Time of War

Two recent incidents have caused me to fear that our commander in chief has forgotten our current international situation. Under President Obama's watch, two successful and effective officers have been removed from their assignments under interesting, if not downright stupid, conditions.

The most recent incident concerned Capt. Robert Gamberg, executive officer of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69). For those of you who don't know, "executive officer" is the number two position on a ship, the second in command. It is an extremely important assignment aboard ship.

And what was the reason for Gamberg's dismissal? Cowardice in the face of the enemy? Mistreatment of his subordinates? No. He was removed from his post for an "inappropriate relationship with a woman soldier when both were married." Not a woman sailor under his command, mind you, but a woman in an entirely different branch of the service.

And what evidence was presented for this relationship? Emails. Not even steamy, passionate emails that used colorful euphemisms for certain body parts either, but ones that spoke of Gamberg's love for the soldier who, he stated, was an "amazing woman."

This comes on the heels of Capt. Owen Honors being removed as commanding officer of the USS Enterprise (CV-65). By all accounts, Honors was an extremely effective and well liked officer. But, while he was serving as the Enterprise's executive officer, he "co-produced and starred in shipboard video skits that used sometimes racy content to make messages - such as the importance of conserving water - resonate with the crew." In other words, he attempted to use occasionally spicy humor to help the people under his care learn some very important lessons.

Now, I'm not saying that either Gamberg or Honors used the best of judgment. Neither demonstrated good common sense and that is a commodity certainly called for in an effective executive or commanding officer. But folks, we are at war! To be more exact, we are involved in three deadly conflicts in the Middle East. The admiralty and their boss, the president, need to make their decisions based on military need, not on the whims of political correctness.

Obama already bears the burden of a president who has never spent a single day in the military. The public recognizes that he never faced the rigors of boot camp or the horrors of combat. He needs to recognize that deficiency himself and be especially certain that military decisions are made for military reasons and not for political ones.