"This is nuts," Waters told the Press-Enterprise by telephone from Fresno. "There are 26 million veterans in this country and they're not going to take us all to prison."

...

Rabbi Yitzhak Miller of Temple Beth El said he understands the ban.

...

"Please reconsider the policy and allow the Memorial Honor Detail volunteers to perform the traditional flag-folding recitation if requested by the family of the deceased," he wrote.

Lloyd said the honor guard would decide whether to defy the ban next Tuesday, when it will serve at more military funerals.

"We are going to abide by the wishes of the families," Lloyd said. "Not some bureaucrat in Washington, D.C. Period."

Shocking! Horrible! Off with their heads!!!

Problem: None of this is accurate.

The memo did not ban the recitation from being performed. It made clear that the recitation should only be done upon the request of the family. Not automatically done whether the family wants it or not. A copy of the original memo is here.

The VA clarified further after the rumors started flying that the recitation was banned. Their clarification is linked to their website's front page and available here.

So what changed?

Families can still request the recitation. That's clear from both the memo and the clarification.

Honor Guards can still perform the recitation per the family's request. That's clear from both the memo and the clarification.

The big change? The VA employees who were erroneously performing the recitation automatically and distributing materials about it have been informed that decision is up to the families of the veterans. Not them. As it was supposed to be before this memo according to the law.

Shocking? Not really.

But the distortion of the truth sells better than the truth these days. And who cares if we upset the veterans all across the nation even if it is just to make a buck.

Shameful.