Counterpoint

It’s far too easy to curmudgeon oneself over the issue of self-absorbed millenials refusing service on the line. What’s harder is to grok the experience of this professor from a large, southern university, as provided to me in a private email (used with permission):

I couldn’t agree with you more about Lt. Weiner. In September 2006, one of my MBA students who had already done two tours in Iraq with the 101st Airborne and had separated to come to MBA school was recalled to fill one of those billets. He was part way through his first semester, but the Big Green Machine needed experienced infantry captains. It damn near killed him, but he went. It cost him his marriage and two years out of the program, but he did his duty. No whining either….it was a major suckfest, but he did the job.

Just last week, another of my MBA students, also an infantry captain who had taken his turns in Iraq (and separated) was told to report for duty…..exactly 7 days after getting his MBA degree and six weeks before he was supposed to start a rotational program at a big bank around here. His billet is with a New Jersey National Guard brigade going to Iraq in August….80% of that unit have no deployment experience. He is one of the very few experienced infantry captains going with that unit. He has a ton of loans to go to school, but he will report on time to Ft. Jackson. This isn’t how he wanted things to go, but there is no whining. (Both are examples of the IRR system.)

I have a former student who is also a Navy Reserve officer. She is about to depart for Djibouti for 12 months. There have been three stop/start cycles for her in the past year or so, and finally, it seems to be settled. This deployment blows up her career for a while, but there was no question about going. We are going to organize the care packages for her, and for the ‘naval infantry’ with whom she is serving there. I tell you, these ‘kids’ are just amazing!

So, having seen examples where guys who had finished their duty are stepping back up, it is disheartening and maddening to find an active duty officer in a great organization like the U.S. Navy refuse lawful orders. I cannot imagine how those of you who have answered the call over and over must feel about this. (I wonder if there might be a Navy chief somewhere who, commenting on this state of affairs, is inventing an entirely new way to string epithets together…) I guess I am also wondering why separation is the result and not a court martial.

In any event, it is this civilian’s view that one of the great blessings of living in this country is having men and women who step up over and over…

Hooah by God, and heroes abound. Thanks for reminding me, professor.