1ºYou have a bunch of Conservative-- rather clickage Branch of individuals-- Not only in the Navy, But throughout the Military That are Homophobic, Racist And Miystogimist ....some are even Affiliated with hate groups and Russian sympathizers Which can have a direct effect on military readiness,Training And Morale. Having serve 20 years in the military, You can't believe how many Individuals like this Serve-- even in the higher ranks Of the Chain of Command. I remember one time my supervisor asked me what political party that I was affiliated with. When I told him that was a private matter, He told me in no uncertain terms that "The good ole boy system is not dead."
2ºNancy Ang okay so before you say there is abuse. Speak to people that actually live those life. It's not the easiest life. Because you have your in then your out for so many days or months. If they are married or a girlfriend or boyfriend or husband they come back to I want to break up or divorce you. Like everyone else relationship issues they are trying to work on but can only work on it so many days because then the other half has to leave again. Ship and submarine life is hard. These men and women work all hours everyday and the only days they really get off is if they don't have duty on the weekend and that even a give and take situations. It's hard to have a life when your on a ship or submarine.
3ºNicolita Machiavelli You presume much with your wholesale indictment of Navy personnel. In a city of 5,000+ (the typically sized crew of a carrier) these things can and will happen. One should also not ignore the high incidence of alcohol and drug abuse either when it comes to 12+months of essentially shore duty and lots of liberty while in port. I think it is appropriate that command investigate and have a better understanding of not only what has happened but why it happened. Indicting senior enlisted and officers at this point is somewhat unbecoming as being in the military (regardless of branch) isn't quite like working at Walmart.
4ºThis ship has been in port for ages, so it’s not being out at sea that’s bothering them. It’s their chain of command. Command climate survey participation is routinely below 15%, and most of the folks who take it only select perfunctory answers and don’t give feedback. For most commands, the reason this happens is because of the belief (whether baseless or well-founded) that leadership will do nothing to improve things. The DEOCS just makes sailors feel as though they’re wasting their time, and the command gets to check off a box saying they did what they were supposed to do. The last one I heard of, feedback about leadership was addressed by assigning mandatory training… for the crew. As if to say, “Here’s how you can better cope with our bullsh*t.”
5ºYounger people in the service today, some have issues with Authority no matter how much training they received. I spent 28 years in the Army! I was a Platoon SGT. I treated everyone the same no matter what!! Only saw Army green, however the younger soldiers had too be counseled differently!! I always had a female SGT, and a Minority SGT with me in these seasons!! Many times soldier’s would break down and cry if it was negative!! As a father it hurt me too give negative feedback, but I had too by Command!! We lose about 1 veteran too suicide every 6 seconds!! On active duty soldiers suicide is epidemic!! I lost 6 of my buddies too suicide its horrible too contemplate
6ºRita Dichtel Any loss of life sucks especially loved ones and my fellow Navy brothers and sailors. With all due respect to the survivors; but NO ONE can make you kill yourself. Let's stop blaming the wrong people for the cowardly acts of a few. People who kill themselves aren't mentally strong enough to handle life challenges and adversities. They're weak and are quitters; and quitters are cowards. People who commit suicide take the easy way out of life and their problems. How selfish one must be to take their own life. Leaving the survivors to carry the shame and pain and suffering for the rest of their lives. It's unfortunate those sailors killed themselves; but if you don't love and respect yourself then why should I care if you kill yourself? Military life is tough; I know first-hand having served in both the US Navy and the US Air Force. But no one can make you kill yourself. Only a coward kills himself.
7ºDeanna Bell easy. You got people that should’ve never made it to boot camp get to a ship, discovered it’s hard and can’t cope. And plus a lot of these deaths weren’t on the ship it was in town off duty. I did four years on a guided missile cruiser, we spent probably 9 months a year at sea. We handled it, no one killed themselves because we knew it was a hard job but we signed up for it. 4 hours sleep a day, constantly working or on watch, we got it done. Today’s generation just doesn’t seem able to handle it
8ºThe USN does have psychiatric staff in its officer ranks. A relative sees a former captain that was a psychiatric physician's assistant. Kirk was his first name. They'd call him Captain Kirk and say they had an "enterprise" for him. Meaning a sailor needed psychiatric care. If a sailor is having outright mental health issues, they can't turn the ship around and pull into port. Fleets are made up of a multitude of ships around the world. They can have the sailor under guard, but that's up to the commanding officer. Some ships are out to sea for about 6 months. Some suicidal sailors may not want to report depression or anxiety. Afraid they could be discharged. I do believe the USN can take steps to discuss mental health during training in a way that removes the stigma. During training and periodically, have a 1:1 session between psychiatry and all USN personnel. My father was in the USN during Viet Nam as an electronics specialist. My father said they were harsh on sailors that didn't know how to swim. My father grew up in the country and learned how to swim. The officers haven't changed much. USN recruits have been parented different than generations ago. Helicopter parents and everyone should get a prize at school. Sailors of the same rank should be given talks that bullying will not be tolerated and sent to the brig for a determined time. Officers and COs do set the climate and culture. There is a reason why COs and officers need to be stern because they need their crew to follow rules, procedures, and every perform and communicate according to their duty. The sailors on land and sea have changed the most. Maybe recruiters should have a psychological and personality screening process for potential recruits. It's a whole new world from the recruitment office to the eight-week intense training camp.