“Sedition Six” Unforgivable Political Stunt: Undermining Mutual Respect

In an address to the cadets at the US Military Academy at West Point in 1879, General John McAllister Schofield (USA) presented an essay which highlighted mutual respect as the cornerstone of the “discipline which makes the soldiers of a free country reliable in battle.”* The validity of his comments on that occasion were recognized as being of such enduring importance, that many subsequent generations of officer candidates — at the academies and in other commissioning qualification programs – have been required to fully memorize the text.

*General John McAllister Schofield’s Essay on Discipline

(From an address given at the USMA, 1879)

The discipline which makes the soldiers of a free country reliable in battle is not to be gained by harsh or tyrannical treatment. On the contrary, such treatment is far more likely to destroy than to make an army. It is possible to impart instruction and give commands in such a manner and such a tone of voice as to inspire in the soldier no feeling but an intense desire to obey, while the opposite manner and tone of voice cannot fail to excite strong resentment and a desire to disobey. The one mode or the other in dealing with subordinates springs from a corresponding spirit in the breast of the commander. He who feels the respect which is due to others cannot fail to inspire in them respect for himself; while he who feels, and hence manifests, disrespect toward others, especially his subordinates, cannot fail to inspire hatred against himself.

The recent video issued by six Democratic members of congress asserting that members of the armed forces must be reminded not to obey unlawful orders betrays a disdain and lack of respect for all levels of command, from the commander-in-chief, down to the lowest-ranking recruit. As such, the video should be condemned and its authors severely censured, if not prosecuted for sedition.

Richard G. “Duke” Woodhull, Jr.
Colonel, USAF-Ret.
27 November 25
Brevard, NC

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