Investigative journalism god Seymour Hersh hasn't been a favorite of the Pentagon since, oh, 1969 or so. That trend continues to this day! Currently, the military is mad that Hersh said they're "crusaders" who wanna "change mosques into cathedrals." And?

Seems like a fair analysis, no? Hersh gave a speech in Qatar earlier this week in which he insinuated that top Pentagon commanders want to destroy the Muslim world and convert them all to Christians because many top military figures are "members of, or at least supporters of, Knights of Malta" and ""Many of them are members of Opus Dei," so "it's a crusade, literally." Also, "They have little insignias, these coins they pass among each other, which are crusader coins."

Well. A bit of a conspiracy-heavy analysis, perhaps. But we're still inclined to believe it's factually true (except maybe the part about the Knights of Malta), given Hersh's track record. The military-industrial complex of Christian Crusaders, however, is offended. Says the Washington Post:

Further, Pentagon sources say there is little evidence of a broad fundamentalist conspiracy within the military. Although there have been incidents in which officers have proselytized subordinates, the military discourages partisan religious advocacy.

Anonymous Pentagon sources deny Pentagon crusade conspiracy! Reporters: the only acceptable war conspiracy theory is the one about how we want all the Muslims' oil. Their dirty religion is a secondary motivation, at best.

[WaPo/ Foreign Policy, photo via Getty]