Military Professionalism - United States Air Force Academy

Arms, bonded with comrades in a shared identity and culture of sacrifice and service to
the Nation and the Constitution, who adheres to the highest ethical standards and is a
steward of the future of the profession.
Center for Army Profession and Ethics. U.S. Army Combined Arms Center
Information Paper on American Civil-Military Relations, 1-4.
http://usacac.army.mil/cac2/repository/Civil-MilitaryRelations_28June2010.docx
Military officers swear an oath to defend the Constitution rather than commit allegiance
to a sovereign. As a servant to the nation, the military must be subordinate to duly
elected government officials. Through all the military does, it must aim to strengthen its
bonds with the civilian leadership as well as the American public.
Cohen, Richard. “How Little the U.S. Knows of War.” The Washington Post (Jan. 4,
2011).
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2011/01/03/AR2011010303444.html?hpid=opinionsbox1
The all-volunteer military has enabled America to fight two wars while many of its
citizens do not know of a single fatality or even of anyone who has fought overseas. This
is a military conscripted by culture and class - induced, not coerced, indoctrinated in all
the proper cliches about serving one's country, honored and romanticized by those of us
who would not, for a moment, think of doing the same. A couple of things are wrong
with this picture. First, this distant Army enables us to fight wars about which the
general public is largely indifferent. Had there been a draft, the war in Iraq might never
have been fought - or would have produced the civil protests of the Vietnam War era.
The Iraq debacle was made possible by a professional military and by going into debt.
George W. Bush didn't need your body or, in the short run, your money. Southerners
would fight, and foreigners would buy the bonds. The other problem is that the military
has become something of a priesthood. It is virtually worshipped for its admirable
qualities while its less admirable ones are hardly mentioned or known. It has such
standing that it is awfully hard for mere civilians - including the commander in chief - to
question it.
Cloud, David S. “Adultery Inquiry Costs General his Command.” The New York
Times (Aug. 11, 2005).
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/11/politics/11general.html?_r=2&pagewanted=print;%
20%20http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/august2005/100805fourstargeneral.htm
Gen. Kevin P. Byrnes was relieved of his command following an investigation into
accusations that he was involved in a consensual relationship with a female civilian.
Adulterous affairs are prohibited under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Officers
can be disciplined, demoted, or relieved from their post for such behavior.
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