crossposted at Motley Moose

As a former Naval Officer, and fellow alumni of the Naval Academy, it's almost hard to believe that I wrote those words above.

Here is the Honor Concept from the USNA website:
http://www.usna.edu/OfficerDevelopment/h onor/honorconcept.html

"Midshipmen are persons of integrity: They stand for that which is right.

They tell the truth and ensure that the full truth is known. They do not lie.

They embrace fairness in all actions. They ensure that work submitted as their own is their own, and that assistance received from any source is authorized and properly documented. They do not cheat.

They respect the property of others and ensure that others are able to benefit from the use of their own property. They do not steal."

John McCain would get be expelled from the Naval Academy for his recent behavior.  

But, Hey!

He learned this shit fifty years ago, right?  

Maybe he just forgot.

Crossposted at [REDACTED]

894 out of 899

Much has been talked about, with respect to John McCain's time at the Naval Academy.  As someone who also went there, I want to express my deep admiration for John McCain's accomplishment of graduating 6th from the bottom.

In 1988, I graduated from the United States Naval Academy, exactly 30 years after John McCain.  In my graduating class of around 1100, I graduated dead in the middle, in the low 500s.  By all measures, I was an average Midshipman.

How was my class rank calculated, and why did class rank matter?

Class rank is a combination of several factors:

1. Academic Performance
2. Professional Performance
3. Leadership Performance

There may be several more factors, and they may have changed since I graduated 20 years ago, but those should still be the major areas that are used to calculate class rank.

Why does class rank matter?  

Because it determines what you get to pick for a job when you graduate.

What's the most sought after job?

Naval Aviator.

Crossposted at [REDACTED]

Well...it was bound to happen.  

The Palin pick has changed everything...with Dittoheads.

I had an interesting encounter yesterday with an colleague who is, in fact, a raging Dittohead.  I knew that he listened to right-weird radio, (here in Portland, we get our "Lars Larson" and "Bill-O" on 750am), but I didn't think he was delusional.  

For the most part, he appears normal...he comes to work clean every morning, with his hair combed and his underwear on the inside.  This would tend to eliminate him as a "Standard Issue" Dittohead, so I never had any real concerns for his sanity.

The Palin pick has changed everything...with how I view HIM.