hornetguy
15-Year Member
- Joined
- Jun 9, 2006
- Messages
- 2,353
I believe the responses the OP has received cannot be totally unexpected. He posted on a forum where many of the posters (and their parents) are heavily vested in the "honor" system. In addition many of us have felt the anguish of the applicants that failed to receive an appointment...sometimes more than once. While it may only be one "stupid choice among many stupid choices appointees make before arriving", it seems (IMHO) inexcusably arrogant to smoke a blunt weeks before I-Day.... as though his appointment has no value. Tough for many to read and understand on this forum and why some have posted that they hoped he was a troll and not serious.
However, in the end you are probably correct.....it's good advice to "Tone it down and get a grip".
I dont disagree at all with the opinion that it is an exceedingly dumb choice to make after receiving an appointment. There are an enormous number of reasons people lose their slot before or as a cadet - ranging from dumb choices to it not being the right place. I remember the stress of waiting. But if people get worked up over every person who has an appointment and didn't get to graduation for whatever reason and they should have gotten it instead, boy oh boy they'd lose their minds! And not every graduate is a beacon of honor and good judgment!
Perhaps I was a bit over the top with "get a grip." But my intention was more, "face reality" and quit the overly harsh criticisms of such a person (OP or not) who made a dumb choice like this. I'm more concerned with the sentiments about marijuana and its use. On active duty, there are a LOT of mean and women, officer and enlisted, who have used marijuana before in their lives and before the military. If I was so harsh to those around me that I've lived and worked with on active duty who have used pot before, I'd feel pretty isolated and viewed as a 'prude.'
There's all sorts of people, great and hard-working people, who have done things before joining or who make decisions (legal) on duty that many people would find immoral or distasteful. As future officers, these candidates and cadets need to understand the importance of being professional and recognizing the great diversity in our ranks and some of the decisions people made in their younger years. Such quit judgment on something like marijuana use is really an inappropriate response on active duty and can really hurt a professional environment. Enforcing the standard we signed for is encouraged, but moral judgements on it can cause a pickle.
I'm hoping this is making sense - it's a good lesson in reality on what to expect in the armed forces. It's made up of people, not automatons. Being leaders means having some empathy and broadening one's horizons a bit.