Commander Scott Waddle

 

 

The defense posture of the United States is and has been for fifty years based upon the premise of massive retaliation. For fifty years we have been telling the bad guys if you nuke us we are going to double nuke you, and we have large numbers of nuclear warheads in silos spread over the U.S. and in nuclear submarines constantly deployed off your coastlines to accomplish this massive retaliation. I will frankly admit that this defense posture is much more workable against Russia and China than it is against Usama bin Laden, who doesn't have a country anyway and who is terminally ill and might not personally mind going out in a blaze of glory. But the massive retaliation scheme is all we have going for us at the moment. It is the hand we are holding.

Scott Waddle was a nuclear submarine commander who through sheer dereliction of duty (you cannot clear a field of operation in an eight second periscope observation) managed to bring his nuclear submarine up under a Japanese tourist boat and kill thirteen people off the coast of Hawaii. I think that Scott Waddle should have been court-martialed on a charge of negligent homicide or dereliction of duty, dishonourably discharged and imprisoned. Instead of that the U.S. Navy is giving Commander Waddle an honourable discharge on Oct. 1, full pension rights, and a letter of reprimand in his personnel folder.

Last night on NBC Commander Waddle mumbled and cried his way through a very emotional interview that will be repeated world wide. I have no argument with Commander Waddle being sorry and even emotionally stricken by what his negligence has caused, but in times past military men at least were supposed to be made of sterner stuff and if unable to control their emotions should most likely decline the interview. George Patton and Bull Halsey probably turned over in their graves last night.

If our defense posture relies on a nuclear deterrent submarine off the China Coast waiting to push the button when the President commands it, I sure hope that Commander Waddle or others like him are not in command of that sub when the order comes.