My second job in a line squadron as a young lieutenant was to serve as the squadron Personnel Officer. Hard, administratively technical and thoroughly thankless, it was not the kind of job that hard charging strike fighter pilots lusted after. But while I was still too junior for one of the more prestigious “finishing” jobs in Ops, I had sufficiently proven myself in my “starter” job as the Aircraft Division Officer that the squadron leadership felt that they could trust me in one of the few junior officer billets that could actually get a commanding officer fired: The PersO job came with the “Personnel Reliability Program” as a collateral duty, and any CO who allowed that program to get porked away could be assured that no band would be playing at his change of command.
One of my other tasks as Personnel Officer was to administrate advancement exams for the squadron’s enlisted personnel. In combination with their performance on written annual evaluations, the results of their advancement exams had a huge impact on who got promoted, how quickly and – ultimately – how far. It was a pretty big deal, especially to the Sailors taking the test – they’d been provided a bibliography that told them which general areas would be tested. The ones who wanted to advance – and who doesn’t? – had studied from it.
Being a far-flung service even in peacetime, the Navy had a vested interest in ensuring that the exams themselves were not compromised – that no one could take the test in Britain, for example, and then phone ahead to his friends in Japan. So part of my responsibility, having administered the exam, was to destroy the question booklets. Being an administratively careless youth of some 26 summers, and being at sea where the amount of time required to do a job tended to fill the nearly limitless time available to do it, this responsibility I duly put aside until the last possible moment.
The maximum number of days (5) until test booklet destruction having passed, I summoned forth the squadron intel officer – a mere ensign (but a good fellah) and took him down to the carrier intelligence center, where they had a bitchin’ shredder, capable of the industrial chewing of things up into very tiny pieces. And a very merry shredding we had of it too, with many witticisms exchanged while test booklets went down, down, down. I returned to my stateroom, tired but pleased, intending to package up the answer sheets that so many of our first class petty officers had so diligently applied themselves to, hoping to make chief, and forwarding them to the grading center in Pensacola. Only I couldn’t find them.
On account of the fact that on test day I had left them – in the kind of decision that you don’t really reflect on, when you make it – inside the test booklets. The test booklets that I had just spent the last hour shredding. The answer sheets were gone.
This was a bad thing.
It’s funny what goes through your head when something has been irretrievably fouled up. The fight or flee instinct kicks in. I declare that for a moment I actually considered going up to the LSO platform and quietly hurling myself into the sea, that being potentially the easier course than explaining to twenty or so of our finest – and our CO, a hard man – that I had just cost them a year of their lives, at least so far as their naval careers were concerned. Out of mere carelessness and inattention to detail – there are few higher crimes and misdemeanors for a young officer. And these weren’t first termers, but PO1’s – company men. Careerists. And I’d just screwed them.
The second thing that occurred to me – and I’m not proud of it – was to try to find a way out. A way of hiding it. No one would ever have to know. I could mail an empty box, or even not mail a box at all and then answer the inevitable queries with a, “Really? Sent it off months ago. Huh…”
But no, it would never do. All the training I’d ever received rejected it. The only thing to do was to tell the whole truth, and take my lumps, didn’t matter how hard. The task was quickly done. And the good news? There’s nothing new under the sun, and the Navy had a process for just such an eventuality: A substitute test would be delivered, administered, and graded. Everyone who took the original test would have another chance.
But I learned from that how things could go wrong in a hurry. And how you could want so much to make them go away.
–
Pat Tillman was already a kind of hero when he decided to leave the NFL and become a different kind of hero altogether. The fact that he was killed by friendly fire while his unit was engaged in combat is a footnote to his life, not the defining feature. The Army isn’t for the faint of heart in peacetime, and the bad things that can happen to you don’t get rarer when the bullets are snapping and whining in earnest.
First reports are always wrong, and there’s no telling what the first officer in Tillman’s chain of command was told when he heard the news that the granite-jawed NFL star under his command had been killed in action. Assumptions were probably made as that unwelcome information was sent up-echelon while front-line barrels were still smoking hot. It wasn’t until later that the unwelcome truth was determined, I suspect.
Bad news travels fast, and a bum steer has a tendency to get half-way ’round the world while the straight skinny is still getting its laces tied. Somebody made a mistake it was rationalized, but it wasn’t me and it’s not my job to set things straight, someone said. What’s the harm in letting the man’s family and his country think that he died by hostile fire? He wouldn’t be any less dead, nor any less a hero. But it sure would sound better.
In the event, it took a full month to finally un-fark the mess that had been made, and in the intervening time a beautiful, but fatally flawed narrative had already taken root. Pulling it up was embarrassing, and it didn’t for a moment change the truth of the matter that a man who could have had anything traded it all in for the chance to serve his country in its hour of need, and lost everything in doing so.
This is not about excusing, and it’s not about forgiving – this was a horrible bungle, a mistake, a disgrace. But this is about understanding. People make mistakes, sometimes dreadful ones. They can be hard to confess to, even when no one died that shouldn’t have.
It’s a damned shame, and I’m very sorry for his family.
It’s hard to believe though, that any of this rises to the level of a Congressional inquiry. Especially one so inelegantly linked to the Jessica Lynch tale, one in which it appears clear that the military was more sinned against than sinning – despite all cautions about “the first report” always being wrong, a “fight to the last bullet” blond female narrative proved irresistible to a national press enraptured with the notion of female warriors on the front line for the first time. And trying to declare that the cover-up went all the way up to the “vile beginners of this fray” is little but a hobby for a Congressional gadfly with nothing much better to do with his time.
It’s isn’t a crime in itself, this gavel beating gas, but you wouldn’t necessarily want to put it on your resume.
–
This is not to take a whit away from what Pvt. Lynch actually went through, and I’m thankful that I didn’t have to face it myself. She was a hero for being there, even if her story got conflated with that of another who kept his finger on the trigger until the rounds were all gone. It was a hard stretch, and she did the best she could.
But in the grand scheme of what can go wrong in the world of war, these don’t seem much like cardinal sins, at least to me. More like honest mistakes that took some time to sort out in a dreadfully tangled time line with better things to focus on. And it’s not a little bit ironic that the same demographics which made Tillman and Lynch such transiently attractive heroes is being twisted to instead make them enduring victims. In either case it’s dehumanizing, and it misses the point entirely.
Or, as Goldstein says:
The only
lex, you said that you’ve had a couple of nicknames over your career. you don’t have to answer this if you don’t want to, but did any nickname get attached to you after said shredding incident?
As commented upon last week in the wake of the VA Tech nightmare, in this our 24/7 news cycle the media has no restraint whatsoever. They have no mental “spam filter” that says maybe we should wait before we start talking without facts. Sure, the initial stories about Jessica Lynch were sexy and inspiring; and the truth isn’t anything less, it’s just the truth as opposed to the usual fiction doled out by the media.
Seems to me that in a time of war you can’t – nor should – expect the full, unvarnished truth to magically pop up in a couple of hours. What happened to Pat Tillman was tragic and sad – but no quarter was given to allow for a full investigation at that time. And now it’s a Congressional inquiry which seems a little bit “much” to me. It won’t bring the man back and doesn’t change the fact that he’s gone. And the truth has already been told…
Which makes it all seem like yet another Congressional witch-hunt.
Honesty really is and always, the best policy, especially for LTs and below. They are expected to F.U. How else are they going to learn? As a leader, I first ascertained, was it a sin of commission or a sin of ommission? How many strikes is this? Obviously, Lex was allowed to prosper and didn’t get a “C” for reliability.
However, it seems to me, this last decade’s zero defect mentality muddies the water though..Everyone’s 5.0 or wants to think so.
The problems start when a LT (or anyone for that matter) screws up and his chain of command starts “managing expectations”, obsfuscating or pencil whipping outcomes, that problems ensue. Sometimes not immediately, but sometimes 25 years later when that LT becomes a VADM.. I say this because we’ve all seen it to a certain degree, and in the end the story is often told, naked in the light of day, in the Navy Times. I submit Tailhook ‘91 as evidence.
The military IS the military and the Army is probably no different than the Navy when it comes to raising their young. Marketing has no place in after action reports and there really are no secrets, ever.
b2
I was watching Band of Brothers over the weekend and something there made me think of the Pat Tillman incident. They had a man killed on a useless patrol when he entered a room before the grenade he threw detonated. The officer in charge of the patrol was trying to figure out what to put into the letter that he was sending the man’s parents. He asked Winters what he would put in the letter. Winters replied “You tell them that their son was a hero and that he was killed on an important mission.”.
I don’t think that there was any attempt to cover-up the cause of Tillman’s death. What I do think happened was that the media hyped the initial report too much. Then when the truth came out it was too good of an opportunity for the anti-war movement and the Liberal press to pass up. Now you have the Democrats in Congress trying to gain political advantage from it and Jessica Lynch.
I guess that old saw about remembering history comes into play. Seems like Colin Kelly’s name should be invoked about now:
Not to demean Kelly’s real heroism, but to point out that neither the Tillman incident or the Lynch matter are the first (nor will they be the last) such incidents.
The manner in which Pat Tillman lost his life matters not to most, for it was his selfless act of turning away from a sure-fire life of comfort and dedicating himself to a patriotic cause that made him a hero in my eyes.
As for your test of integrity, Lex, I too have made the long walk to the At-Sea Cabin and stood on the blue carpet to call myself out. Pride myself on it. It’s what made me a Chief Petty Officer…
Integrity.
That blue carpet seemed big enough to play a game of half-court on in those desparate moments of trepidation…
Web Reconnaissance for 04/26/2007…
A short recon of what?ǂ
Web Reconnaissance for 04/26/2007…
A short recon of whats out there that might draw your attention….
I’m sorry, but I’m getting sick of the Tillman family. I respect their loss and suffering, but as near as I can tell they just want to continue inflicting pain on the Army, the DoD, anyone they can blame… They’re not accomplishing anything with the inquests. As far as Jessica Lynch goes, I feel sorry for her since the press was the one that went nuts on that story, not the DoD. As I recall she was very upfront on what did and did not happen to her. I’m not sure how she got roped into the congressional.
Lex: Your stories of the military and life in it from your personal viewpoint, are always well written and fun to read. More than that, they have an added value to those of us who are lucky enough to read them because they give valuable real-world insight and perspective to stories such as the Tillman case. Thanks.
Lex, your story is interesting, but it isn’t quite the same thing. Nobody died. It would have taken a special kind of jackass to “correct the record” in the Tillman case. Shame on those who lust for the pound of flesh.
Jessica Lynch a hero? My definition is probably more narrow. As for her being “upfront”, I’m not aware that she’s recovered from her memory lapse after her capture. But that story of women in combat would be too ugly to tell, wouldn’t it. She got her million dollars. Now what was the name of that poor doggie who they left behind, and who really fought to the last round?
Sir,
Thanks for telling that story on yourself, I laughed out loud and I cringed when I realized how you must have felt. I am glad the guys got to take a make-up one…and taking it twice actually helps…you remember what you don’t know! Wish I could take it twice. My next test will probably be on a carrier, if I am not promoted this time around…(first time for sea duty for this reservist) knowing the systems on board up close and personal ought to help a bit.
IT2
[...] Hat Tip: Neptunus Lex [...]
Casca, re: my comments on Jessica Lynch, I am referring to her statement about being out of the fight from the very beginning. Yeah, the media really wanted a comic book character but as I recall she went on record early and often about not being what they were reporting her to be. I wouldn’t call her a hero, nor am I aware of her doing so. I hope you can find a better example if you’re grinding the women in combat axe – that case might be a better argument for better training of Combat Support Service units. I may be reading too much into it, and if so I apologize, but right now I have to say I take offense at you referring to Sgt Walters as “That poor doggie.”
You’re reading too much into it. However, if you want to be offended, be my guest. It’s one of the few things still legal. In fact, it’s encouraged! LOL, anyone offended by my reference to the good Sgt, or doggies in general, isn’t familiar with the vernacular. They are what they are. If there was a hero in that outfit, it was definitely him. For an in depth read of their debacle, I refer you to: Marines in the Garden of Eden.
Jessica Lynch in reality is a great example of the downside of women in combat. For anyone who wants to make the case that she was in a CSS, not a combat arms unit. Not that day.
OK, I’ll not be offended. I’m familiar with the vernacular, but was reading something of a condescending tone to your post. The whole point of bringing up they were a CSS unit is that if they’d been trained in how to set up their M-2’s correctly, or even decent weapons maintenance on their M16’s that story would have had a different ending. Personally I prefer to avoid being in units with women in them not based on whether or not they’re capable of doing the job, but because I don’t need the additional BS involved. Being in Combat Arms makes that a little easier a position for me to take. I still think you can find a better example to grind your axe with. Using your logic anyone who is taken out in the opening moments of a fight is an example of the down side of their being in a fight regardless. Give me an example of a woman failing in a fight because she’s female and I might be convinced. In the case of the 507th I think there was a fundamental issue beyond gender.
Ah, the “life flashed before my eyes” moment. Reminds me of a time when I was called back to the ship because OPS found a certain safe open…which contained “stuff” and also the advancement exams for the MS’s….the only safe I had that my intel assistants did not have the combo to…
The subsequent evening mentorship by a fine chain of command, led by combat seasoned A-7 flying 4 striper, counseled me humanely, giving me a new appreciation for problem solving and too much “I can do it!” spirit in this case…
Great lead in story.
Exams. I did a very very similar thing as a freshly minted LT(jg) {I prefer the old abbreviation}. First ship; first real tasking outside my normal job; first major professional screw up (decidedly not the last). I want to tell you that at the time in world history that this incident happened, the Surface Navy was looking for people to get rid of. That day I learned the meaning of the word apoplectic, as in, “My department Head and the XO were apoplectic over this issue…” And sent me to see the Old Man.
Alone.
Because the Old Man wanted to see me.
Alone.
The gravity of what had happened having settled in, my head hanging low, I made the long walk forward and up. Door was open. Called in. “Shut the hatch, please, Mr. Big Fred”. Being offered a seat on the couch, I sat. He got up, and went into a file drawer and started riffling through some papers. I assumed he was looking for the paperwork to send me home. He found a sheet, closed the drawer, and sat down, to my great surprise, next to me on the couch. He handed me the paper and said “Read this, please.” My name appeared no where on the flimsy. His did. It was a letter of reprimand for leaving a safe open during a firedrill many years ago, when he was an Ensign. I handed it back to him, and he put it on his desk. he said, “I figure that your DH and the XO have chewed you out enough today, but just to keep up appearences, if anyone asks you, I took you to the woodshed up here tonight, OK? Please try to be a little more careful when it comes to the careers of the crew from now on.” And then he explained the substitute exam process to me.
He was the guest speaker at my Cahnge of Command.
Hope springs eternal.
Great story BigFred! Priceless.
Curt up above brought up those “MS” exams…..
LOL.
The MS rate is a Mess Specialist. I’m not sure they even have ‘em anymore, but they were/are sailors whose job was mess cooking and waiting on tables, etc., often for the staffs embarked. The reason their exams were treated like classified material is that Admirals would often let their favorite MS’s see the exams before exam day, IE have the gouge.
That’s why they were locked up. And that’s another bit of ammo to the whole point of what Lex is trying to convey..I think.
b2
I’m always amazed at how intelligent people can observe the same facts and somehow arrive at such diverse conclusions. But I am not surprised how people can spread purported blame to their liking, or try to gloss over important issues.
Mistakes happen. Tragic mistakes happen in the heat of battle. And as we are all human – and as long as gross negligence is not involved – we can usually accept tragic mistakes.
However, as is most often the case, it is the cover-up of a mistake that is often the true sin.
The details of the tragic Tillman incident were known early on and an apparent cover-up was initiated. But what was worse was that a subsequent cover-up was devised to cover the earlier cover-up, compounding the wrongdoing.
Those that doubt a cover-up should put themselves in the Tillman family’s shoes. They were given differing and inaccurate, official versions of their son’s demise over the subsequent months and years. The Tillman’s quite rightly begged for years for a true accounting, eventually resulting in the current hearings.
To allow alleged repetitive cover-ups at multiple levels within the Army, without any true accountability, begins a slippery slope slide far away from the standards of Duty, Honor, and Country. It is unfortunate that this issue has risen to the level of a Congressional inquiry, but the Army’s obvious bumbling of this issue, and possible underlying criminal cover-ups, make it necessary. And let it also send the necessary signal, such “official fictions” will not be tolerated.
It also should be noted here that “oversight” is a critical function of Congress. It is what they (are supposed to) do. And it is a function that has languished for the past few years. The current rush of Congressional hearings is a natural result of a long recess of accountability demands and required checks and balance.
The Tillman/Lynch inquiry may not be the most overriding issue of the day. But it represents something deeper and more far reaching – renewed accountabililty and oversight. And that is indeed refreshing.
2 comments
1. The entire sad Tillman episodes smacks of fraud on the part of his chain of command. I could understand incorrect reports in the early days, but there is no excuse for the apparent disregard for the truth his chain of comamnd showed at a later time. The unseemly awarding of a Silver Star Medal without the due diligence required for that honor seems to highlight the breakdowns which are coming to light.
2. My opinion on the entire Jessica Lynch episode has not changed since March 2003. It is a story of of an abject failure of leadership. The poor weapons maintenance in the unit is inexcusable, the warran tofficers forgot that the operative word in their title was officer and the unit seemed to have a lot of sergeants but not very many noncommissioned officers. But this did highlight a systemic problem across the CSS side of the Army which has since been fixed.
LMAO, oversight? By this committee? How does that work exactly? I mean, these overseers don’t know as much as the last private in the last rank does about the military.
Coverup? Was the article 32 investigation a fraud? Did someone have it rewritten?
The story changed? Imagine that. It MUST have been a criminal act.
“The current rush of Congressional hearings is a natural result of a long recess of accountability demands and required checks and balance.”
Really? Here I thought it was the demoncrats grasping for anything with which to bludgeon the administration, and the warriors in the field.