Evaluation of Military Integrity

Lying to Ourselves Military integrity has been a major issue in the recent past because of the increase in moral and ethical problems that are evident across the whole United States military and not just the Army alone. Wong and Gerras' article focuses on highlighting these moral and ethical problems that are increasingly affecting integrity in the U.S. military. As evident in the article, leaders in the American military lie when performing their duties and constantly use rationalizations and justifications to deal with any emerging ethical or moral doubt.

This tendency has in turn contributed to the unspoken embrace of dishonesty by these leaders, which is a clear reflection of hypocrisy. Therefore, one the major conclusions from this article include the fact that lying is has become increasingly acceptable in the U.S. military and facilitated by its leaders. Dishonesty and hypocrisy in the military is widely accepted by its leaders who not only lie while conducting their duties but use justifications for such actions.

Leaders in the military carry out such actions because they have become ethically numb through actions like cheating on texts and sharing classified information in exchange or bribes.[footnoteRef:2] [2: Leonard Wong & Stephen J. Gerras, "Lying to Ourselves: Dishonesty in the Army Profession," United States Army War College Press, accessed October 29, 2015, http://www.strategicstudiesinstitute.army.mil/pdffiles/PUB1250.pdf] Secondly, Army officers find it difficult or impossible to achieve all obligatory requirements despite the unacceptability of failure to meet requirements.

As a result, these officers deal with this challenge through lying regarding their accomplishments, training practices, and standards of training. Military institutions have also played a major role in this problem through encouraging subordinates to prioritize requirements that will met based on existing standards and those that will not be met. Despite increased dishonesty, officers and members of this profession continue to maintain an image of integrity since many decisions in this field are no longer regarded as moral choices.

In addition to other proposed measures, the most important way of dealing with this problem is leading truthfully through making necessary changes to the culture of dishonesty. An example of a situation that highlights the widespread dishonesty in the U.S.

military is in the Air Force where approximately 50% of the nuclear missile launch officers at a certain base were aware or engaged in cheating on an exam testing on competence in missile launch systems.[footnoteRef:3] I will handle this situation through various strategies that will help in overcoming the dishonesty. First, I will suspend all the launch officers involved in the cheating as part of investigations to deal with the problem. The second step will involve examining individual and/or organizational shortcomings that could have resulted in the cheating.

If the investigations demonstrate that there are certain individuals who were involved in the cheating, they will also be suspended and subjected to disciplinary action based on existing policies. During this process, existing practices will be evaluated based on policies and necessary changes made to strengthen the policies and ensure suitable practices are carried out. The changes in the policies and practices will be analyzed in relation to their impact on the force, particularly academic requirements and practices.

The final step will be establishing an organizational culture of honesty through promoting and upholding ethical practices. [3: Leonard Wong & Stephen J. Gerras, "Lying to Ourselves: Dishonesty in the Army Profession," United States Army War College Press, accessed October 29, 2015, http://www.strategicstudiesinstitute.army.mil/pdffiles/PUB1250.pdf] As a Platoon Leader, this article provides significant insights regarding the development and establishment of suitable policies and practices that promote honesty and integrity. Based on lessons from this article, I.