Loyalty vs Integrity

Tom Ricks has a great post on his blog concerning leadership expectations of loyalty and expectations of integrity. As usual, he gets some fantastic comments on his post. It's an important discussion.

I thought it was particularly interesting that it didn't take long for somebody to comment on corporate America.

Disconnect Between America and its Military?

As the Washington Post reported, our Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, spoke a month ago at the National Defense University and observed that there is a disconnect between our military and the American public. Admiral Mike Mullen said they don't know us, and we don't know them. He pointed out that it's dangerous for us not to know them.

The recent turmoil in Egypt and the involvement of its military has made me ponder the role of the military in a democratic country. From the limited accounts I have heard, it appears Egypt's military refused violence on its people and acted as a voice of reason for Egyptian citizens. I wonder if that hellish experience were ever to visit our shores (and I pray to God that it never does), what would our military do? While I can't shake the images of Kent State, I think our military would do the right thing for our country. While we have disagreements and various political stripes and ideologies, we do have good people in our service.

Still I would advocate a much greater study of the U.S. Constitution in our professional military education. If I had my way, junior officer PME would include some of the best Constitutional scholarship our country has to offer. I envision visiting professors from the top universities, debate and discussion. I would include in the curriculum speakers from organizations such as Oath Keepers, and the Cato Institute, and others from across the spectrum of debate. I believe the importance of our Constitution rates serious study and consideration by those who have sworn before God to bear true faith and allegiance to it.

The rights of our people, military and civilian, and our basic freedom of speech and debate, grievances, worship, and liberty from the physical oppressions of government are laid out before us in our wonderful Constitution, and mostly in our Bill of Rights. I believe if we in the military take real efforts to honor our oaths to support and defend this great document, we will perhaps go a long way in understanding our citizens who employ and rely on us. To do that, we must dedicate study to our document and our rich American history, and to the jurisprudence and case law our courts have produced. It is a scholastic enterprise and there is plenty of room for debate and disagreement. While there many never be unanimity in our Constitutional views, when we better understand the document we can better defend it. When we better support and defend it, we support and defend Americans.

While I have not always lived up to this standard, it is my view now that service members should take every opportunity to exercise their American rights, so that we may prevent their apathetic loss over time. This perhaps will help us connect better with our citizenry. So many needs and desires of Americans have been addressed over years of pain and a history of struggle and, at great cost, have been etched into our sacred parchment. While this struggle and history is not complete, an understanding of it is an essential start for those of us in uniform to connect with our civilian brothers and sisters.

RPA as a Cultural Melting Pot

I haven't posted much lately and I imagine that trend will continue. I've got a lot on my plate after moving to my new assignment. I've been learning to employ a Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) and I'm extremely happy to be doing so.

I'm also enjoying talking with some of the others in my training, and especially the air-to-air fighter pilots. I have been pleasantly surprised. I have a bias and anybody who knows me is fully aware of it, whether they want to be or not. Thankfully, a small handful from the air superiority business have failed to live up to my stereotype. We've had some great discussions. In one, a peer from the F-15C world took issue with my portrayal and he educated me on some areas that I have perhaps oversimplified. I still need to verify his assertions, but he made a great case that challenged my viewpoint. Even if the picture he paints is valid, my view of the role of airpower and our current challenges remains intact. But, if his view is accurate, then I have been too strong in some of my criticisms of his former community. I'm being vague intentionally.

My recent discussions have strengthened my understanding that we live in a complicated world and have many serious challenges. I'm enjoying this opportunity to have such conversation with people who disagree with me and who may hold a piece of the puzzle I'm unaware of. One source of huge potential value in my new RPA community is the melting pot of two worlds, conventional and non-conventional. While I'm protective of the culture of the non-conventional community from which I come, I'm very happy to see this interface. I love having my views challenged, and I'll gladly eat some crow to walk away with a better picture. The blend of cultures being experienced in the RPA world today has great potential to strengthen our ability to provide airpower in our complicated and dangerous world.

I'm also thankful for the civilian leadership we have enjoyed for the last several years, and I'm nervous about it changing. The 20 September issue of Newsweek has a great cover story on our Secretary of Defense, who isn't expected to stay in the job for more than a year longer. His leadership has been outstanding and the nation is fortunate to have him in office.

T-6 Crashes at Laughlin AFB in Del Rio, TX

Surfing the net today and saw that a T-6A crashed on a routine AETC student pilot training flight with an instructor and student. Thankfully both ejected safely and are apparently doing well according to news stories I have read. I'm very glad that is the case. Having just left Laughlin AFB and this particular squadron, I know several of the instructors and the hard work they put into doing a very demanding job. And the students are known to put in some long days too. I'm glad all involved are safe.

I'll end my post here.

Edit: The Air Force has released the results of the public Accident Investigation Board. The loss of the five million dollar aircraft was the result of the instructor pilot inadvertently shutting the engine off during a formation rejoin. The instructor then incorrectly attempted a procedure to restart the engine which damaged the engine. Read more here: http://www.laughlin.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123245117

"Who Will Defend Us?" - AETC in the Rear View Mirror

A couple days ago I drove out the front gate of a pilot training base for the last time. Three years in AETC has certainly proven to be educational, as it was when I was a cadet, and I'm looking forward to returning to my combat command with its subdued patches, vitally important wartime mission, and the quality leadership that such an environment produces. My time in the training command was valuable and I learned a fair amount. The people I worked with were highly motivated, extremely hard working and made the assignment more enjoyable. The flying was great and I learned a lot about my communication weaknesses in my attempts to instruct young officers. I was able to do some small good while I was there and my greatest reward was seeing young officers motivated to act with courage.

After I taxied in from my final flight, a group of instructors and students met me and showered me with champagne in the traditional way. I had hoped to avoid that but I have to admit the people who showed up made it an unexpectedly pleasant gesture. No leadership, just bros from the trenches. The greatest compliment of my assignment was overhearing a young instructor pilot in that gaggle ask another instructor, "who will defend us now?" Thankfully the name of another instructor was offered up as a potential. I barely know the person who posed the question and he probably doesn't realize I heard it, but it was an important question I'd like to address here.

Who will defend us from a careerist system that doesn't truly recognize or reward achievement, character, or hard work and that expects us to put ten pounds in a five pound sack? Who will defend us by simply elevating the unvarnished truth up the chain of command even when it's not desired?

Answer: You will or nobody will.

It's not about the timeline or the training mission. It's about the profession of arms and the quality of airpower we are able to offer our nation, even in a job that may appear far removed from the battlefield. If we allow a toxic situation to go unchallenged or if we "play the game" then we are partially responsible for the quality of the leadership that gets produced and the direction our service takes. If we don’t challenge a system where politicians advance over professionals, or if we allow ourselves to fudge the numbers, or if we become spin doctors to mask reality, then we help advance an Air Force of politicians, frauds, and spin doctors. And when the nation asks for airpower, what will the nation get? It will get the perception of air power while the rifleman and the nation suffer the cruel cold reality. It’s hard to lay hate on our enemies and bring Americans home alive armed only with a perception. As military officers we have no right to "stay off the radar" or "hold our cards" and comfortably lay low -- we are in the profession of arms and we are expected to act courageously even at risk to ourselves. Even when far removed from the blood and bullets.

The place I left offers ample opportunity for officers to meet this obligation and to grow into "mission and people" leaders. They have the opportunity to follow our Secretary of Defense by challenging leadership when it asks for ten pounds in a five pound bag. Magic is not an Air Force core competency, and we don't need any more magicians in tax-paid positions.

Of course I have taken liberty with the question "who will defend us" -- the pilot who uttered it may not have amplified it as I have above. He was more than likely talking about a more specific situation where leadership expects magic. The ten pounds demanded: healthy happy family lives, safe flying, physically fit airmen, PME, master's degrees, quality instruction. The five pound bag: an undermanned squadron, more students, routine 12 hour days, double and triple turning in blazingly hot weather, ORM sheets with little utility, and regular six-day weeks.

I'm almost certain he was talking about six day work weeks in the training command and my email up the chain on why I thought leadership's thermometer might be broken and a better risk assessment might be in order. In my email I discussed a 1999 Air Force Times article entitled, "Worked to Death - How Doing Too Much Cost 12 Crewmen Their Lives," which took a look at a fatality at Nellis involving two HH-60s that had a midair collision. According to the article, the overwhelming contributing factors that led to the disaster cited by the lead investigator, Col Denver Pletcher, included "a high ops/pers tempo coupled with leadership problems, internal and external training deficiencies, broken squadron processes, low aircrew experience level, and midlevel supervisory breakdown." The Colonel wrote that the "squadron was on a path to disaster." The article explains that the squadron had been operating under that same ops temp for five years prior to this accident but that "By then, problems were chronic: Squadron processes broke down, morale was bad, the training burden was increasing and there seemed ever-less time to prepare for the next deployment or exercise." In my email I offered what I saw as similarities with the mishap squadron. But recognizing that six-day weeks might be necessary, I also provided my inputs on how best to implement a six-day work week. It was up to leadership to make the call, but it was up to me to raise the red flag.

While I never really got a response to my email, it appeared to have a temporary effect and I got the credit in the trenches. Due to Operational Risk Management (ORM) reasons, the six-day weeks were canceled. But they came back several months later as I was out-processing and preparing for my new assignment. Perhaps the thermometer was fixed and leadership had the benefit of good information when it made its decision. It certainly may be possible that 72-hour work weeks and multiple physically demanding training flights in 100+ degree weather is an acceptable risk that is justified by the importance of the desired result. It's also perhaps a calculation that could lead to an undesired result. Such is the nature of our business. This nature requires good information to be provided up the chain of command even when the environment is characterized by "do what you know I mean, not what I say."

Who will defend you? Who will provide the information up the chain to ensure leadership has an accurate reading, whether they want it or not? You will, or nobody will.

Military Officer vs Activist

Happy belated Independence Day. I haven't posted in some time, but I hope to make up for it by posting something fairly interesting.

As those who grace my blog with their time may know, I've had some bad experiences with "law enforcement." I've found that some public servants act in ways that have little to do with the public good. Readers will be somewhat familiar with my unlawful arrest at the hands of a city cop for allegedly not using a blinker during a lane change and the damage it had on my military career. The untruthful charge was dismissed in court and I have a lawsuit pending. But I have also had some issues with federal law enforcement, specifically the Border Patrol, and the latest episode with that agency has resulted in footage on YouTube. I have adapted to the threat by using surveillance technology. It has also resulted in a lawsuit pending against the Department of Homeland Security. As such, I will not provide a great deal of detail on the incident except for links to the full video footage where readers can judge for themselves. I will state one important fact. The checkpoint is not on the border but rather is 40 miles inland on a highway. This is an important distinction when researching applicable law governing immigration checkpoints. Before I provide the footage, I'd like to bring up the topic of military service and activism.

The oath of office "to defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic," makes for an interesting line between a military member and an activist, in my view. There has been recent discussion concerning the unfortunate incident involving General McChrystal and civil-military relations. I don't have anything worthwhile to offer on that specific situation, but I do think it may be helpful for military members to remember that they have a civil duty domestically to support and defend our Constitution. Our job is not just about blood and bullets. We must defend the Constitution of the United States wherever we are, and against any who threaten it. Unless, of course, we are of the view that oaths offered before God are not binding. That is not my view.

Activists are almost considered antithetical to military members, at least by many in our armed forces. In my conversations, the Vietnam era seems to have burned into the minds of many servicemen the image of long haired hippies spitting on soldiers. I tend to think there is, or should be, more similarity between those who fight for civil liberty at home and those who defend the nation abroad. I think if that commonality could be better acknowledged then perhaps the civil-military relationship would be strengthened. Certainly not all activists are standing up for Constitutional issues. But many are. In my view, we should be citizen soldiers, not just soldiers, and should stand up for freedoms on our own soil instead of simply fighting for it in foreign lands.

I haven't lived up to my expectation fully and I don't consider myself an activist. Others don't either. My Border Patrol video has garnered me fire from activists who claim I was too cooperative with federal agents who were acting unlawfully. Upon reflection, I tend to agree with these critics and I feel I have not honored my oath to the fullest. If exercising one's Constitutional rights supports those rights, as I think it does, then it's a valid criticism that I have been too cooperative and have not fully "supported" the Constitution. While some activists have considered me a pushover and have labeled me a "professional goon being professionally gooned," I have also gotten thinly veiled death threats and vituperative commentary from others who appear to think any American standing up to law enforcement is wrong. I find little of value in this point of view. But even a couple of people I considered friends have taken this view.

The video has been uploaded to YouTube by an organization I founded after my unlawful arrest, Veterans Against Police Abuse. The ten minute Cliff's Notes version is embedded below. To watch the full 30+ minute unlawful detention without the annotations included below, from two of the several cameras, click here.

Remembering Bravery - Memorial Day

CBS's 60 Minutes published a recent episode which details heroes from military Explosives and Ordinance Disposal (EOD) who risk their lives routinely to identify and dismantle insurgent IEDs. The episode can be viewed here: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6533127n&tag=related;photovideo. It depicts the routine bravery of these soldiers, marines, sailors, and airmen from the four services who risk themselves to locate and dismantle explosive threats to their fellow Americans. The bravery is staggering. I remember flying missions in Iraq and seeing many IED explosions on the roads below me. They were a routine sighting. On several missions I had the opportunity to destroy them before they could hurt Americans. On of my favorite missions, my crew and I fortunately spied several insurgents laying IEDs in the middle of a road. After several minutes of observation, we ensured they weren't successful and never would be again. It was very satisfying. But it lacked the heroism and the bravery of the soldiers of TF Paladin who meet the threat head on daily, not from thousands of feet above the threat.

The EOD professionals train at the EOD school located on Eglin AFB. In my previous assignment, I passed that school every day. I lived in a mobile home on the base next to the marina located right across from the EOD training facility. It's a beautiful location and I'm sure quite a contrast from the deadly roads in Afghanistan and Iraq. The mobile home park has been closed, but I'm sure the school still stands and is still training American fighting men who are fiercely dedicated to their country and, as the 60 Minutes episode explains, a little bit crazy.

I thank God for these Americans willing to lay it on the line for the rest of us. As an Air Force officer I want my service to provide airpower to make their jobs easier and to ensure they come home safely after the mission is accomplished. No words can properly honor those who sacrifice their mobility, their emotional well being, and their lives for us when requested by their country. We in the Air Force, not in these heroic situations, can best honor them by ensuring our service provides them the very best in airpower.

Andy Rooney made a good comment in the episode. He mentioned something to the effect that it's odd that we expect such bravery in war but not in our every day lives. With all the problems our nation faces and with all of us who don't have to put it on the line in combat like our EOD brothers, let's emulate their bravery in our day to day lives to make our country stronger. Perhaps had the regulators in the Department of the Interior displayed some bravery, perhaps they would have thwarted the comfortable corruption that allowed our Gulf to be destroyed by incompetence and greed. Perhaps a few concerned individuals could have stood up and risked themselves to expose the derivatives and ponzie schemes in corporate America that brought our nation to its financial knees.

Bravery is not something only to be displayed on foreign soil. If we want to honor the memories of those who fought for America, let's not sate ourselves with bumper stickers on our SUVs and flags displayed on our front porches. That's just too easy. Rather, let's emulate the bravery of America's finest by doing the right thing, the risky thing, in our humdrum existences where we don't have to worry about hidden explosive devices.

Latest IG Complaint Fail, Retaliation, and my Predictions

As readers of earlier posts will know, I’m in the middle of long battle with the Air Force. As I’ve mentioned before, I filed an Inspector General (IG) complaint claiming retaliation for the academic freedom violation I experienced in ACSC. My claim was that the LOR/UIF given me was produced in retaliation for academically protected comments and for previously engaging the IG process, both in the same command. Well, I just got a response from the IG. The IG letter, also from that command, stated, "Based on a thorough, impartial analysis of the evidence, I found that the responsible management officials had a sound basis for taking the actions against you, as outlined in their written documentation to you." The IG goes on to claim the actions taken against me were "reasonable." In other words, there is nothing unsound or unreasonable with ruining an officer's career by 1) relying on a police report associated with a later dismissed charge of failing to use a blinker during a lane change and 2) citing a memo created in-house that alleges an officer lied despite audio proof to the contrary.

I submitted the complaint to the SAF/IG and specifically requested they investigate and not kick it down to the command in question (since it was that command that I was saying retaliated against me). They kicked it down anyway. The IG above who spoke of being "impartial" works for that command. At any rate, I did my due diligence and attempted to use established processes to fix the problem in house. As usual, those processes didn't work. In this post I lay the facts before you and quote the charges...

The Smartest Guys in the Room and the Best of the Best

I got notice that my ACSC thesis has been released without condition. It's only a glimmer of what it should be but I hope it's interesting to some. It seeks to compare modern Air Force fighter pilot culture with the organizational culture of Enron, finds similarities, and makes some recommendations. It is the product of a six week course online in a part time Air Force "master's degree" program. I have redacted my name to maintain some semblance of OPSEC. Those interested can read and share the paper without restriction by clicking here.

Response to JB (Loyal Dissent, Choice, Motivations)

Instead of commenting to JBMoore, I've decided to make a blog post in response. His comment is very insightful and can be viewed here. JB is obviously no stranger to human nature and politics and raises some questions that touch on my motivations and the choice we all must make when weighing risk and benefit in our conduct.

I think it's somewhat inaccurate to say I enjoy these fights. It is true that I have one of those natures that questions and as a younger man I enjoyed debate and conflict and became very comfortable with being one against many. I grew up on stories of my father doing the right thing and risking his job to defend people against pressures above him. Of course those stories were viewed through childhood goggles and my old man was also successful in the system so I'm sure he tempered his behavior (unlike his father who was also enlisted in the Army Air Corps but who got kicked out for hitting an officer with his weapon, or so the story goes). Whatever my filter and whatever the objective reality, doing the right thing (for people or for mission) while risking yourself was the theme that encapsulated what it meant to be a leader in my view. For those reasons, I do take pride in fighting the good fight but as I've gotten older I've lost the lust for conflict. People who knew me when I was younger may find it hard to believe, but I don't seek conflict these days and haven't for years. I have too many other interests and I learned long ago that you can't change human nature or teach values to grown men. I don't seek battles as I may have at one time, but I also don't shy away from them when they're brought to me. I don't enjoy these battles detailed in my blog and they have taken a toll. I have been scared at moments but mostly I've been tired. But I simply shift my perspective and I re-calibrate and bounce back. I'd be very happy to never have another fight but I don't believe I'm paid by the taxpayer to be comfortable and collect a check when there are real systemic problems that threaten our ability to conduct our nation's business. Losing fourteen years of service is a risk. But I was never guaranteed a retirement (a fact I must remind myself of the closer I get to one) and retiring and spending my remaining years reflecting on a life of irresponsible conflict avoidance risks the moral authority I'll need for later goals (ministry and pro-bono legal activism).

This blog was born from what I perceive to be a real crisis not only in my service but in our greater culture. I think our society has lost its integrity in great measure and perception over reality seems to be the currency of the day in business, government, and media. Truth has lost its appeal it seems to me. I don't know how long we can exist as a world power under such conditions and I think the evidence suggests those days are coming to an end. Maybe I'm reading too much into it. As far as my purview, I was specifically incensed about the way my service conducted itself regarding the F-22/UAV debate, the rightful claim from our Sec Def that we weren't properly committed to our nation's wars, and the culture of perception over reality I saw coloring that discussion. It was comments along these lines that led to the academic freedom violation and my acquisition of powerful "friends" who put me in their crosshairs and who have far more to do with my troubles than a traffic ticket, in my opinion.

So for me, the choice is to do my job and correct problems in the most effective way possible. I am more willing to give up a job and a retirement than I am to give up my pride and moral authority. My pride and moral authority have taken hits and I'm not perfect but I want to guard what remains closely.

But I've made good life decisions to make it easier for me to do so. My wife is strong, smart, and successful. She's one of the most successful young lawyers in the country. She's also dedicated to making this world better than she found it and she supports me. My greatest accomplishment was staying true to my ideals for a companion and it's a great help. We have no children. I personally wouldn't be able to risk as I do if I had to support a family so children aren't an option until I'm financially set. As for finances, I've made smart choices, lived well below my means, invested a lot, and sold all before the bubble burst. I saw the writing on the wall. In short, I've crafted my life so I can continue to live it in a way that makes me proud. I don't need the Air Force. I appreciate the paycheck and the chance for a retirement but I don't need it. I continue to serve,...to serve. I've been very fortunate.

We have such a rich heritage of American service and sacrifice in this country and my small battles, and my limited capabilities, are nothing compared to average Americans that have come before. Forget the great names, just the average American of greater generations. I feel it's my responsibility to build on that service in my own life. It's so easy to sell out and profit from the system in this country. Such people think they're so smart and politically savvy but the "game" is simple and I have no doubt that I could have easily risen to the top of a political enterprise if that was my goal. But that's not fulfilling to me. That's the industrious stupid who climb a ladder only to find nothing of value at the top...had they thought about that prior to their ascent, perhaps they would have figured that out before they got so high up that continuing the climb seemed the only option. I'm sure some if not most never figure it out.

But I don't have all the answers and my approach may not be the best one and I would love to have some "mentor" show me how I could be more effective...but that hasn't happened and I doubt it will. Regardless, I know this. It's a team effort and my approach provides opportunities for others to move the ball because I raise the issue if nothing else. I'm reminded of college life team sports... With my group of buddies I was the opener when we were out on the town. My brash opening might work for me, or it might not. But even when it didn't, nine times out of ten it did for my more timid buddy who would step up to the plate and say, "I'm sorry about my buddy,..." It's a team effort and I play a part even if I'm just the opener.

I appreciate your kindred spirit and your comments. You're also right about another thing. The good fight isn't about winning...it's about the fight. We're outnumbered and outgunned but that doesn't matter. Thanks again for posting.