# Its too easy but I pit Ronulans **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 6, 2012, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-too-easy-but-i-pit-ronulans/608670 "2012-01-06T21:50:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-too-easy-but-i-pit-ronulans/608670/41 "2012-01-10T23:43:42Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > But he’s against the Fed … and I doubt credits are backed by gold. We really need to back on the latinum standard. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2012, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-too-easy-but-i-pit-ronulans/608670/42 "2012-01-10T23:43:51Z")
> [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](#): > > Perhaps it’s not candidates but elected officials. You know how Presidents always have their military guy sitting front and center during the State of the Union Address? They don’t tend to focus on the Joint Chiefs on TV during the State of the Union but if you look they are very careful about how they react. They will clap for the president when he enters like everyone else. They may react to some of the “America is great” comments. But when the speech is political they sit there politely while the congress plays their applause games. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2012, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-too-easy-but-i-pit-ronulans/608670/43 "2012-01-11T00:41:28Z")
> [@GawnFishin](#): > > Even then it is only an assumption that really shouldn’t be made unless it is openly stated that they are speaking on behalf of the military because the military is civilian controlled and not the other way around. And this rule is designed to maintain that principle. ---
**Author:** ![Oliveritaly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oliveritaly/32/15233_2.png) [@Oliveritaly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oliveritaly)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-too-easy-but-i-pit-ronulans/608670/44 "2012-01-12T10:51:44Z")
> [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](#): > > Perhaps it’s not candidates but elected officials. You know how Presidents always have their military guy sitting front and center during the State of the Union Address? That’s legitimate because it’s considered an honor. Arguably every elected official is campaigning all the time, but if the event is not specifically for that purpose but for honoring guests or the like it is legitimate, like a Veteran’s day event. > > It gets complicated. The easiest way to avoid having problems is to clear your appearance through your base’s Public Affairs office. They will approve or disapprove and put specific conditions on your appearance such as what you may or may not say. If they approve it it’s all kosher and you may participate, but you may not make the decision to attend in uniform for yourself like this guy apparently did, and you certainly may not make off-the-cuff statements that potentially embarrass your chain of command or the military as a whole. Rule of thumb: if you make a declarative statement it may not be about policy, operational information, troop deployments, or anything political. Not to nitpick but… Well I’m going to nitpick. Its JAG you want to speak to not the PAO. The PAO (I’ve been one for 25 years now) will have the pleasure of dealing with the media attention that follows an incident like this but for guidance before participation, it’s the legal folks. ---
**Author:** ![Oliveritaly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oliveritaly/32/15233_2.png) [@Oliveritaly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oliveritaly)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 10:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-too-easy-but-i-pit-ronulans/608670/45 "2012-01-12T10:54:34Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Thanks for that. Can’t find anything I disagree with there. Loach, I’m glad you enjoyed it. I really, really enjoyed his criticism of the military’s role in this and was sort of surprised at how many of my military ‘colleges’ did as well. Though from my VERY unscientific poll of coworkers past and present the more junior (age, not necessarily rank wise) the less they agreed. ---
**Author:** ![Oliveritaly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oliveritaly/32/15233_2.png) [@Oliveritaly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oliveritaly)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 10:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-too-easy-but-i-pit-ronulans/608670/46 "2012-01-12T10:57:33Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > That usually happens with the sitting president. But you are mistaken. Those are not political rallies. The president is allowed to act as the president and commander in chief. For instance Obama at Fort Bragg in front of the troops making a speech about the end of the Iraq War. Or Bush on the aircraft carrier making a speech about the end of the Iraq War. The President often uses an audience of soldiers to speak about military policy, in and out of the election cycle. And those soldiers are not there to support the president politically, they are there to hear their commander speak about an issue regarding them. One of the perks of being president, they get to look presidential. > > What you will not see is soldiers in uniform at campaign events or at political fund raisers. There is a very distinct difference. +1 but I will add I have heard (sitting presidents mind you) address campaign ‘topics’ during speaches at military installations but these events are not campaign rallies at all. ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-too-easy-but-i-pit-ronulans/608670/47 "2012-01-12T12:34:02Z")
> [@Oliveritaly](#): > > Not to nitpick but… Well I’m going to nitpick. Its JAG you want to speak to not the PAO. The PAO (I’ve been one for 25 years now) will have the pleasure of dealing with the media attention that follows an incident like this but for guidance before participation, it’s the legal folks. Fair enough, but all the same I’ve always been told to deal with the PAO, never the JAG. So, what’s it like cleaning up messes like this without making more of your own? ---
**Author:** ![Oliveritaly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oliveritaly/32/15233_2.png) [@Oliveritaly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oliveritaly)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-too-easy-but-i-pit-ronulans/608670/48 "2012-01-12T13:31:00Z")
> [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](#): > > Fair enough, but all the same I’ve always been told to deal with the PAO, never the JAG. > > So, what’s it like cleaning up messes like this without making more of your own? It’s the JAG because they tend to know the exact limits. I guess the PAO could do it with a lot of input from JAG. Either way you’re talking to someone on a general’s staff … Thankfully I didn’t have to write the public affairs guidance regarding this issue but I suspect it talks a lot about the opinion expressed by this soldier in no way reflect the values of the Army, National Guard, Unit (whatever) and that we as an organization continually stress to our service member what they can and cannot do while in uniform and that the matter is under investigation, blah, blah, blah. I’ve noticed a lot of commands are pushing (via social media – thus the PA channels) reminders about what is and what is not appropriate to do while in uniform politics wise … [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-too-easy-but-i-pit-ronulans/608670.md?page=2)