The military must not settle for being a microcosm
Asha Padmanabhan
February 10
Following the Capitol insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, and after high-profile cases of military member involvement in far-right and white supremacist demonstrations and violence over the past year, a now common refrain was offered in response: the military is just a microcosm of society.
Over my 12 years as an Air Force officer, I’ve heard civilian and military leaders alike refer to the men and women who serve in a different way: the best and brightest the nation has to offer. In daily life, both in and out of uniform, we are held to higher standards of behavior than society as a whole. That is why press reports regularly call attention to the participation of military members and veterans in anti-government and white supremacist activity, but do not similarly focus attention on the professions of others. The American people expect those who serve, who lead their sons and daughters, who are entrusted to protect and defend the United States, to be better, to be more capable, to be deserving of their trust.
As of 2019, the Pew Research Center found that 83 percent of Americans had confidence in the military. By contrast, Americans have far less confidence that corporate leaders (56 percent) and elected officials (63 percent) will act in the best interest of the public. Although a high level of confidence in the military has persisted for nearly the past 30 years, this support was not always the norm. Gallup polls show that during most years between 1975 and 1988, less than 60 percent of Americans expressed confidence in the military.
https://www.militarytimes.com/opinion/commentary/2021/02/10/the-military-must-not-settle-for-being-a-microcosm/
