Current Temp:
80°F
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Military Dog poisoned, Academy investigates
Posted by Pam Zubeck on Wed, Apr 27, 2011 at 2:41 PM
The Air Force Academy security forces are investigating the poisoning of professor David Mullin's service dog, which he believes was harmed while he was teaching at the academy and the dog was waiting in his office last week.
On Saturday, the dog, a black lab named Caleb, started acting sluggish, breathing heavy and refused to stand. Mullin took the dog to an animal emergency center where blood and other tests showed he had been poisoned with rat poison or a prescription drug used to thin blood. After several transfusions, Caleb improved but Mullin reports he's still being watched closely. Test samples have been sent to Colorado State University for analysis.
What makes this case suspicious is Mullin has been an outspoken critic of the academy's handling of religion issues. He testified in a federal court case in February that sought to block an evangelical ex-Marine from speaking during National Prayer Day, for example.
While others were reluctant to step forward, Mullin also made a statement to a team led by retired Air Force Gen. Patrick Gamble, who looked into the religious climate at the academy recently.
You can hear the pain in Mullin's voice when he describes Caleb's ordeal. "I've had him since he was eight weeks old," he says of the 2-year-old dog.
Although there have been a rash of dog poisonings in the Old North End and west side, it's doubtful Mullin's dog is a victim of that creep, whoever it is, because Mullin lives in the vicinity of Powers Boulevard and Briargate Parkway. Caleb and his chum, Casper, are hardly ever out of Mullin's sight while at home, but while at the academy teaching, Mullin at times leaves Caleb in his office.
Caleb is trained to provide support to Mullin, who has balance problems and dizzy spells.
If something comes to light in the case, we'll keep you posted.
Comments (21)
Showing 1-21 of 21
There's a special section in hell for people who hurt animals. That makes me sick.
like
dislike
Posted by
restless native
on 04/27/2011 at 4:16 PM
Two things: First, what the fuck? Someone disagrees with someone else's politics, especially a critique of a federally-funded institution's oft-reported culture of Christianity, and then they poison that employee's service dog in retaliation? Classy. Second, it should read "former Marine" not "ex-Marine."
Posted by
kevjo
on 04/27/2011 at 4:59 PM
@Kevjo: any "Marine" who abandons his Constitutional duty in the name of force-feeding Christian fundamentalism down the throats of cadets is indeed an "ex-Marine".
Posted by
malamute
on 04/27/2011 at 9:27 PM
How hateful, inhumane, brutal, cruel, vicious, calculating, deceitfully manipulative and deliberately (at least, in attempt) intimidating. Investigators better check closely. It may turn out that the poison was intended for Mullins, or that there is another dose of it, hiding somewhere in his edibles. Any who would murder a dog, especially a trained service animal, is a psychopath on the way to murdering a human -- or possibly already there.
Posted by
Brain Logic
on 04/27/2011 at 11:45 PM
Just another reason to stop wasting taxpayer money on the military academies. It is very scarey to think these people are supposed to be our future leaders!
Posted by
AFBRAT54
on 04/28/2011 at 3:39 PM
WELCOME TO COLORADO SPRINGS- HOME OF THE BIGOTTED, RIGHT WING, HOMOPHOBE WHERE THEY CAN'T LIVE AND LET LIVE!!!
Posted by
gurudori
on 04/28/2011 at 3:43 PM
How long is this going to continue? I have been following the situation at the Air Force Academy for YEARS -- even before Mikey took up the cudgels against these unConstitutional malefactors.
Why doesn't Obama weigh in with a STRONG statement that will impress the bad guys.
Why doesn't the Secretary of the Air Force remove the top brass and replace them with human beings respectful of the Constitution.
We get the impression that this is not high on Obama's agenda. He has inherited a government riddled from top to bottom, civilian and military, with the results of Bush's sell-out to the Radical Religious Right.
Time for a thorough house-cleaning.
Get on to Obama, and to your Representative and Members of Congres!
Remember: the squeaky wheel gets the grease. Perhaps your reporting this vile crime will get the attention of someone in government who is an animal lover.
Posted by
Hypatia
on 04/28/2011 at 4:18 PM
This is a terrible crime in its own right. But it also points to the security risk that Professor Mullin faces by whistleblowing the religious discrimination by the leadership at the Air Force Academy. Let's see if the leadership conducts a serious investigation. I wish that Pam Zubeck follows up on this.
Posted by
Citizen
on 04/28/2011 at 8:29 PM
It is an absolute tragedy that a dog is being used in this MRFF drama. At least the Academy is investigating. Wish the same could be said for Ms Zubeck. Again, she appears to regurgitate MRFF’s story-line unquestionably. For example has she asked where MRFF’s Lieutenants were doing when the alleged poisoning happened? Did they have access to the dog? Remember Mr Weinstein has declared war on the Academy. Or has Ms Zubeck even done a simple Freedom of Information Act request on Mr Weinstein’s Academy and military records and MRFF organizational records to fact check his claims. What makes Ms Zubeck want to throw out all journalistic integrity and print anything that may embarrass the Academy without reasonable investigation? Don’t get me wrong. If the Academy needs to be called out once it has been reasonably proven, then have at it. Perhaps Mr Weinstein’s threat to sue the Gazette has intimidated Ms Zubeck and the Independent. Gone are the days of good investigative journalism.
Posted by
Ender
on 04/29/2011 at 3:41 PM
I have very carefully considered all possible ways that my dog, Caleb, could have had access to poison. For details see: http://www.militaryreligiousfreedom.org/pr…. And I have concluded the Caleb was most likely poisoned at the Air Force Academy during the same week that an investigation by the Secretary of Air Force - Inspector General intensified. This investigation covers issues of alleged accreditation violations of several inadequately qualified faculty members; the misrepresenting of this to the USAFA accrediting body, Higher Learning Commission of North Central Association; religious discrimination by Dean of Faculty, B Gen Dana Born and Vice Dean of Faculty, Col Richard Fullerton; the ignoring of a Department of Defense Inspector General Report by USAFA leaders of finding financial malfeasance of Military Pay and Allowance funds; and more.
If Caleb was poisoned at USAFA, it was done deliberately. I find it incredible to believe that the timing of Caleb’s poisoning coinciding with the SAF/IG investigation is unrelated. It’s easy to dismiss the Military Religious Freedom Foundation because it’s easy to kill the messenger rather than face the awful likelihood of a terrible act against Caleb as an attempt to retaliate against me for whistleblowing the alleged serious problems at USAFA.
Posted by
David Mullin
on 04/29/2011 at 7:43 PM
The Poisoning of Professor Mullins' service dog, Caleb was an act of medieval barbarism. It was a punishment for Professor Mullins not toeing the Christian and Political lines that have been so indelibly drawn at our nation's premier service academy.
This is the stuff of Inquisitions, Genocide and Pogroms. It is a bitter and rancid display of absolutism. It has all the earmarks of witch hunts and exorcisms. It is a redux of the dark ages of religious hegemony.
Someone, in his or her mistaken belief in a vengeful God sought to please that awful deity by taking the life of Professor Mullins' dedicated companion, knowing full well that Caleb's demise was far worse to him than the loss of his own life.
Yet, this apparent Dominion Christian act of vengeance seems much more geared to a modern version of a Joshua let loose to run amok and kill the heretics.
It is difficult to discern whether the dog or the poisoner was more of an animal. I would venture to say that such a loathsome creature would have to be on the low end of the food chain. But then, so many of today's hapless religious sycophants are barely above the amoebic stage. This is not to say all believers are of such a distiction but certainly a number have regressed to prehistoric nomenclature.
I am of good hope that the miscreant who poisoned Caleb will be discovered and brought to justice. When one kills in the name of his or her God it is not the God who kills but the killer.
Should an animal that has shown far more loyalty to it's master than his master's human associates be the target for such violence? I think not.
Come with me back to the days when religion meant fellowship, assistance, direction and self sufficiency. Let us together find and redeem this killer of animals. It will speak well of us.
Posted by
Rambunctious
on 04/29/2011 at 9:00 PM
Again, the fact that Dr Mullin's dog has become a victim in MRFF's drama is tragic. If you seek the truth of the matter and wish to see how Mr Weinstein and Dr Mullin conduct themselves under oath, secure a copy of their Federal Court testimonies when they sued the Academy over the Prayer Breakfast. Remember, MRFF and Dr Mullin have declared war on the Academy. And the judge determined they have done so without cause or more precisely without standing -- meaning their claimed injuries were not reasonably proven in court. In the judge's eyes they offered no credible evidence to pin any crime or violation of the First Amendment on the Academy. They appear to be doing the same again in the case of Dr Mullin’s dog – may he fully recover.
Posted by
Ender
on 04/30/2011 at 11:13 AM
I,Have and Love my (3) Three Labs. Whoever would poison a service Dog or any other dog is a Low Life and shoud be Court-Martialed.
Posted by
OneBrother
on 04/30/2011 at 11:34 AM
It seems Ender would distract from the obvious and direct our attention to a long transcript of the case brought against the AFA by MRFF. Diversion is what Ender and his cohorts need to effectively draw attention away from this heinous crime. It is not MRFF that has declared war on the AFA, but rather Dominion Christianity that has declared war on the world. The AFA is but one battle ground in which the forces of Christianity run amok have established a bridgehead and proffer its sick doctrines.
The truth shall set you free but it will piss you off first; and the truth of this matter is that this epsisode of violence is just one of many such dire incidents resulting from the distorted views of those totally in the thrall of Dominionism.
Posted by
richardbk8
on 04/30/2011 at 12:56 PM
Enders, you clearly are writing without informed facts. You are making a specious argument that if I am a whistleblower then I therefore am victimizing my dog? It's so easy to blame the messenger of bad news and ignore the bad news itself. Someone poisoned my dog. Most likely it happened at USAFA. There is an active investigation about this.
If everything were so rosy at USAFA then nothing would have happend to him there.
If you really care about my dog, then you should fully support an investigation, period.
And given my dog has been poisoned, the security risk of my family and me is raised. I notice your lack of concern there.
I pray that you you heart and mind become open to the truth.
Posted by
David Mullin
on 04/30/2011 at 1:04 PM
Did Ms Zubeck have it wrong when she reported the following: “Although Weinstein praised Gould after the new superintendent arrived in mid-2009, notably for sanctioning the Earth-centered worship area, Weinstein now calls him the "lord of lies" and recently declared "war" against Gould and the academy.”? http://www.csindy.com/colorado/keeping-the….
I am intently looking for the truth and informed facts. Please produce some credible facts to support your conspiracy theory of Christian Dominionism and the Academy's roll in it for all the readers to reasonably judge. If the whistle is blown and there are substantial facts to support the allegations, I'm all for the Academy being held accountable. To date the reported credible facts don't measure up with the blowing. I welcome a correction of my reading of the heart of the matter.
Here’s hoping the Secretary of the Air Force Inspector General makes their findings public. Till then I only have the sworn oath of all parties involved in the MRFF vs Academy Prayer Breakfast to go on.
Again, it is an absolute tragedy that Dr Mullin's dog has been caught up in this MRFF drama and I fully support the widest possible investigation of all parties. To deny the self-interests of any party involved is folly as any credible investigator will tell you.
Posted by
Ender
on 05/01/2011 at 5:10 PM
Look Ender. I am definitely injured by a nation day of prayer. It gives legitimacy to the "C" street cult. Perverted Calvinists who believe they are the elect. and directed by God to do whatever they want. Go read the C street tell all......Most of u rich cant thread the needle therfore Hell (camel thru eye of needle..)
http://www.amazon.com/Family-Secret-Fundamentalism-Heart-American/dp/0060560053
Anybody who knows who did this should report all they know straight away to the Humane Society & police. The person who did this could get mad at church & poison the communion wine!
Don't be a possible co-conspirator to a possible federal hate crime.
Posted by
Jay
on 05/02/2011 at 9:18 PM
Ender, at first blush Gen. Gould appeared to be genuinely interested in correcting the problem of Christian evangelical extremism at the Academy. But lo and behold, just weeks after his arrival a new Gen. Gould appeared, halo shining brightly and scripture emanating glibly from his forked tongue. Gen. Gould took the easy way out and betrayed his promise by joining the well entrenched cultist organizations in their merciless coercion of our young cadets and unconstitutional ppresentation of an ultra-sectarian Christian proselytizer at the Prayer Breakfast . That's why Mr. Weinstein, having placed his trust in the General, had to bring Gould's betrayal to light. So, like the War On Terror, Mr. Weinstein and the MRFF must continue their War On Christian Dominionism. But it doesn't end there. The Academy's Dominionist problem is just the tip of the iceberg. This sick and dangerous bastardization of Christianity has a foothold in many American military training facilities and service academies as well as permanent station installations and even combat zones. It is an insidious infestation that must be brought to justice. And with the help of men and women of reason MRFF will do just that.
As for Professor Mullin's companion, Caleb, it is clear to any thinking person that his poisoning was in retaliation for Professor Mullin's bringing the awful truth of Christian hegemony at the Air Force Academy to light. This retaliation was the darkest form of Dominion Christian retribution and was a reprise of the stilted Christian thought processes that brought us the witch hunts, inquisitions and genocides of medieval times. For Profesor Mullin to appear at the court hearing and testify against these dark Dominionist forces was an act of bravery that rivals the courage of any person who has bucked the system and placed themselves in dire jeopardy. Only the twiisted minds of Christian Dominionists could have thought of poisoning Caleb, knowing that his death would be even more tragic to Professor Mullin than his own.
I am glad that you are posting here for even I could not condemn you and your support of Christian Dominonism any more effectively than you do yourself.
Posted by
richardbk8
on 05/03/2011 at 12:33 PM
David is not the only one to suffer at the hands of "Good Christians". Darla Kay Wynne also suffered (proved to be connected to churches) http://web.archive.org/web/20050627081823/… . I am liberal and politically active (letters to the editor of the local paper), and family members have been threatened/ordered to "shut him up!", my workshop was burned, some of our kitties were killed, and racist hate graffiti was spraypainted in front of our home. (I am also Christian, but one that values what Jesus taught and DID, rather than what the conservative churches preach.)
A little research and you will learn that what we've gone through is not that unusual. Not only that, but the violence from the Religious Right is increasing.
Posted by
Walkaway
on 05/19/2011 at 9:37 AM
Richard, if you attended the breakfast, you would know that Clebe McClary's speech was not "ultra-sectarian" by any stretch of the word. He was also not the only one given time. Check out the article at http://www.usafa.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=… - it might give you a bit more background as to what the Air Force Academy's climate is really like.
Posted by
Phoenix Blue
on 05/19/2011 at 1:00 PM
This is a tragedy and I do hope Caleb recovers from the poisoning. While many charges are being leveled at "Christians", I fail to read any factual evidence of the charge. Are we so filled with hate and paranoia that we automatically assume we are a "target" due to an opinion? Does the Academy use mouse poison in their offices? Could the dog have gotten into such? Has there been an investigation or is it "guilty until proven innocent"? I hope for an answer to be found as to how and why this dog ingested poison...and I pray for respect amongst all.....
Posted by
njs
on 05/23/2011 at 8:29 PM
