Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks' daily take on national security.

Two e-mails from Marines: Who is right?

Last month (mid-August) the Marine Corps announced that it would start firing captains and majors who have repeatedly been passed over for promotion. Or, as the announcement of the policy change put it, "EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY, MARINE CORPS POLICY IS TO SELECT FOR CONTINUATION ONLY THOSE TWICE PASSED MAJORS AND TWICE PASSED CAPTAINS WHOSE CONTINUED SERVICE ...

By , a former contributing editor to Foreign Policy.
Flickr
Flickr
Flickr

Last month (mid-August) the Marine Corps announced that it would start firing captains and majors who have repeatedly been passed over for promotion. Or, as the announcement of the policy change put it, "EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY, MARINE CORPS POLICY IS TO SELECT FOR CONTINUATION ONLY THOSE TWICE PASSED MAJORS AND TWICE PASSED CAPTAINS WHOSE CONTINUED SERVICE IS IN THE BEST INTERESTS OF THE MARINE CORPS BASED ON THE NEEDS OF THE MARINE CORPS IN ACCORDANCE WITH CRITERIA ESTABLISHED BY THE SECRETARY Of THE NAVY."

Last month (mid-August) the Marine Corps announced that it would start firing captains and majors who have repeatedly been passed over for promotion. Or, as the announcement of the policy change put it, "EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY, MARINE CORPS POLICY IS TO SELECT FOR CONTINUATION ONLY THOSE TWICE PASSED MAJORS AND TWICE PASSED CAPTAINS WHOSE CONTINUED SERVICE IS IN THE BEST INTERESTS OF THE MARINE CORPS BASED ON THE NEEDS OF THE MARINE CORPS IN ACCORDANCE WITH CRITERIA ESTABLISHED BY THE SECRETARY Of THE NAVY."

Two e-mails about this appeared in my inbox.

The first was from a more senior Marine officer: "We are institutionally breaking faith all over the place. Amos is killing the soul of the Corps. His legacy is going to be one of division and resentment."

The other, immediately above it, was from a field-grade officer: "About time."

Which one is right?

Thomas E. Ricks is a former contributing editor to Foreign Policy. Twitter: @tomricks1

More from Foreign Policy

Children are hooked up to IV drips on the stairs at a children's hospital in Beijing.
Children are hooked up to IV drips on the stairs at a children's hospital in Beijing.

Chinese Hospitals Are Housing Another Deadly Outbreak

Authorities are covering up the spread of antibiotic-resistant pneumonia.

Henry Kissinger during an interview in Washington in August 1980.
Henry Kissinger during an interview in Washington in August 1980.

Henry Kissinger, Colossus on the World Stage

The late statesman was a master of realpolitik—whom some regarded as a war criminal.

A Ukrainian soldier in helmet and fatigues holds a cell phone and looks up at the night sky as an explosion lights up the horizon behind him.
A Ukrainian soldier in helmet and fatigues holds a cell phone and looks up at the night sky as an explosion lights up the horizon behind him.

The West’s False Choice in Ukraine

The crossroads is not between war and compromise, but between victory and defeat.

Illustrated portraits of Reps. MIke Gallagher, right, and Raja Krishnamoorthi
Illustrated portraits of Reps. MIke Gallagher, right, and Raja Krishnamoorthi

The Masterminds

Washington wants to get tough on China, and the leaders of the House China Committee are in the driver’s seat.