A lack of leadership
The United States Navy has an acting Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) because his predecessor pissed off Donald Trump. That is how one Thomas Modly came to be the person who fired Captain Brett Crozier, commanding officer of the aircraft carrier, USS Theodore Roosevelt.
Fired has a different meaning in the military than in the civilian world. When your employer in the civilian world fires you, you no longer work for that employer in any capacity. Captain Crozier is still in the Navy. Fired in the military refers to being relieved of duty and removed from their current position (billet in military-speak).
Captain Crozier sent an email that was ultimately leaked to the San Francisco Chronicle. Captain Crozier would later claim that he did this because he feared that his commanding officer, Rear Admiral Stuart Baker would not have allowed him to communicate his concerns to top Navy leadership. Rear Adm. Baker confirmed that Captain Crozier was correct in that concern, according to Business Insider. Note: the "BLUF" at the beginning of the email is a military acronym for "Bottom Line Up Front."
Did Mr. Modly fire Captain Crozier because that email went against the Trump Administration narrative that they have the coronavirus pandemic "under control"? That may be the case, but there is no proof of this. What there is proof of is what the acting SECNAV did when he visited the carrier, still docked at Guam.
This is an excerpt from the transcript of what he said to the entire crew of the carrier, over the 1MC (shipwide loudspeaker):
"If he didn't think—it was my opinion, that if he didn't think that information was going to get out into the public, in this information age that we live in, then he was A, too naive or too stupid to be the commanding officer of a ship like this. The alternative is that he did this on purpose. And that's a serious violation of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which you are all familiar with."
The acting SECNAV should know better. He is a civilian now, but he is also a graduate of the Naval Academy. He served seven years on active duty before leaving to pursue a career in business.
After those remarks of his became public, Mr. Modly backed off. But how he did that is interesting in and of itself:
Let's get this straight. Mr. Modly calls Captain Crozier too naive or too stupid, then changes course and says that precisely because he doesn't think the man is stupid or naive; the release of the email to the media must have been deliberate.
He was not apologizing for his insults directed at this heroic sailor. Had his remarks not become public knowledge, he wouldn't have addressed them. So what he does is use his "apology" to accuse Captain Crozier of having acted with malice.
This is just wrong.
Fired has a different meaning in the military than in the civilian world. When your employer in the civilian world fires you, you no longer work for that employer in any capacity. Captain Crozier is still in the Navy. Fired in the military refers to being relieved of duty and removed from their current position (billet in military-speak).
Captain Crozier sent an email that was ultimately leaked to the San Francisco Chronicle. Captain Crozier would later claim that he did this because he feared that his commanding officer, Rear Admiral Stuart Baker would not have allowed him to communicate his concerns to top Navy leadership. Rear Adm. Baker confirmed that Captain Crozier was correct in that concern, according to Business Insider. Note: the "BLUF" at the beginning of the email is a military acronym for "Bottom Line Up Front."
Did Mr. Modly fire Captain Crozier because that email went against the Trump Administration narrative that they have the coronavirus pandemic "under control"? That may be the case, but there is no proof of this. What there is proof of is what the acting SECNAV did when he visited the carrier, still docked at Guam.
This is an excerpt from the transcript of what he said to the entire crew of the carrier, over the 1MC (shipwide loudspeaker):
"If he didn't think—it was my opinion, that if he didn't think that information was going to get out into the public, in this information age that we live in, then he was A, too naive or too stupid to be the commanding officer of a ship like this. The alternative is that he did this on purpose. And that's a serious violation of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which you are all familiar with."
The acting SECNAV should know better. He is a civilian now, but he is also a graduate of the Naval Academy. He served seven years on active duty before leaving to pursue a career in business.
After those remarks of his became public, Mr. Modly backed off. But how he did that is interesting in and of itself:
Acting @SECNAV
just issued an apology to the Navy for his comments today. pic.twitter.com/G7Q5YWigHK
—
Dan Lamothe (@DanLamothe) April
7, 2020
Let's get this straight. Mr. Modly calls Captain Crozier too naive or too stupid, then changes course and says that precisely because he doesn't think the man is stupid or naive; the release of the email to the media must have been deliberate.
He was not apologizing for his insults directed at this heroic sailor. Had his remarks not become public knowledge, he wouldn't have addressed them. So what he does is use his "apology" to accuse Captain Crozier of having acted with malice.
This is just wrong.
posted by me at 5:56 AM
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