Get Back in Line, Soldier

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta called on US troops to tighten up discipline and display “integrity” after a series of public relations disasters that he said could play into the hands of America’s enemies.

Panetta, echoing a message from Army and Marine Corps leaders, on Friday said the misconduct related only to a small percentage of the force but that digital technology magnified any incident, posing a threat to the military’s image.

“These days, it takes only seconds, seconds, for a picture, a photo to suddenly become an international headline,” he told hundreds of troops at Fort Benning, Georgia.

“And those headlines can impact the mission that we’re engaged in, they can put your fellow service members at risk, they can hurt morale, they can damage our standing in the world and they can cost lives.”

  

And worst of all, they can prove to the world how we're really conducting the “War on Terror”.

So stop taking pictures of what you're doing.

And speaking of troops getting out of line....

Two F-22 pilots say they have stopped flying the US Air Force’s most advanced fighter jet because of safety fears over the aircraft’s oxygen system, according to a CBS television “60 Minutes” report.

The F-22 Raptor was grounded last year after a spate of incidents with pilots suffering dizzy spells and blackouts in the air. The plane was cleared for flying in September 2011 but engineers are still trying to solve what appears to be a problem with the jet’s oxygen supply.

The pilots, Major Jeremy Gordon and Captain Josh Wilson, told the “60 Minutes” program they stopped flying in January, citing safety concerns over a lack of oxygen.

  Raw Story

So I'm sure these guys are in the brig for failing to follow orders. No?

The two pilots, who both served in the Iraq war, have sought legal protection as “whistleblowers” from a Republican lawmaker from Illinois, Adam Kinzinger.

They went to a Republican. A few years ago, that would have been astonishing, but considering the Obama administration's war on whistleblowers, it's completely understandable.