I’ve been following this US Navy scandal off and on for years. I’m about halfway through Whitlock’s comprehensive and extremely detailed reporting on what happened and who the various culprits were. I’m amazed at the hundreds (YES, hundreds) of Navy officers (most of them Academy graduates) that were so easily corrupted. Several times Whitlock has pointed out the old truth that “power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely”. And Navy officers in command of ships at sea are virtually god like in their power and authority.
Being old and becoming more cynical every day I am assuming that such corruption must be occurring every day to some degree in all of our hierarchy driven military forces. I hope that when we next get into a shooting war with someone, that we miraculously can separate the capable from the greedy. And I’m probably whistling in the dark.
There were plenty of problems with the Navy and Navy supply at the start of WWII also, especially our torpedoes. I’m reasonably sure there has been plenty of other incidents.
I served under one of the officers who was indicted and convicted, but then had his conviction overturned because the prosecution fucked up and failed to disclose some evidence that, had it been disclosed, probably would have been inconsequential, but in the event led to new trials being granted. (So, similar to what got Baldwin’s case dismissed, but I don’t think the comparison is fair to Baldwin).
And this guy was worse than corrupt. He was corrupt and a reactionary stickler who could get very creative in coming down hard (perhaps even harder than a strict reading of relevant laws or regulations should allow) on relatively minor misconduct carried out by junior sailors, but was himself, it seems, engaged in a years’ long pattern of felonious behavior.