Have we lost our Professionalism in the Army (Military)

I don't think a little bit of banter towards the man was really slander. I think what you are seeing is the contention that people have towards this issue. I jokingly commented not to demean your service or your personnel. The comment is probably not personal against him but is more so in just how some SNCO's treat small uniform infractions as if they are the worst thing that can happen in your career as if you just committed fratricide. Having been on several deployments I know that this issue hits a hot button. I have seen his Af counterparts run clear across the compound to chew someone out over this. You want to talk about unprofessional, its when someone is being chewed out over a minor uniform infraction, like they are back in basic training, that could also have been a simple mistake. In my service I have even seen SNCO's dress down Lt Col's over not having their reflective belts or their PT shirt got un-tucked.

You mention it was probably a mistake and human error. I agree with you, however I also know that it seems like sunglasses on heads, reflective belts, and tucking pt uniforms seems to be the mindset that it is the most important thing to many of his counterparts. I once was at a right start briefing where the Command Chief at Al Udeid tried to equate tucking PT shirts and wearing the reflective belt to following checklist procedures in the cockpit. To all the flyers we think that was little bit ridiculous because one has absolutely nothing to do with the other. having a uniform that may be incorrect is not going to get me killed, however having the gear up during landing probably will.

A lot of people will call you out if you are not practicing what you preach. In my former career field that is how we keep ourselves in check. We call it roll cal. This is where if you made a mistake in the cockpit that did not break metal, kill you or get you violated by the ATC agency. We called each other out on it. It is how we keep ourselves honest. That is basically what has happened here on this board, that's all. You have to ask yourself is it just keeping good order and discipline or can this be an issue to throw your rank around. In some cases I feel that some people get off on chewing people out. Maybe they have home stress and are projecting out, or they simply have a chip on their shoulder and just want to bully. I can tell from experience that it would seem like the people that are not rational about spot corrections are just trying to throw themselves around.

It is human instinct to comment on when people who accept a position that supposed to be beyond reproach fall short. Especially a community such as the SNCO of any service where they pride themselves of being the perfect examples and setters of order and discipline.

To the question of whether the military is as professional as it should be, I will leave to another discussion.

However, to the question of whether professionalism has been "lost" -- I believe is an easier one to tackle. I have no reason to believe that if one went back 10 or 20 years, or 30 or 100 years, that the rank and file would not have been complaining and poking fun at their leaders exactly the same way they do today. Perhaps back then it would have been in barracks, or in back rooms of officer clubs, or out on a Friday night. However, there is no reason to believe that people have changed. Perhaps it is simply more visible because of social media.

In many ways, our military has become more and more professional.

I believe Professionalism as a whole has been lost at a Societal Level. People paid in the millions of dollars per year cannot even act professional and they have have serious bonuses that can come with acting accordingly. I may be off center here but i have a feeling it may come down to the trend of "everyone is equal". Every kid gets a trophy type stuff that places no emphasis on seniority or real character but rather that; at least you joined so, you should be considered an equal to everyone else. With that being said I have been fortunate enough to serve under/alongside some extremely professional service members of every branch. I have met some real dirt-bags too. What I think it really is though and what others have touched on, is the attention that the disrespectful get, like that soldier who posted on FB how she hid from Flag Call....nobody would have ever really known if; A.) She wasnt completely freaking stupid enough to brag about it. B.) There was no Social Media...I fell like the majority of Service Members will fall into the "Average Category" (those who make a few mistakes but learn from them and for the most part, serve rather honorably) and will continue to do so as long as people exist to take swift and firm action against those who chose to disobey and disrespect customs, courtesies, general doctrine...and those who are just down right shitty human beings