Salute to Captain Brett Crozier
CommentaryThe U.S.S. Theodore Roosevelt episode was no isolated incident, but a portent of worse to come. Captain Brett Crozier is now, himself, hopefully, recovering from coronavirus.
The incident began when the Roosevelt’s commanding officer, Captain Crozier, concerned about the pace of the Navy’s response to an outbreak of COVID-19 aboard his ship, wrote an e-mail to colleagues that was subsequently leaked to the San Francisco Chronicle.
Now, it appears that Modly misrepresented the dissemination of Crozier’s e mail as being significantly more careless than the distribution list implied. It was addressed to Crozier’s commanding officer, Rear Adm. Stuart Baker, U.S. Pacific Fleet commander Adm. John Aquilino, and Naval Air Forces commander Vice Adm. DeWolfe Miller, thus invalidating Modly’s claim that Crozier had bypassed his chain of command.
An echo opinion published in Military News by Andrew Milburn
The recent imbroglio (i.e., a problematic relationship) involving the (outrageous!) firing of the Captain Brett Crozier, of the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt, and the subsequent resignation by Secretary of the (stupid, unqualified and incompetent!) Navy Thomas Modly*, has provided a spectacle of theater to rival the Tiger King, in capturing the attention of a quarantine weary country.
The recent imbroglio (i.e., a problematic relationship) involving the (outrageous!) firing of the Captain Brett Crozier, of the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt, and the subsequent resignation by Secretary of the (stupid, unqualified and incompetent!) Navy Thomas Modly*, has provided a spectacle of theater to rival the Tiger King, in capturing the attention of a quarantine weary country.
The incident began when the Roosevelt’s commanding officer, Captain Crozier, concerned about the pace of the Navy’s response to an outbreak of COVID-19 aboard his ship, wrote an e-mail to colleagues that was subsequently leaked to the San Francisco Chronicle.
Now, it appears that Modly misrepresented the dissemination of Crozier’s e mail as being significantly more careless than the distribution list implied. It was addressed to Crozier’s commanding officer, Rear Adm. Stuart Baker, U.S. Pacific Fleet commander Adm. John Aquilino, and Naval Air Forces commander Vice Adm. DeWolfe Miller, thus invalidating Modly’s claim that Crozier had bypassed his chain of command.
Nevertheless, Modly (inappropriately ) relieved (the beloved) Crozier of his duties.
Crozier departed the ship in Guam amidst a well-publicized send-off by his crew who evidently held him in high regard. Then, in a bizarre sequel, Modly, apparently angered by this display of loyalty and determined to stay in the good graces of the White House, flew to Guam and addressed the ship’s crew in a terms that were at best intemperate and at times insulting to their former commanding officer. To make matters worse, despite his long trip from the United States at great cost to the taxpayer, Modly spent less than 30 minutes on board (see my postscript), and made no attempt to visit with the crew. After the Secretary’s speech was made public, Modly offered first an apology, then his resignation.
Unfortunately, this astonishing episode was no isolated incident, but rather another disturbing manifestation of the current administration’s drive to politicize the military. The skipper’s relief and the secretary’s self-immolation were interesting grist for the news cycle, but this dismal story points at a darker problem.
The incident began when the Roosevelt’s commanding officer, Captain Crozier, concerned about the pace of the Navy’s response to an outbreak of COVID-19 aboard his ship, wrote an e-mail to colleagues that was subsequently leaked to the San Francisco Chronicle.
Now it appears that Modly misrepresented the dissemination of Crozier’s e mail as being significantly more careless than the distribution list implied. It was addressed to Crozier’s commanding officer, Rear Adm. Stuart Baker, U.S. Pacific Fleet commander Adm. John Aquilino, and Naval Air Forces commander Vice Adm. DeWolfe Miller, thus invalidating Modly’s claim that Crozier had bypassed his chain of command. Nevertheless, Modly relieved Crozier of his duties.
Crozier departed the ship in Guam amidst a well-publicized send-off by his crew who evidently held him in high regard. Then, in a bizarre sequel, Modly, apparently angered by this display of loyalty and determined to stay in the good graces of the White House, flew to Guam and addressed the ship’s crew in a terms that were at best intemperate and at times insulting to their former commanding officer. To make matters worse, despite his long trip from the United States at great cost to the taxpayer, Modly spent less than 30 minutes on board, and made no attempt to visit with the crew. After the Secretary’s speech was made public, Modly offered first an apology, then his resignation.
Unfortunately, this astonishing episode was no isolated incident, but rather another disturbing manifestation of the current administration’s drive to politicize the military. The skipper’s relief and the secretary’s self-immolation were interesting grist for the news cycle, but this dismal story points at a darker problem.
As several commentators have recently observed, the norms of civil military relations have over the last three years have steadily been eroded. When norms are continuously violated without anyone making a stand to defend them, they simply cease to be norms — the exceptions accrete into a new rule. That should be of concern, not just to the US military which has always prided itself on being apolitical, but to the country as a whole, whose democratic values depend in part on a healthy relationship between the military and its civilian leadership.
Imagine a military in which senior ranks are awarded according to political affiliation, in which political proselytization of subordinates becomes commonplace, and in which displays of political allegiance become a regular fixture of professional events. These scenarios may appear to be somewhat far-fetched, but senior uniformed leadership has already tacitly accepted the first steps down the road to a military in which this kind of behavior is the new norm.
From the beginning of this administration, it became clear that this president didn’t necessarily understand or respect the terms of the implicit contract, grounded largely on Harvard scholar Samuel Huntington’s 1957 classic The Soldier and the State, that has, throughout successive administrations, helped maintain what has been mostly a well-balanced civil military relationship, based on mutual respect and trust.
Crozier departed the ship in Guam amidst a well-publicized send-off by his crew who evidently held him in high regard. Then, in a bizarre sequel, Modly, apparently angered by this display of loyalty and determined to stay in the good graces of the White House, flew to Guam and addressed the ship’s crew in a terms that were at best intemperate and at times insulting to their former commanding officer. To make matters worse, despite his long trip from the United States at great cost to the taxpayer, Modly spent less than 30 minutes on board (see my postscript), and made no attempt to visit with the crew. After the Secretary’s speech was made public, Modly offered first an apology, then his resignation.
Unfortunately, this astonishing episode was no isolated incident, but rather another disturbing manifestation of the current administration’s drive to politicize the military. The skipper’s relief and the secretary’s self-immolation were interesting grist for the news cycle, but this dismal story points at a darker problem.
The incident began when the Roosevelt’s commanding officer, Captain Crozier, concerned about the pace of the Navy’s response to an outbreak of COVID-19 aboard his ship, wrote an e-mail to colleagues that was subsequently leaked to the San Francisco Chronicle.
Now it appears that Modly misrepresented the dissemination of Crozier’s e mail as being significantly more careless than the distribution list implied. It was addressed to Crozier’s commanding officer, Rear Adm. Stuart Baker, U.S. Pacific Fleet commander Adm. John Aquilino, and Naval Air Forces commander Vice Adm. DeWolfe Miller, thus invalidating Modly’s claim that Crozier had bypassed his chain of command. Nevertheless, Modly relieved Crozier of his duties.
Crozier departed the ship in Guam amidst a well-publicized send-off by his crew who evidently held him in high regard. Then, in a bizarre sequel, Modly, apparently angered by this display of loyalty and determined to stay in the good graces of the White House, flew to Guam and addressed the ship’s crew in a terms that were at best intemperate and at times insulting to their former commanding officer. To make matters worse, despite his long trip from the United States at great cost to the taxpayer, Modly spent less than 30 minutes on board, and made no attempt to visit with the crew. After the Secretary’s speech was made public, Modly offered first an apology, then his resignation.
Unfortunately, this astonishing episode was no isolated incident, but rather another disturbing manifestation of the current administration’s drive to politicize the military. The skipper’s relief and the secretary’s self-immolation were interesting grist for the news cycle, but this dismal story points at a darker problem.
As several commentators have recently observed, the norms of civil military relations have over the last three years have steadily been eroded. When norms are continuously violated without anyone making a stand to defend them, they simply cease to be norms — the exceptions accrete into a new rule. That should be of concern, not just to the US military which has always prided itself on being apolitical, but to the country as a whole, whose democratic values depend in part on a healthy relationship between the military and its civilian leadership.
Imagine a military in which senior ranks are awarded according to political affiliation, in which political proselytization of subordinates becomes commonplace, and in which displays of political allegiance become a regular fixture of professional events. These scenarios may appear to be somewhat far-fetched, but senior uniformed leadership has already tacitly accepted the first steps down the road to a military in which this kind of behavior is the new norm.
From the beginning of this administration, it became clear that this president didn’t necessarily understand or respect the terms of the implicit contract, grounded largely on Harvard scholar Samuel Huntington’s 1957 classic The Soldier and the State, that has, throughout successive administrations, helped maintain what has been mostly a well-balanced civil military relationship, based on mutual respect and trust.
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| Modly owes taxpayers reimbursement for his stupid trip to Guam, his incompetence could convince the Navy to reinstate a "walk the plank" punishment. |
In my opinion post script- Maine Writer calls for the fired and unqualified former Secretary of the Navy to reimburse tax payers for the cost of his totally bogus trip to Guam, a futile act of despereation that amplified his incompetent failed leadership. Furthermore, the idiot Modly brings to mind how the Navy could authorize a reinstatement of a "walk the plank" punishment.
Labels: Andrew Milburn, Military Times, U.S.S Theodore Roosevelt
posted by Juliana L'Heureux | 10:36 AM
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