To the Navy members.... What is your opinion of Red vs. Gold Service Stripes?

I was on my way to retire with gold hash marks, but one serious lapse of judgment shortly before I retired led to an Article 15 Captain's Mast and I ended up retiring with 5 red stripes. Doesn't matter to me, I still get my pension every month!

All the stripe color meant to myself and peers back in the day was gold meant you weren't caught. Other that that, a pure yawner. For those who thought it was critical for them, they usually had an ego problem. I had a career E-5 who kept getting busted back on a predictable schedule. But there wasn't anyone you'd rather have painting the countryside with Ma Duce. A true artist.

One of the best E-8s on my ship was a guy who had the distinction of being selected for promotion to every single rank twice. I am against my he zero defect mentality and I think some of our best warriors are guys who don't rate gold.

A good sailor learns from his/her mistakes. I made a lot of them. never went to MASS, No NJP's Not one single write up ever in my career. I had one 2nd Class that for whatever reason did not like the cut of my Jib in my first Command, He wrote one of my Quarterly marks and gave me a 2.0. that hounded me and kept me from getting my GCM on my first 4 years. all because of one person's feelings. But Yet, as an Airman (E3) I was filling a 2rd Class (E5) Billet. DCPO for the Division. Go Figure. Had a Admirals inspection in my Squadron, the Skipper was walking around with the 3 star, He stopped in front of me and looked at my crow and said "Second Class Ordnanceman eh?" I replied quickly, "No Sir Second Class Petty Officer, First Class Aviation Ordnanceman Sir." The Admiral looked over to our Skipper and our Skipper smiled and said "Thats a fact, Sir."

MSG David Rogers III I don't think anything about it. Look at the chevrons, not the color. Respect the uniform, whether higher or lower.

For Senior Enlisted, it used to be a pseudo "badge of honor" in that you overcame your silly mistakes as a young Sailor and were still able to achieve rank. Nowadays, I would suspect you won't see as many red-stripped CPOs, SCPOs, or MCPOs.

MSG David Rogers III I can only one Relate One Story, Some Fields advance much quicker than Others which makes for some entertaining situations. I was coming out of the Galley Corry Station in Uniform with a Toothpick in My Mouth. See this 2 Red Striping Chief coming up quick on my back side, You can tell He is about read me the Riot Act, Up Until he pulls up in front of Me and Sees 3 Gold Stripes. Very Politely reminds me that this is a "School" Environment and "We" Need to set the Right Example for the Junior Students. LOL. Most Polite Almost Ass Chewing I ever got. Nice Young Lad.

I am still upset that I was just a few days short of "Going Gold" and they would not waive it or let me delay my commissioning so I could make the shift. So close and yet so far.

While it can be honorable to have gold stripes for a untouched career, there are some of those who may have to wait a bit longer to get them but their character, attention to duty and how they grown as a person in the Navy can be reflected. I've met a lot of people, including one of my RDCs who got into 3 fights in his career, but he still made Chief and proudly wears his red stripes. I know he's a good person and was rough around the edges; he makes a great role model for those looking.

Some seniors saw gold only as a sign that you hadn't got caught but many of us, myself included, saw it as a result of working hard to reflect honor upon ourselves and the USN. Navy rules and regulations are often complex and confusing so a sailor has to stay sharp, put forth his/her best efforts and stay current with those rules and regulations. That's a lot of responsibility to carry for 12 years (3 enlistments) so the Navy recognizes your diligence assigning gold status to your uniform. When I was in, it also gave you points on your evals and when being selected for promotion.