The exemption process is about personal belief and requires no higher religious authority, just that a chaplain endorses following an interview.
You want a good reason we shouldn’t hold people accountable for following legal orders? Seems like your stance is the special circumstance requiring justification. What is so special about this specific order that disagreement is grounds for leaving early? Once you’ve set that precedent, what other orders are you cool not following?
Do you really not see how this order is different? The mere fact that we're talking about it is proof it is different. Thousands of people might disobey it openly. It is a hugely political order, whether it should be or not (if you don't agree, just look at things like Texas Gov banning vax mandates vs Biden making this mandate). There are issues such as a fully authorized vax, which is the only thing folks can be ordered to take, not even being available in the marketplace. Of course this order is
Before it was authorized, possibly. Now that it has formal approval, it's the same as all of the other vaccines we're required to take.
It makes sense. How can one have such strong religious beliefs about a vaccine while, at the same time, be in a job that has a high probability that they will take human life (e.g., Nuclear Command and Control, SEAL, any pilot who has dropped ordinance on target, etc.)?
Agree that many will claim religious exemption for what are likely secular reasons, but the politicization of this issue cuts both ways and commanders have a duty under the law to consider these claims without political and philosophical bias. In my view, some of what I've heard from senior leaders could be interpreted by servicemembers that they should expect a biased response to a request for religious accommodation and a degraded due process. I think leaders need to tread more carefully unless they're ok with lawsuits. I say this as someone who is vaccinated and has no personal concerns about the vaccine.
This has always come down to "we're the good guys, they're the bad guys, that makes it okay" and not just for us, that's a human nature and history of civilization thing. Everybody who is already serving has already rationalized it with their own morals a while ago (though yes, many people reexamine their moral decisions on an ongoing basis). I see how it's tangentially related to this discussion but I don't see how it's a big "but what about" question.
