Help me out here folks, but since when is having an affair with a fellow officer on the battlefield a crime? It's not like passions don't heat up in the flame of war, especially in a country where there are several factions who want to engage in femicide.
It's not clear whether Brig. Gen. Daniel Menard, scheduled to lead the NATO charge in and around Kandahar City this fall, was doing the nasty -- either with his wife (who is another officer under his command) or another female officer. But coming just weeks after he was fined $4000 for unlawful discharge of a firearm -- it doesn't look good.
Certainly we expect a higher standard of ethics from those men and women brave enough to wear the uniform. But isn't this just a bit unrealistic? Like, when was the last time a general or admiral went to the brig for having sex? Come on, there's more to this story than what we're being told. Another billion dollar boondoggle (Read: G-8 / G-20) the Harper Government doesn't want us to know about, perhaps?
Maybe someone who wears a uniform can explain why this would be detrimental to morale -- even if it was with wifey.
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2 comments:
It is actually a pretty simple matter. He was someone in a position of authority over all of those working for him. As such there is the potential for someone in such a position of authority to take advantage of those under his command. This rule ensures that there is no relationships based on coercion.
It also prevents situations where there is the potential for favouritism and unfair treatment. How would it look if this individual were given better jobs, given a better performance evaluation, or promoted based on their performance on tour. Even if this person was deserving, the optics of it could cause rumours and poor opinions of both members.
All of these things have the potential to damage morale. I am sure there are quite a few more reasons, these are just the first two that popped into my head.
The author of this blog post is an idiot.
The National Defence Act makes any fraternization in theater a crime. A superior office should not put themselves into positions where a conflict of interest could be construed.
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