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As an enlisted person in my youth, who fought for his country, has permanent injuries to show for it, and took over directing an action from dead officers, all I can say is cram it where the sun don't shine.

I understand where you are coming from. You and your friend are more than welcome enough to beat your chests around until they bleed, or ride the “honor and pride” bandwagon until the wheels fall off. You apparently have a chip on your shoulder with regards to your superiors, both past and present, this much is certain.

Parking your ego aside, you may feel obliged to re-read what I stated so that you understand my legal argument. Officers and enlisted abide by different oaths. Officers have the ability to question orders, especially by those who have not proven themselves legally authorized to command. This is not the case for enlisted personnel, and some do not know they are unique.

Surely one in the service such as yourself should understand these facts, would you say?

You and your friend are more than welcome enough to beat your chests around until they bleed, or ride the “honor and pride” bandwagon until the wheels fall off.

Listen pal, you're going to find yourself treading on awfully thin ice around here with these kinds of comments. On Free Republic, we stand up for our men and women serving honorably in uniform regardless of what we think of the current Commander in Chief. Since you clearly need some schooling on the Lakin case, I'd suggest going back a couple of years, long before you arrived, to the earliest threads in April 2010. You'll see that T_O_C, myself and every other former and current active duty FReeper who opined on this case predicted with great accuracy exactly what the outcome would be --a task as difficult as predicting the sun would rise in the east. The only people predicting success in the Lakin case were those who had never served. They were wrong. And if you ask Mr. Lakin today, he'd likely tell you that listening to these fools was the greatest mistake he ever made.

While you are perusing these old threads, learning something useful, please take the time to reflect on some of (former USN enlisted) Jim Robinson's comments after some of your fellow birthers decided to use Lakin's justly-earned dismissal as a forum to bash the military. You might learn something about Free Republic that would be of great benefit to your future posting privileges.

No chip on my shoulder at all. I served all my officers very honorably, even visited the widow of one who died in the aforementioned combat to pass on a final thought from her husband. As for current superiors, I haven't had one in quite some time as I run my own practice.

Your tone was clearly and deliberately patronizing to enlisted personnel, who are not only brave, selfless and dedicated, but who understand quite well the obligations incumbent upon all members of the armed forces. Officers worthy of their position understand that.

As for your statement about questioning those who have not proved themselves legally authorized to command, Lakin’s particular interpretation of that was judged by his fellow military officers. They found it wanting,