I had scarcely learned to differentiate between a fore sail and a forecastle when the Navy shifted its enlisted uniform from dungarees to the first of many subsequent replacements. By the time I understood the singular importance of striking eight bells on time, I witnessed us toss our dunnage over the side during the Enlisted Retention Board (that the determination of what was dunnage and not precious cargo was conducted without the captain’s input, and that we were left trying and failing to recover said dunnage by the Dog Watch is neither here nor there). In my years aft of the mast, the Navy has provided sailors with the opportunity to take their ease from deploying to Fifth Fleet while at sea by volunteering them for deployments to Fifth Fleet while on land. Morale, welfare, and recreation resources were centralized despite the attendant diminishment of all three. And to the dismay of most surface warfare officers and even the nation’s adversaries, the Navy continues to build littoral combat ships perhaps not well suited to either the littorals or combat.
With no lack of sorrow, I note that many of these decisions have had the same effect as a ship charging toward shoal water in a storm—it all appears terribly exciting until the ship runs aground and splits at the seams. What then befalls the authors of the misfortune? We learn, as naval officers and ladies and gentlemen of high character, that accountability presides in singular glory over the other virtues praised in our naval pantheon. Why then, does the Navy so often struggle to hold those who order the course at account vice those who merely man the helm?
The fault, gentle reader, appears inexorably linked to the passing of time, as they who would chart a course toward disaster often shift their flags or elsewise disembark before the destination is reached. And let us be clear that disastrous though the destination may be, determination of that result in advance of its actuality requires the finest powers of reason and competence, and thus, many of the planners of said disasters should be excused out of hand. Note further that some of these are shipwrecks born out of honest hearts, vice the lugubrious conduct of some of our number who found themselves ensnared by the gluttonous wiles of that Malaysian Gentleman.
With passion retreating and reason ascendant, I humbly offer a manner with which these past injuries may be healed. It is ironic that many of those who steered our Navy toward rocks and shoals while on active service seek employment with the very defense contractors who provided the chart and compass. But having secured employment of private means, they may provide reparation through the following actions:
Let all naval officers, retired at the rank of rear admiral or senior, return their pensions to the Navy if in the employ of the defense industry
That pension is, in fact, a retainer to recall these illustrious few back to active service as required, when they already continue to do the fleet such service in their new endeavors. Consider an admiral who spent his last several years on active service in pursuit of a poorly conceived weapons system. Having retired, he finds employment with the producer of said weapon, where the admiral’s personal relationships and prior duties prove invaluable to their civilian employer. Should the Navy pay to retain them for an area of expertise for which they are now being compensated by industry? Having moved deftly from customer to salesman, it seems dubious to continue to compensate them for their previous role, as it is likely the only thing that makes their current one possible.
You may ask, without ill intent, what small percentage of the retired Admiralty would be subject to said measure. Surely, one would think, that many are exhausted by their years in harness and, like Cincinnatus, retire to a quiet country estate to pass their remaining time in peaceful relaxation. You underestimate the fire in the belly of some senior officers, my friends! Over three quarters of our most senior officers across all services often continue to render selfless service to our nation through the private sector[1]. Returning their pensions to the coffers of the fleet would only serve to emphasize just how selfless that service truly is.
Your final objection, if I may be so bold to anticipate it, is that the amount of moneys returned to the fleet under such a measure would be a trifle. It is, after all, remittance of a pension and not the sundry costs associated with active service as a senior admiral. Fortunately, a number of our highest ranks were afforded the opportunity to collect more in retired pay than had been received in basic salary while on active duty—in some cases tens of thousands of dollars more per year! The retired pay multiples were significantly increased in 2007 to retain the best, most senior officers, and the end result of our glorious actions in Iraq, Libya, and Afghanistan prove that that was money spent.*[2] And while it may seem incongruous that many of these lucky few would accept such largesse from the government while advocating for a reduction in pay increases and the diminishment of the military retirement system, let us not count ourselves among the cynics. Among a group known to design a ship with a gun that shoots a million-dollar shell, mastery of neither math nor logic can be expected. That program of expanded pensions, sadly, ended in 2014.[3]
Many defense industry senior leaders spent their active-duty careers as evangelists for Navy programs that promised to reduce costs, manpower, and maintenance requirements. Their actions blazed a bold path forward for our service, their passion burning brighter than a Sailor walking by an exposed flame while wearing our Navy’s official working uniform. Let us finally see their passion consummated by a program that actually saves the fleet money without reducing capability, and maybe then they can keep their pensions.
(*The reader may pick an adverb.)
Endnotes
[1] Bender, Bryan, “From the Pentagon to the private sector”, The Boston Globe, December 26th, 2010, available at:
http://archive.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2010/12/26/defense_firms_lure_retired_generals/
[2] Vanden Brook, Tom, “Congress docks pensions for senior Pentagon brass”, USA Today, December 3rd, 2014, available at: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2014/12/03/pensions-generals-admirals/19848545/
[3] Ibid.
