Lt. Cmdr charged with a crime

[VMI77]

I've said this before, but I'll say it again. The "brass" are risk adverse. They operate under a concept called "risk management". For those not familiar with the concept, it's core is to accept no unnecessary risk and to do whatever possible to reduce necessary risk to the absolute minimum. If that is all done, "by the book", whatever bad stuff happens will be considered "acceptable", but will still be studied as to how to minimize that bad stuff without incurring more risk. Now, that's not to say the brass are happy about that bad stuff, just that they accept it. The thought of large numbers of military personnel carrying loaded firearms is an unacceptable risk, especially to the careers of some officers. They cannot afford Private Joe having an accidental/negligent discharge of a firearm. It will go onto someone's performance evaluation as a "failure to establish and maintain proper training standards/lack of leadership/lack of attention to detail", etc. And bye-bye cushy headquarters slot. Now, a terrorist attack that kills a few Joes, well, that is an acceptable risk (though once again, I'm not saying they are happy about it, just that they accept it). Don't believe me, please listen to General Odierno on the subject.

"I think we have to be careful about over-arming ourselves, and I'm not talking about where you end up attacking each other," Odierno said during a morning breakfast. Instead, he said, it's more about "accidental discharges and everything else that goes along with having weapons that are loaded that causes injuries."

http://insider.foxnews.com/2015/07/17/a ... tary-bases

I'd characterize risk management a little differently. It's not necessarily to accept no unnecessary risk or even to minimize risk, but to transfer risk to others if it cannot be mitigated without expending additional resources. The brass will expend resources to minimize risk to themselves, but risk is merely transferred to everyone else. So, for instance, where the brass works there will be armed security and metal detectors --the troops will be on their own. If someone defends themselves the brass do not benefit and are only exposed to more risk. So, the risk that's being managed is the risk to those in charge and it is redistributed to everyone else. It works the same way for economic risk in our crony capitalist economic system....the risk still exists, but those with the power to do so use the mechanisms of government to transfer that risk and impose it on someone else.

[ELB]

In think West was hoping to influence the decision about whether or not to charge him.

^^^This.

'nother article:
Navy: No charges against officer for weapons violations in Chattanooga attack

[joe817]

In think West was hoping to influence the decision about whether or not to charge him.

^^^This.

'nother article:
Navy: No charges against officer for weapons violations in Chattanooga attack

ELB, thanks for posting that article. That issue of Stars & Stripes had several related articles, and this one caught my attention:

"Defense Secretary Ash Carter will allow more U.S. troops to be armed while stateside and called for other security measures to be put in place following the attack in Chattanooga, Tenn., that killed five servicemembers." :

http://www.stripes.com/news/us/dod-to-a ... k-1.360639" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Eric Lamberson]

VMI77 wrote: I'd characterize risk management a little differently. It's not necessarily to accept no unnecessary risk or even to minimize risk, but to transfer risk to others if it cannot be mitigated without expending additional resources. The brass will expend resources to minimize risk to themselves, but risk is merely transferred to everyone else. So, for instance, where the brass works there will be armed security and metal detectors --the troops will be on their own. If someone defends themselves the brass do not benefit and are only exposed to more risk. So, the risk that's being managed is the risk to those in charge and it is redistributed to everyone else. It works the same way for economic risk in our crony capitalist economic system....the risk still exists, but those with the power to do so use the mechanisms of government to transfer that risk and impose it on someone else.

Risk Management: I once worked overseas for a Colonel who was so worried about the star that he might have in his future that he ordered us to stop carrying and turn in our pistols because there was "no threat." Two weeks later he confined everyone to quarters after 6 p.m. because of the supposed high threat. Did not care about his subordinates; only worried about having to explain an incident.