You Can't Handle the Truth!

By Rich Kozlovich

I'm going to say some seemingly contradicting things in this piece in order to lay foundation for my views about leadership.

First, I hated the military, yet I've often said, you couldn't pay me a million bucks to repeat it, but you couldn't pay me a million bucks to have missed it.  Truth is, usually only those who served understand that.  Military life alters you in subtle ways, and often times we're not aware of just how much until years later, and in spite of what I've said, those subtle alterations were beneficial, at least for me.

I've made no bones about two things in my writing.  First, the Uniform Code of Military Justice is neither uniform, nor justice.  Secondly, I despised the officers when I was in the service, and so much of what's happening now shows how they're openly demonstrating why they deserve my contempt, along with everyone else's.  This scene,You Can't Handle the Truth! - A Few Good Men , is in my opinion, a classic example of the military's system of justice and the officer corp. 

 

Remember, they gave this case to a Lieutenant Daniel Kaffee.  A lawyer with an amazing record of plea bargaining.  The goal?  Make Col. Jessup's crime just go away and place it squarely on the shoulders of obedient, honorable, loyal and duty bound enlisted men. The fact he didn't do that is immaterial to the reality of military justice.

The rules never apply to them.  I found them to be arrogant bullies pushing the lower ranks around because they could, and get away with it, like Medieval lords.  I had issues with that, and I still do, so after over 50 years, I still despise the officers.  I worked for some great Chief Petty Officers, and the Navy could be grateful for them.  They make the Navy work.  But after hearing from a neighbor's son who made a career of the Navy, I'm not sure that's the case any longer. 

I found officers to be foundationally lazy and more than willing to kiss their superior officer's butts in order to get promoted.  They're much like PhD's in academia.  Arrogant.  As one PhD said, the lowest form of life in the planet is a PhD. candidate because those working toward their PhD's will do anything to get it.  After they've gotten it, they'll say or do whatever it takes to get government grant money.  

They both represent the get ahead by going along to get along crowd. 

• Show me a PhD candidate who tells the PhD's grading him they're all wrong, and worse, demonstrates why, and I will show you a lifetime Master's degree.  
• Show me a junior officer who tell his superiors are wrong and demonstrates why, and I will show you a career junior officer.  
  

For the history buffs out there who've studied the Generals of WWII, you will see just how badly, with the exception of Patton, they went along to get along, and how it cost an unnecessary loss of allied soldiers lives.   While much of what I've said is a generalization there are a few real leaders among them who are prepared to be the rock in the current.  People like Col. John Boyd:

"One day you will come to a fork in the road. And you're going to have to make a decision about what direction you want to go."..... "If you go that way you can be somebody. You will have to make compromises and you will have to turn your back on your friends. But you will be a member of the club and you will get promoted and you will get good assignments."...... 

 

"Or you can go that way and you can do something— something for your country and for your Air Force and for yourself. If you decide to do something, you may not get promoted and you may not get the good assignments and you certainly will not be a favorite of your superiors. But you won't have to compromise yourself. You will be true to your friends and to yourself. And your work might make a difference." He paused and stared. "To be somebody or to do something. In life there is often a roll call. That's when you will have to make a decision. To be or to do? Which way will you go?" 

 

"Ask for my loyalty, I’ll give you my honesty. Ask for my honesty, you’ll have my loyalty." 

People like Boyd are not interested in money, power, prestige, privilege or position.  For the real leaders in those two groups it's all about the mission, and they're prepared to face the consequences to accomplish that mission.  What's that mission? They despise the lies and the corruption, and they just want what's right.

So, that brings me to the point.  That kind of conduct and mentality isn't exclusive to academia or the military.  Life is all about patterns, and we need to see those patterns.  We need recognize them for what they are.  All I've said thus far was to lay foundation for what follows dealing with these same kind of  "leaders" in the Congress.

First, I have little confidence the Republican party, as it's now configured, will accomplish anything after they take control in 2023, at least not without Trump as President.  However, I do think there may well be enough actual conservatives who get elected this time to throw out Kevin McCarthy as Speaker of the House, and possibly Mitch McConnell as the Senate leader. 

•  We need to talk about Kevin McCarthy April 24, 2022 The last thing the GOP needs is a representative or leader who immediately capitulates under pressure. More
•  STEVE BANNON Delivers Warning to Kevin McCarthy: “He Either Heaves on a Full MAGA Agenda or He’s Gone” (VIDEO) - April 23, 2022 by Jim Hoft
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• 'This Is a MAGA Party Now': Joe Biden Calls Out GOP After McCarthy's Leaked Comments on Trump - Landon Mion

Now it appears McCarthy went to Mar-a-Lago and kissed Trump's ring seeking forgiveness "because on reflection he realized just how wrong he was".   You mean he needed time to see what was obvious to the most casual observer?  Wow!  Well, maybe he had an epiphany?  If so, that epiphany is called "polls".

 Allison Quinn posted this piece dealing with both McCarthy and Mitch McConnell who wanted that ‘Son of a B*tch’ Trump Out of Politic quoting:

“What he did is unacceptable. Nobody can defend that and nobody should defend it,” McCarthy reportedly told Republican associates on Jan. 10.....Republican leaders wanted to see then-President Trump impeached after the deadly Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol, and spoke openly behind the scenes about their hopes for him to be ousted from politics, according to a new report.

“I’ve had it with this guy,” House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) is said to have told associates in the immediate aftermath of the insurrection.  That’s according to a new book, This Will Not Pass: Trump, Biden and the Battle for America’s Future, which The New York Times detailed in a report out Thursday.  Before they voted to acquit him of impeachment, McCarthy and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell reportedly blamed Trump explicitly for the violence at the Capitol..........Trump’s behavior on the day of the riot “atrocious and totally wrong” and accused him of “inciting people” to storm the Capitol, according to claims in the new book. Two days later, he went even further and vowed to urge Trump to resign, the book claims.

But, McCarthy had an epiphany, and after McCarthy's epiphany Trump forgave him.  He even says he likes him?  Really? Well, I've watched how Trump deals with things, and if I didn't know better I'd swear Trump was Serbian.  He's not going to let this go, no matter what he's saying publicly.  

 

Does anyone doubt McCarthy is a leaky vessel as an ally?  Does anyone doubt Trump can't see that?  If the wind changes, so will McCarthy.  Remember, this is the guy who didn't want Liz Chaney removed from her position as a Republican leader in the house, and later condemned Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and Paul Gosar,   R-Ariz., for speaking at the America First Political Action Conference, or AFPAC, calling it "appalling and wrong".  I see Jordan as Speaker of the House, after this exposure. 

 

But what about Mitch McConnell? Apparently he agreed with McCarthy echoing McCarthy and the leftist mob's outrage over AFPAC, which means they must be doing something right, like being being for all the conservative values, which apparently Mitch is likens to being a "white supremacist" and an "anti-Semite".  When questioned about his turnabout and supporting Trump during the impeachment he stated:

 

My point is what happened in the past is not something relevant now, we’re moving forward. We’ve got a new administration.”

So, what can be gleaned from that?  

It's kind of like what Muslims call the law of abrogation, where what he says today abrogates anything he said in the past.  Polls are the wind that makes the ship change direction, and that's of concern, because it would appear nothing he says is based on any real moral foundation that can be trusted to be the same yesterday, today or tomorrow.   Boy, doesn't that just give you a real sense of confidence? Or perhaps it gives the impression Ole Mitch has been around entirely too long, and it's time for ole Mitch to be put to pasture as Senate Leader.   As Oliver Cromwell told a corrupt Parliament he dissolved in 1653:  

"You have sat too long for any good you have been doing lately ... In the name of God, go!"

Who will take his place?  There's talk of Scott, which is Trump's choice, and Thune.

Personally I like Kennedy, Cruz, Hawley or Cotton, but they don't seem to making any sounds about running, however, I do think their influence will be huge this time.  For some reason McConnell has deep support in the Senate, which is a clear demonstration of how flawed is the Republican party, but that may change after November depending on who enters the Senate, and I do believe outside the beltway, McConnell absolutely lacks credibility with almost all conservatives and a lot of Republicans.

If that's the truth, and it is, can you handle it?