Military Professionalism - United States Air Force Academy

command was diminishing. Doubts in the chain of command pull attention away from
the priority issues, so he resigned to reorient the focus of the military and the commander
in chief back to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Kohn, Richard H. “Always Salute, Never Resign.” Foreign Affairs (Nov. 10, 2009).
http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/65644/richard-h-kohn/always-salute-never-resign
“Resigning over advice not taken, policy disagreements, or moral or ethical qualms
undermines the relationship between military officials and their civilian superiors and
destroys the professionalism of the U.S. armed forces.” Resigning is a form of disputing
the judgment of civilian leaders and violates civilian control of the military. Officers
cannot know all of the national and international considerations that go into policy
decisions, so they are not informed enough to make a judgment. An officer who resigns
abandons his or her troops and lowers overall military morale.
Milburn, Andrew R. “Breaking Ranks: Dissent and the Military Professional.” Joint
Force Quarterly 59 (4 th quarter 2010): 101-107.
http://www.ndu.edu/press/breaking-ranks.html
When faced with a moral dilemma, the military officer not only has grounds for dissent,
but also, if his code of ethics and oath of office so guide, has a duty to disobey. He is
obligated to exercise moral autonomy, and in so doing, must use his professional ethics to
guide him down a path that is by no means clearly defined. Just as civilian leaders have
an obligation to challenge military leaders if the latter appear to be pursuing a strategy
that undermines policy, military leaders are committed to challenge their civilian masters
if the policy appears to be unconstitutional, immoral, or otherwise detrimental to the
military institution. Civilian control of the military does not obviate this obligation and
should not be viewed simply as a unilateral and hierarchical relationship with clear
boundaries. This is especially important now in this era of complex operations that blur
the boundaries between military strategy and policy.
Newman, Richard J. “A General Salutes by Quitting.” News & World Report 123.6
(Aug. 11, 1997).
Chief of Staff Ronald Fogleman resigned because he disagreed with the policies of the
administration. Resigning illustrates military deference to its civilian masters. Gen.
Fogleman had privately offered his advice to civilian officials and opted to leave when he
felt that he could not carry out the decisions of his civilian superiors.
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