It is Not About Me

      Most service people would hold that their military careers are not about them they are about those they serve:  their country, their fellow citizens, their families, the mission.  This concept is part of the foundation of military ethics.

      According to Professor James H. Toner of the Air War College:

Military ethics based upon "me-ism" or "egotism" cannot function. Military ethics is about knowing whom and what we owe.  . . . (Service men and women) must understand that they owe a debt of gratitude to their country, families, services, chain of command, and comrades. That is exactly what is meant by "service before self" (in the Air Force), "selfless service" (in the Army), or "commitment" (in the Navy and Marine Corps). Military ethics cannot properly exist without the concept of owing. If we know why we owe what we do, we are able to recognize the obligation, responsibility, and duty which give rise to moral thinking and ethical reasoning. If I think I owe nothing to anyone, then I am a moral psychopath unable to distinguish the basis of honor, which is an understanding of my moral indebtedness to those who have given me life and learning.  Indeed, without a sense of owing, I am little more than a self-indulgent child, of whom we say, quite properly, that "he has no sense of responsibility.

      Given that our responsibility is founded upon this concept of "owing", Toner goes on to talk about how we live up to this obligation to those whom we owe committed selfless service.  He speaks of a military leader's responsibility to get his / her priorities straight and then convey those priorities to his / her subordinates:

Neither can military ethics properly exist without the concept of ordering. By ordering, I do not mean telling subordinates what to do. I refer, instead, to moral structuring and ethical priorities. In the movie A Few Good Men, a Marine lance corporal tells his lawyers that the "code" is based upon "unit, corps, God, country." He has it, of course, all wrong. In fact, many illegal activities or stupid mistakes in the military services are the result of leaders' failures to order wisely and well.

      What happened at Abu Ghraib probably stemmed from failure of leaders to order their soldier's priorities.  Soldiers who put loyalty to themselves or their immediate comrades over loyalty to their country and the mission, can easily do illegal or stupid things.  It is up to us to ensure they don't by, in part, helping them order their priorities correctly.

       Finally, Toner offers a context in which to order priorities by emphasizing the importance of knowing what one ought to do.

. . . the key for military ethics is this: What (service men and women) do may not be the same thing as what they ought to do. Sound simple? Yes, but it isn't, for military hierarchies sensibly insist upon obedience to orders and upon prompt, total discipline. Ethics, however, demurs, insisting upon conditional and contextual obedience to orders, which ought to be obeyed if lawful. So there is often, but not always, tension between the demands of military authority (or command) and the demands of ethical judgment (or conscience). So we have here not just what is (which is might and power or the man-made or positive law) but also what ought to be (which is right or ethics or the natural or moral law).  Some things we cannot deny knowing, for anyone of normal mental and moral development must understand certain things (such as knowing that the slaughter of the innocent is wrong).

      While it is every service member's responsibility to determine what he or she ought to do, it is the military leader's particular responsibility to resolve moral ambiguities and give orders to his / her subordinates that are grounded in "what is right" or what is consistent with our Constitution, our laws and what the American people would have us do.

      In short, Toner offers a context within which we should lead our Sailors:

      1.   Owing:  It's not about me, it's about my responsibility to serve those whom I owe:  my country, my fellow citizens, my family, and the mission.

      2.   Ordering:  Given this responsibility, it is important that I help my Sailors live up to this responsibility by helping them order their priorities and ensuring they understand their obligation to those whom they owe comes before obligations to self or to their circle of comrades.

      3.   "Ought-ing":  As I help my Sailors order their priorities, it is my responsibility as a leader to take away any ambiguity about what they are doing by ensuring that my orders to them are grounded in what we all ought to do.  In other words, it is my responsibility to ensure that what I do, what I tell them to do, and what I ensure they are doing are firmly grounded in the Code of Conduct, the Sailor's Creed, and our core values of Honor, Courage, and Commitment.

      It is absolutely unthinkable that a sociopath, who lies, manipulates and exploits others, and breaks the law without any reservation; to recognize this responsibility let alone practice it.  Donald Trump has proven with word and deed time and again that he is a sociopath and, therefore, unfit to be President and Commander-in-Chief.