Posted on Oct 6, 2015
Are Military customs and traditions slowly being eaten away by newer generations?
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Having sat on a JSOQ for Qtr 3 of this year and more recently written a package for one of my sailors, I have noticed a sharp decline in military bearing. When prepping a sailor for a board and you get asked, "Do I have to do the facing movements, stand at attention, salute and answer questions in a military fashion?", it worries me that either the newer generations have no sense of pride/professionalism or they flat out feel entitled not to act correctly and just try to stumble through it. I know boards are set up they way they are for formality and to judge performance but the sense of entitlement to act to the contrary and not care is unbelievable. What are your thoughts and experiences with this?
Customs and Courtesies
Tradition
Military bearing
Sailors
Posted 9 y ago
This is a duplicate discussion. Click below to see more on this topic.
Though I have been retired for almost 3 years, I noticed this for a few years before I retired and it seems to be getting worse on the military pages and sites I follow.
Example: You get a Sailor (Soldier, Airman, Marine, etc.) fresh from Boot Camp/Basic Training and A School (MOS training). Upon being assigned to you they feel it is appropriate to call you by just your last name. When you assign them a task such as cleaning, they feel the need to ask why they're being told to do it.
"Explaining" how the chain of command and respect works falls on deaf ears, or you end up hurting their feelings and they feel the need to file an Equal Opportunity complaint or go crying to the next person in the chain of command that you were "mean to them."
At first I thought maybe I just wasn't the strongest leader (I wasn't), but I noticed it happening a lot and not just to me.
I'm looking for opinions, thoughts, rants, how you nip the problem in the bud, etc.
Example: You get a Sailor (Soldier, Airman, Marine, etc.) fresh from Boot Camp/Basic Training and A School (MOS training). Upon being assigned to you they feel it is appropriate to call you by just your last name. When you assign them a task such as cleaning, they feel the need to ask why they're being told to do it.
"Explaining" how the chain of command and respect works falls on deaf ears, or you end up hurting their feelings and they feel the need to file an Equal Opportunity complaint or go crying to the next person in the chain of command that you were "mean to them."
At first I thought maybe I just wasn't the strongest leader (I wasn't), but I noticed it happening a lot and not just to me.
I'm looking for opinions, thoughts, rants, how you nip the problem in the bud, etc.
Responses: 2
CPO (Join to see)
Sadly, these days it seems leadership on all levels (myself included sometimes) are allowing this to happen either due to the inability to carry out a reprimand that will actually correct the behaviour (due to new rules and regs) or simply the leadership has the same type of mindset. I believe the hardest thing about being a leader is the ability to remain impartial regardless of who your are dealing with; mostly because if you know your people, you know that everyone responds differently to things. At the same time we are all in the military and should know what to what to expect and how to carry ourselves in a manner becoming of the selected service.
MCPO Roger Collins
CPO (Join to see) - There are exceptions but my advice is to treat everyone equal. Don't play around with anyone in your command. Do what you know is right. Worked for me and I believe it will for you.
PO2 (Join to see)
I witnessed it first time while I was deployed, my LPO smacking some second class butt... Everyone made fun of me every time I yelled "Sir!" Whenever my CO or OIC walk through the door, either AOD! Or a well endowed "Good morning Sir!" ... I'm old school, so to me still the Petty Officer if I don't know the rate, even if I know them well.
I don't they are going away. They are just being re-looked at to ensure they are done in a professional manner.
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