COMM ID:Pilot Edward Fawkes TARGET ID:Commodore Robinson, Liberty Navy High Command SUBJECT:A few violations ENCRYPTION:Medium PRIORITY:Medium
[font=agency fb]Salutations Commodore.
I'll try to keep this as short as possible, as I'm sure you're overwhelmed with messages directed to either yourself, the Navy High Command or Liberty in general. I'm also quite sure I'm not the only one who complained about the officer at hand, judging by his disrespectful actions towards myself and most likely the entire Secondary Fleet.
What has transpired yesterday in the California system, in close proximity to the Cortez jump gate would be the following:
1. A case of egotism with a bit of narcissism on top
2. Issuing a death sentence with absolutely no authority to do so
3. Discharging weapons on a fellow Navy pilot under the following accusations: disregarding orders and being a rogue element of the Navy
The two pilots at hand would be myself, Edward Fawkes, a pilot of the Liberty Navy Secondary Fleet, and one Junior Lieutenant Roy Sanders, an officer of the Primary Fleet. Now, I'll address each issue at hand.
1. A case of egotism with a bit of narcissism on top
If you would be so kind and divert your attention here:
What we have here is a simple case of new Primary Fleet Officers thinking they are far superior over us mortals, the Secondary Fleet. As I'm sure you're aware there have been strains between the two in the past, and with situations like these that's not going to change fast. Simply put, after I have asked why must the Primary Fleet take priority in this fight I was told to, and I quote, "SHUT UP AND FOLLOW YOUR ORDERS" because the officer at hand, Roy Sanders, "IS PRIMARY FLEET". I could also argue that I have merely asked who is in charge in the Primary Fleet patrol wing, but since I have worded it badly I will not try to prove that. Now I'm sure the Junior Lieutenant is one of those that think yelling out orders make people follow them more strictly, or in other words taking the tough guy attitude, but I do not belong in the mentioned group. Respect is earned through actions, not demanded by rank. However, I do realize he is of a higher rank than I am, and I am to follow his orders, but I also realize that we're not in some pathetic movie where a drill sergeant is shouting at his recruits so they piss their pants and listen. No, this is reality and the officer at hand has no reason, nor authority to mouth me off like he did for simply asking who takes priority in a fight, and why.
Now before I proceed,[color=#FFFFFF] I do realize I have broken the Navy code by disobeying an order (on the order's specifics I will refer to later), so I hereby declare that I am willing to be court martialed for disobeying that specific order.
2. Issuing a death sentence with absolutely no authority to do so
Moving to point two. I would like for you to refer here before proceeding further:
Now please refer to gun-cam image #1814 and pay attention to the Junior Lieutenant's words, which are and I quote, "Whee, field execution time". Correct me if I'm wrong here, but under no circumstances, apart from Liberty being under martial law, does a Liberty Navy officer have the right to declare a fellow pilot rogue and authorize his execution, as he put it nicely. Of course, I'm not saying if he witnessed me murdering someone he would have no right to do so, but in this particular case, he had no authority to do what he did. Seriously, executing someone for not following orders? Now we come to the "what order was issued" part. The order was, basically, for me to shut up and stay out of the fight. I did stay out, but I refused to shut up. Liberty sounds awfully like a totalitarian regime than a republic, don' it? However, I do realize that there are some differences between the Liberty Constitution and the "ways" of the Navy. I say ways because those are not law. Correct me if I'm wrong, but nowhere in the Constitution does it say I have to shut up when told to do so. However, in the Navy this is considered breaking the code and I am to be court martialed, which is fine, but in no way does this Junior Lieutenant have the authority to execute me. [color=#FFFFFF]I say again, nowhere in the laws of the Republic, nor in the practice of the Navy did he have the authority to issue an execution order.
3. Discharging weapons on a fellow Navy pilot under the following accusations: disregarding orders and being a rogue element of the Navy
Points two and three may be considered the same, but I would like to refer to the point where the Junior Lieutenant declared me an rogue element of the Navy, because I refused to shut up. I, in no way wish harm to the Republic, the Liberty Navy and its officers and pilots. I also have no problem with authority and listening orders that are issued to me in a way appropriate for a human being. I will now provide all the logs in order in which the conversation went, in case you wish to look at them.
Now I propose a solution, because there is no need for this incident to go public. Relations between the Primary and Secondary Fleet need not getting worsened. As I have said, I agree to be court martialed for disobeying a direct order to shut up, but I demand that the officer in question, the one and only Junior Lieutenant Roy Sanders issues a public apology to myself where he will state that he had absolutely no authority to declare me rogue, issue an order for my execution and of course acting like he's the universe's gift to the Liberty Navy Primary Fleet. I do not ask for much, his ego might be hurt, I'm actually pretty sure it will be devastated, but this will not go public. You have dealt with quite a few incidents and I'm sure you know how much unwanted publicity will a standing order for execution bring because someone refused to shut up.
Transmission; Start
Identification: Commodore Christina Robinson
Location: Fort Bragg, Planet Manhattan
Encryption: Secure
Edward Fawkes;
A constitutional breach is stretching it a little bit, it's well-known that the Liberty Navy has a different code of practice by its nature of being a military organisation.
You are partially correct. While egoism and narcissism are not punishable, nor do they set a particularly good example, this attitude is one born and bred by the lack of discipline in the secondary fleet and the resulting derision that the entire namesake garners. You happen to be a part of this. I remind you that in the evidence you provide, he asked you to disengage, at which point you questioned his authority. Had you done so to me, you would've likely received the same reaction, the difference being that I would've been within my rights to shoot you down.
Given the antagonism you committed to, probably with the aim of provoking a reaction from him, I don't see much reason to take the matter further. I doubt you know Fleet Admiral Hale personally, mister Fawkes, but if he were to tell you to shut up, I'd think you would. You are right when you say that respect is earned, not given, but if you use your lack of respect for those in a position to command in order to deviate from their decisions, this leads to a complete breakdown of the command structure. This indiscipline is unacceptable, which is a contributory factor to the primary fleet not considering interaction with the secondary fleet to be a priority.
However, Roy Sanders does not have the authority to force any of his orders that he issues through military means. That power, and the responsibility along with it, lies with Fleet Admiral Hale, myself and Admiral Malrone. In technical terms, this means that the only orders you have to follow are those issued by those three individuals. This is not healthy behaviour for your time in a hierarchical organisation such as a military, as I'm sure Vice Admiral Defmir or Captain Jones would prove if you crossed them.
There are a lot of people you've never met and have no respect for. Some of those people outrank you. If you don't like the idea that these people will be giving you orders, if you feel that they have to ask nicely if they want you to do something, maybe the Liberty Navy, or any military force for that matter, is the wrong place for you to be. The military machine needs to respond quickly to changing circumstances, something it can't do if everybody questions the orders that they receive or the manner in which they are delivered.
It may interest you to know that Roy Sanders was being considered for a substantial promotion, but this was abandoned just prior to this incident due to his personal circumstances. As it stands, I would consider giving him a formal reprimand, but no more than that.
COMM ID: [color=#99FFFF]Pilot Edward Fawkes TARGET ID:Commodore Robinson, Liberty Navy High Command SUBJECT:A few violations ENCRYPTION:Medium PRIORITY:Medium
[font=agency fb]Salutations once again, Commodore.
What you have said there is true in every way, the Liberty Navy has a code, however it's just that, a code, and it is in no way above the law of the Republic. If you can prove me otherwise I'd be more than willing to listen. So what do we do then, under the Constitution I have the right to speak my mind, while under the Liberty Navy code I mustn't mouth off a superior officer that has told me to shut it only because he's of the Primary Fleet. In my mind, I'm only to get discharged from service, but not be shot at. Not like I stagged a coup, I only refused to shut up when I was told, nay, yelled to do so.
I also wish to emphasize that this was not why I sent the initial message, and if you listen to it again you'll see that I admit my mistake for doing so and am willing to be court martialed for disobeying an order to shut up. The main reason is that I was sentenced to death by a Junior Lieutenant, nothing more, nothing less.
Now, you have said, and I quote,
Quote:<span style="font-size:10pt;line-height:100%]I would've been within my rights to shoot you down.
So where do we draw the line, Commodore? If you have the right to decide if someone is to be killed or not, why do we even have courts, be they military or general public? I only ask because this has struck me with confusion beyond explanation. I may not be the brightest bulb, but history has taught us that whoever has such power under their command has ended up killing innocent. Now I'm not questioning your authority, I'm just questioning whether any single person should have such authority. Everyone, including the lowest of the low should have the right to stand trial. This does not include those that refuse to be taken into custody. Was I given such a chance? No I was not. Did I disengage? Yes I did. Did I question the Junior Lieutenant's authority? Yes I did. Was the said Junior Lieutenant the highest ranking officer in the field? No he was not. Does he have the right to issue a standing execution order? No he does not. Do I deserve to be punished? Yes I do. Do I deserve to die for not shutting up? I most certainly do not, especially without the right to defend myself. And by that I don't mean shoot back, but defend myself in court.
You claim that such attitude, fueled with egoism and narcissism, is bred by the lack of discipline by the Secondary Fleet. I ask you this, then what is the difference between the Primary and the Secondary, if we're to have such people in the Primary who have no intention of even trying to have an understanding with us of the Secondary Fleet. My answer would be, there is no difference, and you cannot expect to see changes if you're not willing to work on them first.
First impression lasts forever, that's what I was taught when I was little. It doesn't take much to impose authority and respect if you know how to act and what to say. A prime example of that would be Madam Jasmine Greenson, who resolved the situation with little to no problem. Roy Sanders however, with his attitude and wording came off as a simple man, not an officer. What I'm trying to say is, I respect people who act according to a certain rank, whether they hold it or not. I have no respect for people who use rank to demand actions simply because they know of no other way.
So, you do not believe that this needs to be taken further? Well I disagree with you there. The reasons for that would be simple. It was not your life that was threatened because a certain officer couldn't keep his cool. And please, Commodore, do you honestly feel the press wouldn't have a field day with this? "Junior Lieutenant orders a Secondary Fleet pilot to be executed because he refused to shut up". This is no threat, I assure you, I just wish to see such behavior eradicated from the ranks of the Navy, both the Primary Fleet and the Secondary.
I admit I have issues with authority. I often do what I think is best, not what I'm ordered to. However, I'm willing to attend an authority issue class, as long as it's anonymous. I'm willing to do that, and stand trial, if Roy Sanders publicly apologizes to me, and takes back his statement that I am a rogue element of the Navy. Imagine if this gets spread and I get shot at by the entire Navy.