Books

Book Review: Long Way Out

Nicole Waybright. Self-published, 2016. 546 pp. $23.67.

This book must have been incredibly difficult to write —it certainly was to read. Not because it is not a compelling and well-written story, but it brought back memories of some of the toughest years of my own life, growing up in the nuclear surface warfare community about the same time as one of the key characters, Lieutenant Commander HAG. It hit home because it is true (although presented through a fictional character, the author is clear that each one represents an actual person) and, although I did not experience quite the level of mental abuse detailed by the author, there were times when it came close, especially during my first division officer tour. This is the story of a young woman finding her way in what was then (is now?) a man’s domain, leadership gone grotesquely awry, and an organization that struggled (struggles) to address cultural issues that eat away at its core. For those who have served on Navy ships, it will conjure up the sights, sounds, and smells that they remember fondly, that of grease, oil, bacon, and smoke; of bells, whistles, and endless announcements, and of the sea, in its beauty and anger, dominating the lives of the sailors who serve on it. To see the Navy through the eager eyes of this young officer, and to experience her highs and lows—as informed by several years of study and retrospection —is very refreshing and very enlightening.

But it also is a case study for what can go wrong when mission and personal ambition overcome basic human dignity, when abuse of power is unchecked by those who could do something about it, and an organization that tried to accelerate change while ignoring signs that it was not fully ready to do so based on past decisions. It is a cautionary tale for those in any leadership position, but especially in the military where the control over an individual’s life is so absolute. One passage demonstrates an example of this:

CSO (Combat Systems Officer, a Department Head), after repeated personal attacks by the XO (You are absolutely the worst f-ing naval officer EVER!) locked himself in his stateroom and bashed his knee against the desk until it was bent and broken, then stepped out of the stateroom and collapsed. Later, when allowed to return to the ship, he is awarded a lower than normal medal—clearly to send a message—which he tosses in the water as he leaves the quarterdeck.

This episode and others like it show the overwhelming power that a Navy commanding officer (CO) and executive officer (XO) hold over the lives of the crew. Another involves the disapproval of a leave chit over the holidays for a department head to get married—it reminded me of a time when an supervisor disapproved a leave chit for one of my sailors to attend his grandmother’s funeral with the comment, “People die every day” (the captain approved it). It also is a journal of personal growth and from self-doubt to self-confidence that many will find inspiring. As the author states, when she recounted stories from the ship at her next command, they were considered too outrageous to be true. Unfortunately, they were repeated in the XO’s first and second command tour, resulting in her eventual removal for “Cruelty and maltreatment” of her 400-member crew. But what damage was done to two generations of officers while the Navy looked away? Was it, as the author implies, that the goal of anointing the “first woman in AEGIS” caused leaders to gloss over obvious failings? Was it COs who felt that their own career upward mobility would be damaged by failing to “fix” this subordinate, that her leadership failure would reflect poorly on them? I will leave those conclusions to the reader.

But that was then, you say, and this is now. Or is it? A recent study showed that women are 25 percent more likely to leave the Navy (May 2020). From the leadership aspect, one need only Google “cruiser CO fired” and look at the long list—these are still happening, and as I have written before. In most cases there is a long list of sailors and officers who have served under that individual before who read about this event—and are not surprised. In my opinion, the charge of command should include a disclosure agreement, that “If I am relieved due to a loss of confidence from misconduct or malfeasance, I hereby allow the investigation to be released as a learning point for future Navy leaders.” The only real cure for toxic leadership is transparency, perhaps peer or subordinate reviews, or some change to the system – or history will continue to repeat itself. Our generation deserves better than the Navy did by Nicole and her shipmates; to that end, this book should be required reading for the Navy Leadership School as a read-ahead for discussion in the class—it would be eye-opening and (hopefully) generate some discussion and introspection.

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