Trust is part of the training at military schools among others. The word “Trust” is etched on the edge of a bench at the US Military Academy at West Point. Photo courtesy Unsplash/Dave Lowe.
A newly published video of new doctors taking a revised Hippocratic Oaths at Columbia University Medical School showed the extent of the cancer of wokeness. Like the Red Guards in China, those in white coats proclaimed in unison: “We also recognize the acts and systems of oppression effected in the name of medicine. We take this Oath of service to begin building a future grounded in truth, restoration, and equity to fulfill medicine’s capacity to liberate,” by providing “equitable” care, and “address systemic issues in the institutions… I promise to self-reflect diligently, to confront unconscious prejudices, and to develop the skills, knowledge, and character necessary to engender an inclusive, equitable field of medicine,” This comes while the American Bar Association is mandating critical race theory related classes for law schools to maintain accreditation.
Professions, including science, journalism and even the military, have been losing the trust of American society by giving up traditional ethical standards on the altar of wokism as seen by reputable polls. It’s time to regain the professional ethic before trust is lost forever.
First, it’s important to distinguish what makes a profession. By Black’s Law Dictionary, a professional is defined as “A person who is a member of a professional body due to the education qualification and follows the prescribed moral and professional code of conduct.” The US Code defines a professional as one whose work is predominantly intellectual… and work involving the consistent exercise of discretion and judgment in its performance.”
Famed Harvard Professional Samuel Huntington identified three core aspects of a profession: expertise, responsibility, and corporateness. With regard to Journalism, theorists hold differing views. Many argue Journalism is not a profession by the traditional understanding. A number do make arguments for journalism being a profession. Professor Michael Davis argues it is a profession due to the unique journalistic ethics of objectivity, truth, and rigor, with the responsibility to keep society informed.
I have been a member of two professions, first as an Army officer and then as an attorney. I remember as a cadet learning about the importance of the “profession” of being a military officer. By the Huntington model, I was to be dedicated to the unique expertise of the management of violence on behalf of the nation. I had a unique duty to society. Then I became a lawyer, which included responsibilities to clients and society within the ethics I swore to uphold when becoming a member of the bar. The ethical requirements within both professions went well beyond legal mandates and the ethics were to remain unchanging regardless of political winds.
In terms of the profession of law, the ethic demands equal treatment of individuals under the law regardless of benign characteristics like race. The new progressive view of “equity” goes counter to equality, as it means treating people by their group and not as legally equal individuals. As a military officer, the ethic demands national security remain paramount to all political considerations. In determining which people go to which jobs, the primary consideration must be the most qualified person for the job. Further, the focus of training must be warfighting. The current progressive zeitgeist pushes diversion from warfighting training to equity programs and subverts merit-based placement. Unlike the revised version, the traditional Hippocratic oath reads “I will follow that system of regimen which, according to my ability and judgment, I consider for the benefit of my patients, and abstain from whatever is deleterious and mischievous.” It’s about the best treatment for individual patients and not woke politics.
The weakening professional ethic among senior military leaders, particularly over the past few years, has reached a crisis point. Recruiting has reached the lowest levels in the history of the half century all-volunteer force. A number of studies have shown that a rising percent of conservatives and military families perceive the military as having bent to woke ideology over warfighting. The majority of new recruits have always come from a military family background. What’s happening is that veteran family members are telling potential recruits not to join due to wokeness.
General officer friends have told me they personally agree that the perception of wokeness is a problem, but also admit nobody at senior levels can speak about this truth. Now, the Secretary of the Army is blaming critics of the wokeness problem for causing the recruitment problem. If the senior flag officers were following the professional ethic, they would face the career risk and speak out about the critical need to fix the perception of wokeness. Recruitment is imperative to national defense. Instead, trust continues to diminish bringing finger pointing of senior leadership against the American people.
Trust must be rebuilt in many of our professions and it can only be rebuilt by regaining true professionalism. This demands the professional ability to remain aloof from wokism and speak the truth—at personal cost if necessary. We are the home of the brave, and that should include the moral courage demanded of professionals.
Bill Connor is an Orangeburg, S.C. attorney, Army Infantry Colonel and author of the book “Articles from War.” The Standard newspaper is available in print and online. You may find videos available on at TheStandardSC on Rumble. The bulk of TheStandardSC video media channel has been censored by dominant social media groups like YouTube. YouTube, owed by Alphabet (Google), removed and destroyed almost all of our video work without permission or remuneration. That has stopped all potential donations from our many supporters on that venue. If you want to continue to see independent thought and reports please “like”, comment, share with a friend, and donate to support The Standard on this page to assure the continued availability of news that is ignored too often by the dominant media.
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