whew, ok, sea year tests are done with so there's a break in the grind to catch up with the state of affairs over here. there are a few things that I've reflected on regarding my original post that i would like to clarify, and a few things that i'd like to add or respond to.
First off: it was never my intention to paint the Admiral as a cold, uncaring figure that is determined to ruin the Academy and its ways of operating simply for the sake of doing so, and i apologize to anyone who has taken my comments to mean so. Myself and the Academy community as a whole were very excited when we heard of the appointment of one of our own as superintendant, and we continue to hope and expect that Admiral Greene will do great things for the Academy and the regiment in the future. That said, he has a very difficult job to perform at this time. I can speak for the majority of midshipmen when i say that we saw the root of this problem early on, when we were waiting upwards of 20 minutes in Delano at breakfast behind a seemingly endless line of plebes. There is no doubt that there is a space component to this issue. Quite simply, the Academy overbooked itself, and now the balance has to come from somewhere. Whoever is responsible for doing so has done the regiment as a whole and especially the members of the class of 2014 a great disservice. The plebes have invested alot of time and energy and now have to watch their classmates leave after giving it all they had, and the rest of us have to live with the fallout from a system that has ramped up to full capacity to deal with the problem. However, as i said, i do not believe that it is being handled in the best way possible. While eliminating all the individuals who fall into harms way, regardless of circumstance, may be the FASTEST way to free up needed bunk space, i argue that the damage that doing so is inflicting on the morale, attitude and trust of the Regiment does not justify the expedience in resolving the issue. A very limited number of setbacks in the most extreme of cases is not going to throw off the overall movement to reduce the size of the Regiment/increase standards, and will have the benefit of reassuring us that someone is looking a little deeper than the raw data in front of them on our review reports. As far as any of us can tell, that aint happening. Knowing our head and the heads of our friends are on the chopping block and our situations fall on deaf ears is very disconcerting to us all.
As far as morale is concerned, well, low morale is frankly not uncommon. this term especially is pretty notorious for that. the Plebes are fed up with the BS and want to be recognized (dont ask me when, i dont have any info.). the 3/c are just coming back from sea, where we just spent about 4 months growing beards, wearing boots and dirty Carhartt pants every day, and generally being in control of our own LIVES for once, to an environment where most of that control is stripped away, and it's a hard and depressing adjustment. The 2/c just came through the winter and are ready for it to be spring again; cabin fever never helps morale out. and the 1/c are basically in the same boat, although they're starting to have those "oh. LICENSE." pangs and some get thrown for a bit of a loop. dont get me wrong, the current atmosphere at the academy is tense, uncertain, and certainly isnt helping things out. but i wouldnt say it is the sole cause of low morale, even if it is a major contributing factor amongst the plebes and the 3/c who work pretty closely with them.
as an aside: thank GOD for the parents, staff and friends who do things like Cookie Cafe and all the other programs and events, big and little, that give us the opportunity to relax and smile for a bit. I doubt they know the full difference they make and we really dont have the capacity to articulate it. so all we can really say is: thank you for everything you do.
I think that what we're currently seeing is the painful beginnings of a new era in Academy standards and policy. like many have said, and i agree with, the policies of the past administrations have been far too lax in terms of setbacks in pretty benign cases that really should probably have ended in a disenrollment. Will these new standards be good for Kings Point in the long run? I really do think so. With a WELL UNDERSTOOD and presented "higher bar" as some have worded it, i think KP could firmly establish its position as the premier source of excellent merchant marine officers. Do i think the current path of the administration will lead us there? yes, eventually, but the question i ask myself is, will the damage done in the meantime be so great as to tarnish the eventual results?
As i said, i dont have all the answers to these problems, i dont even have all the QUESTIONS. but i do have what i believe to be a decent outlook on the situation or, failing that, at least a boots-on-the-ground perspective on events. if anything i say or conclude is of value to you, then the 45 minutes i spent typing this will have been worth it. if not? well, as i'm fond of saying, I'm just a dumb deck cadet, what do i know