The CO of the USS Enterprise is apparently old Navy:
A top officer aboard a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier broadcast to his crew a series of profanity-laced comedy sketches in which he uses gay slurs, mimics masturbation and opens the shower curtain on women pretending to bathe together, a newspaper reported.
The Virginian-Pilot reported in its Sunday editions that Capt. Owen Honors appeared in the videos in 2006 and 2007 while he was the USS Enterprise’s second-ranking officer, and showed them across the ship on closed-circuit television. He took over as the ship’s commander in May.
The Navy said it plans to investigate the videos, which it called “clearly inappropriate…”
Navy Cmdr. Chris Sims said in a statement sent to The Associated Press that the videos “were not acceptable then and are not acceptable in today’s Navy.”
Carrier CO, Navy captain, fighter guy, TOPGUN grad, graduate of the Power School, veteran commanding officer: Now being finger wagged by an O-5 public affairs officer, who knows what is, and is not acceptable in today’s Navy.
It will no longer do, old shoe.
I was ON that cruise and SAW all of those videos. CAPT Honors was a character if ever there was one, and he and the videos were hilarious and rightly well loved. There was not a single thing in them delivered with any sort of malice and the humor was extremely self deprecating and poking fun at the Navy in a silly way. I don’t remember if his PRD was up or he got pulled early but he didn’t make all of cruise. His replacement was the most decent guy you’ll ever meet and unfortunately had big shoes to fill for his XO movie night routines, and since there was already an uproar about Honors’ his were toned down to the point of banality.
People need to have a little friggin’ backbone. Laugh at yourselves sometimes, none of us get through this alive.
I was wondering what the straight shot from the “horses mouth” would be. Thanks.
As always, everything out of context by the time the civilian media get it.
I wonder if the civilian media also know our military kills people and breaks things when it does its job.
You can find a sample here.
Oh man, memories. Those XO movie nights were what got us through an otherwise total rat f#&k cruise. And for anyone else here who wasn’t there, the Checkmate “$hit-hots” really were the gayest things you ever saw and deserved every little last bit of mockery that could be mustered . . . They made it on more than their fair share of great flight schedule cartoons, and they knew it was gay too, they made a tight circle whenever eating in the wardroom in them like shipwreck survivors trying to fend off sharks or infantry squares vs. cavalry.
This is pretty sad to be honest.
AMDO-
1.) Any Naval Aviator will tell you that there is infinite room available at a round table. Sorry you were never invited.
2.) We enjoyed each others’ company after two combat cruises in two theaters each time- therefore, the large crowd.
3.) Heritage and tradition: http://mysite.verizon.net/res8q66y/VF-211/VF211.htm Head to the Tidewater Tailhook meeting and let an old MiG Killer what you think of his SH.
This PC cwap is going to be the death of us all. A little friggin’ backbone indeed!
I saw this in the newspaper and came here knowing you would already have it up.
He’s done, the only question is how long they let him twist before they cut him down. We have political officers (service and civilian) serving alongside the real military commanders and deciding their careers based on how well they toe the PC line.
However you feel about the end of DADT, there are going to be a lot more problems like this one in the coming years. A joke overheard, a opinion expressed to the wrong person, and a career ruined.
ASM,
In my bleaker moments I fear we have become that which we faced: The Soviet Navy. We now have Zampolits everywhere, your career is based not on competence and warfighting skills but your connections and skills at appearing faithful to Party dictat and ship’s CO’s have very little, if any, independence of action. All moves down to the smallest tactical maneuver is now micro-managed and communicated from above and in complete accordance with Party/State doctrine.
All Hail Dear Leader! All Power to Our Glorious and Insightful Naval Leadership, let them light our way to The New Socialist Utopia!
As if we all haven’t seen this all coming for YEARS, Comjam. I joke about my Barbancourt consumption (well, only slightly
) but a large part of it is my true deep despondency begun years ago over the PC cultural trend-lines. Our entire society–socioculturally speaking-is now saturated with it. But even *I* have been amazed at the rapidity, breadth and depth of its spread in the armed services. And as ASM826, above, notes, it’s only going to get sickeningly worse with the codification of open homosexuality. I don’t envy either those on active who have to cope with it or the rest of us poor sods who realize what these PC trends are doing to the combat effectiveness of the only organization/force that stands between us and a clearly malevolent world. With prospects like this, staying sober is NOT an option for those unfortunate enough to be able to visualize the projected trend-lines..time to buy stock in the distillers with both hands-I ain’t the only one who can see more–much, much, more–of this coming…
Virg old buddy . . . if only you were younger and of fighting age today. We’d love to have ya still (even though you *were* a zoomie), and while I can’t speak for your liver condition over time maybe you’d might be able to consume a little more brabancourt and stimulate the distillery portion of the economy more effectively!
he may be all that’s keeping Haiti above water as it is
some folks need to grow a sense of humor. can’t stop laughing at the sample
Hah! I say say to the man, Drink Moar, and do it again!
I’m guessing the Navy has nothing better to do these days than persecute and prosecute those inclined to have a little fun. I kept looking for the frownie faces of those not having a good time, but they were conspicuously absent. Whoever is making a case against the Captain should certainly have left them in the video. Can we have the unredacted Director’s cut, please?
For CNO: grow a pair and admit it. The video is funny and good for morale. C’mon. You know you can do it. We see that little curl of a smile….you can’t fool us.
PS
Uh, yeah, in the shower they would be…nude…cause wearing clothes in the shower is not normal.
And Sailors are, as much as people who spend lengthy periods of time at sea can be, normal people.
It’s the rest of a worrisome society that we need be concerned about.
Sounds like he ran SNL and The Man Show reruns. You know, things that everyone is supposed to laugh at.
And The Daily Show, Joe? (GRIN)
I know the name, but have no idea what goes on on that show since I have never watched it, Ma’am. From what I gather, if The Onion and HuffPo got married and had a show, that would be it. One step up in reliability from AirAmerica or MSNBC.
Well he got promoted and got to the ship, anyway. Better than what Shifty got…
Clearly I’m a bad person for laughing at that whole movie clip. Seemed right out SNL or comedies like Airplane! and Caddyshack.
Thanks for the sample link…good stuff! The PC police must STOP this sort of humor on board ship. The Navy is serious business! There is to be no laughter or comic relief while underway!
What bothers me the most is the official finger-wagging by an officer junior to CAPT Honors. What part of “Good Order and Discipline” has the Navy lost?
Another career bites the dust. The poster with the “zampolits” comparison was right on. It’s not coming. It’s HERE.
A fracking PUBLIC AFFAIRS officer?!?!?!? Where’s the old blanket party when you need one? I hope the SOB falls overboard.
C’mon now, give the guy a break. heck he prolly has a complete row of ribbons. Mebbe even a sea service ribbon.
you gotta be impressed with an XO that can do that quality vid in all of his “spare time”. More power to him and those like him.
I’m about as passionate about DADT/gay rights as someone can be, and hell…that was one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen. (Granted, not a huge fan of the three letter f word, but the rest of it made me laugh my heiny off.)
I guess I can just see the humor in most things. I laugh at myself all the time and find hilarity in many a humorous thing that mocks things I am and am for and I think that if you aren’t capable of that, then you have problems. (My husband loves all Sarah Palin parodies. I love him for that.)
Just like I don’t think someone’s career should end for being gay, I am appalled that something like this would end his career.
Frankly, I think the military needs all the laughter it can manage to get its hands on. Seems like a big loss here.
So those who protested this stuff never watch Family Guy, Simpsons, BET, MTV, Jersey Shore, etc.???? Nooooo….they were offended by the XO and his vidoes but not by all the other crappola on the closed circuit TV on ship…That they celebrate every freakin’ day???
Look, DADT and all else aside, people need to lighten up…really.
Those who protest will use the REGS to hang the XO but they are HYPOCRITES of the first order, along with all the OTHER members of the PC crowd.
The XO might be crass & fail to understand his responsibilities BUT he is only doing what those who protest do elsewhere when they want to….sad pathetic idjits who only want to inflict there Puritanism on others when it suits them politically. It’s the F^&king NAVY and we swear like sailors….figure it out.
Not to mention Carlos Mencia routines.
You may have trumped my +1,000 for SK.
Mencia goes for the jugular, and frequently finds it.
Me, I enjoy the Wayans Brothers movies, and find the “objectionable” material pretty damn funny. Not only that, I recall reading about various “Foc’sle Follies” from regulars here, which -from inference- were pretty damn raunchy. And damn funny.
Not to mention the question as to how any genuine warrior (male or female) could be offended by those videos… If you get the vapors from something this mild, I sure as Hell don’t want you near anything more complicated than a stapler during a real fight.
Odd that you would mention the Wayans brothers. Mom was a fan of “I’m gonna get you Sucka”. The Professor and I were discussing “In Living Color”. Man were they funny! The PC police would crucify the Wayans family for that show today.
+1,000!
Watched the video and laughed. That said, in my mind I couldn’t help but think “wasn’t this guy alive in 1991?”
class of ’83…. always were a wee bit squinky.
I guess we need to tell those going after the XO, “Lighten up, Francis.” We truly have become a Tiffany Navy.
The Navy is becoming the Air Force.
The Navy is becoming the Chair Force.
Fixed it for you.
IF he gets fired, it will have to be at the hands of the current Second Fleet Commander, who, by the way, was the ENTCSG commander during one of the deployments the videos were made…
One thing in his favor – the Big E is the hardest command in the Navy to fill, and yes, I include all flag billets also. Normally, there are a ton of people who can relieve a CO, but ENT is unique. Naval Reactors requires that CO’s/XO’s/RO’s of all carriers and the Engineer of the ENT attend a 3-4 month special course on that reactor plant; I don’t remember the official name, but we called it “charm school.” I would guess that the only aviation qualified officers who have attended it on the A2W plant are past ENT CO’s (did they all make flag?), the current XO, and maybe one or two former ENT XO’s, who are probably in their deep draft commands currently. So I’m thinking that the options for his relief are:
a) a former CO who has made flag if they want to either let a flag serve as CO or demote someone;
b) a former CO who hasn’t made flag (if any exist on active duty);
c) an former-NIMITZ class XO who has not attended the A2W charm school;
d) a SWO who was RO/ENG of ENT;
e) pull a former ENT XO from his deep-draft command.
I can’t imagine any flag allowing a), don’t know if b) exists, Naval Reactors would never allow c), AIRLANT would never allow d). e) may be a bad enough option that the Navy allows him to keep his command and gives him a letter of reprimand.
Even if he doesn’t get a letter, some aviator in command of an LHD/LHA must be excited, since a flag slot in FY-12 that had been reserved just opened up.
So, this poor guy is going to be in trouble for that(?) yet the President uses the term “Tea-bagger” even in official addresses. The System sucks.
Man ‘O Man, y’all should have caught CNN’s treatment of this tonight. You’d have thought that Child molesters were about in the land. *AMBER ALERT* time!! Yea Gods! Talk about the wussification and lawyerization of the services! You had to see it to believe it: Super-serious world-coming-to-an-end hushed tones w.a serious-faced Candy Crowley et all tut-tutting in disgusted tones w. disgusted you’re-gonna-get-yours-you-sexist-homophobic-pig looks on their faces. Unbelievable!!…….except unfortunately it is in this year of our Lord 2011….. Uber un-PC Bill “Kill JAPS!!” Halsey would be making big ones out of little ones at that *establishment* in Kansas for an “attitude adjustment” were he alive today…he wouldn’t last 30 sec in today’s PC Navy…
** “…little ones out of big ones…” LOL! Barbancourt strikes again!!
Really…4-5 year old videos are going to end the career of this CO!?! UFB. The PC double standards are amazing. CO “SEAHAG” went though her Dept. Head, XO and two commands with all sorts of warning bells/lights going off, including grounding a DDG and batting around a RN exchange officer before she was relieved. All this because the PAO (a DADT warrior in the finest since) decided to get even. Poor baby must have been turned down for the shower scene…
A real shame, Opie is a great guy, add Test Pilot School graduate to the resume. The Navy invested a lot of dollars in this guy and he has served this country well. And even more importantly he has served the men and women under his command equally as well and for this reason he has been so successful. He knows his success and the success of his command it directly tied to the men and women who do the work behind the scenes! Unfortunately I can’t see a scenario where this ends well.
So what else are you gonna do on a 50 year-old glow-in-the-dark tuna can on a 6 month IO deployment to keep morale up? He should be APPLAUDED. Round up all the PC types and send them out for a long Mid-East cruise and then give them a sense-of-humor check……
He’s toast. The media has tried and convicted him. I heard NBC even bring up parallels to Tailhook. As if. CNO’s office will drop him in the grease in a moment.
But, ending as an O6, with a great command, and the respect of those who served with, and for you, is a pretty good way to go. I’m sure he saw the potential for stars — you can’t do what it took to get to where he was if that wasn’t part of the motivation. Oh, well.
Welcome to the old fart club, Shipmate.
Of course there are parallels w/ Tailhook. That was a witch hunt and this is becoming a witch hunt.
Moral of the story is….
LEAVE THIS KIND OF JOB TO THE CHIEFS!!!!!!!
Scott, I am with you, this guy is toast. It is a terrible shame but, I have to tell you that during our dicussions of this event my husband kept saying “what was he thinking?”
I asked repeatedly “what are the rest of us thinking?”
At one point during the film I saw the XO say “If this offends you, turn it off.” Apparently, that is not good enough anymore. People that are “offended” are not able to turn things off anymore. They are only able to complain and get others in trouble for their unease.
I am reminded of the “ceremony” that was always enacted by the Navy when part of the crew crossed the equator for the first time. This has been to all extents deleted because of the offense it might cause.
It is all to the shame of our current culture.
Sucks. Sucks a high hard one. There, I said it.
compare the news coverage of Capt Honors to that of Capt Graf
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&biw=1045&bih=608&q=%22Holly+graf%22+&tbs=null&lr=&as_filetype=&aq=f&aqi=g10&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&biw=1045&bih=608&q=%22owen+honors%22&tbs=null&lr=&as_filetype=&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/social/WilliamBudd/uss-enterprise-video-scandal_n_803263_72490272.html
more from HuffPo
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/social/Artemis34/uss-enterprise-video-scandal_n_803263_72517137.html
Within the context of a warship at sea, with those enduring hardships and challenges that few others can empathize or begin to understand, it is not uncommon for things to happen within that specific context that would certainly offend those living in more quiet, comfortable, and civilized worlds.
What used to happen at sea, used to stay at sea. Today, especially with our instant media technology, that is no longer the case. Many years ago author and lawyer Richard Henry Dana exposed the injustices met upon sailors and changed Admiralty Law to protect abuses endured by sailors. But this incident, while perhaps juvenile and somewhat inappropriate, should not have been ever publicized to shock the unexposed world. It is tempest in a thimble.
Nevertheless while an apparent fine career has been aborted not so much by personal indiscretion/stupidity, as by excessive publicity, I still offer this as germane:
Conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman: (If it becomes public…)
Of course your opinion may vary.
Flit: YAWN. I cite another another authority contra your position: “Lighten up, Francis…
The only “men” who took that kind of language (or position) seriously were British aristocracy who purchased their commissions as part of their prerogative.
Casey – You “YAWN” at the Articles of the UCMJ? Shame on you!
It is the Congressional Code of Military Criminal Law applicable to all our military members worldwide. It is not British, but US military law. And it is nothing to “yawn” about!
Conduct “unbecoming” is indeed a court martial offense. Certainly not appropriate in this case, but nevertheless somewhat relevant given this “compromising” situation.
Hey, Flit – glad you take the UCMJ so seriously. How do you square the pending repeal of DADT (which I presume you support) with Article 125? What happens the first time a jilted lover of a gay service member accuses their former paramour with numerous 125 violations? Gonna be as morally outraged as you are now?
Two more samples….
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/navy-videos-context-female-navy-flier/story?id=12527090
Anyone realize this is “Pilot B” coming to his defense?
Yeah, saw that too. Also noted that Enterprise’s FaceBook page shows the sailors running strongly in OP’s favor.
It was in my morning paper. I couldn’t believe how many places it was online today. It’s insane what a witch hunt this is turning into. It’s just…very wrong.
What is so disturbing to ME is – his behavior and antics are the kind of stuff prime-time and some blockbuster movies and entertainment are made out of. The only thing was – this was a real man – with a real job – with some real responsibility – who was able to do his job and have a sense of humor about it – and now? Going down???? Because who doesn’t like him??? Didn’t Adrian Cronauer shake up the brass with similar antics in Vietnam (my father enjoyed him) as a disk jockey for Armed Forces Radio that got the big-wigs’ panties all in a knot but that ultimately turned out to be well liked by the “average guy in the field” thereby helping things out? Those films Master Chief used to put out were like fingernails on a chalkboard. Sounds to me like Captain Honors was serving his country.
Simple story, really. There are the People Who Do the Work, and the Perpetually Offended. The People Who Do the Work probably drank a bit much in college, maybe streaked a football game or TP’d the college presidents home, might have pennied shut the door of the dorm monitor, all in good fun. During finals week they’d organize an impromptu fireworks display or hot-tub session for relief. They were typically in high-stress majors, spending a lot of time in the labs and the library, when they wanted to cut loose they made up for lack of time with audacity.
The same can be seen in the pranks pulled by the Midshipmen on the other academy cadets, and need I even mention the pranks that M.I.T. students have pulled over the years?
Then there are The Perpetually Offended. Always ready to lay down the law, or their interpretation of it, when there’s no harm and no foul. They’re not people from the same culture that pulled the prank, they’re people from a culture where defiance of the norm is a crime. Where in spite of finding no victim somebody, somewhere, *could* have been offended and thus punishment much be made lest, unchecked, this movement of free action result in somebody being unhappy.
To take a case to court you generally need to have aggrieved status. Not having found anybody with that status, the Captain is being tried on his potential to have offended.
I wonder, can current and retired sailors lodge claims as being aggrieved that what sustained them, gave them spirit, and what they consider central to their pride of service is now under attack by a pantywaist who, I’m guessing, never went through basic training with a Marine D.I.?
If one side can claim offense absent a claimant, surely another side can claim offense in person for the prosecution.
Update: heard on the radio that The Pig (Enterprise) is leaving port sans her Captain. No word on who would be taking over that role. Were I in that crew I’d drop all thought of re-enlistment. In fact, had I heard this 25 years ago, I’d have never signed a paper.
– Max
Good analysis. Rules for Radicals playing against the strong performers. Me not liking this trend. Wish I knew how to short-circuit the PC environment feedback machine.
Well, back to shooting the closest Indian; writing my Senator on the budget.
I’ve still got the bit between my teeth on this one. What frosts MY rosie-red derrier is the fact that the very self-same segments of society–MSM, academia, Hollywood, leftist politicians–who have constantly (and, unfortunately, highly successfully) harped about, and pushed for the insertion of both females and homosexuals into every nook and cranny of the armed services in all specialties, are now “shocked, shocked!” to find that the very presence and social demeanor of such people inescapably becomes a matter of humor and open comment. We are witnessing before our very eyes the codification of new additions to the “protected species” list. DADT is STILL in effect–it’s just now directed at different people–and so is the punishment for its’ violation–expulsion. The three “hear no, see no, speak no” monkeys would be proud..
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So who is the PAO that sold out Honors? I think he deserves his 15 minutes of fame….Someone put a name with this deed.