SOLURI’S RETIREMENT
Chief Master Sgt. Eric Soluri was to retire about April 1 in the grade of senior master sergeant, according to the Air Force, due to the fact he will not have served a full three years as a chief master sergeant when he retires [“Chief’s conviction ends career — 9 years later,” Feb. 16 issue]. From what I have read, it is unclear if he is being forced to retire or if he has requested retirement voluntarily. What follows concerns the former.
Soluri has been in the news as the result of an investigation into the circumstances surrounding his 2006 civilian conviction on a misdemeanor charge of “threatening” in 2004 to commit a crime, assault his girlfriend, and into why that conviction did not end his career at that time. Over the next 11 years he was promoted three times.
While his behavior that caused his conviction was improper, Soluri did nothing to hide it. He properly disclosed it to the Air Force and was allowed to continue serving and to be promoted to the top 1 percent of the enlisted force, which is obviously the result of him performing his duties extremely well and showing great leadership.
The recent investigation into the above found: “His commanders made permissible discretionary decisions during that period not to document his civilian conviction or jail time in any of his formal military reports … The investigation revealed that Soluri took no inappropriate actions to hide this information from his official military documents or records.”
If Soluri decided to retire of his own free will as an E-8, so be it. If, however, the Air Force is forcing him to do so he should be retired as an E-9. He was tried, convicted and punished for his alleged crime by local authorities. He then continued to serve in a stellar manner and was promoted to E-9 and thus should be allowed to retire as such. Two wrongs do not make a right.
Navy Cmdr. Wayne Johnson, Judge Advocate General’s Corps (ret.)
Alexandria, Va.
Editor’s note: Soluri submitted a retirement request through Air Force channels in January, Air Force spokesman Col. Sean McKenna said in response to this letter. That request was granted, and Soluri retires from active duty effective April 1. No one from the Air Force asked Soluri to retire, and he was not required to retire; it was solely his decision, McKenna said.
SACRIFICIAL LAMB
Regarding the March 23 article, “Staff Sgt. sentenced in Humvee death at Pope AAF”:
I read about the tragic loss of Staff Sgt. [Timothy] Wright during what appears to be a training exercise gone bad. I read that the squadron commander was relieved of command and that the group commander referred charges after considering recommendations from [then-Staff Sgt. Gabriel] Rosa’s chain of command, his legal adviser as well as the family of the deceased. Rosa’s entire chain of command should have been the ones brought up on charges, and he should have fired his appointed staff judge advocate and paid for a civilian attorney familiar with the military court system.
I am sure that the article is missing some pertinent information because I find it incredulous that Rosa was the only one to be seriously punished. The commander will retire as an 0-6, and there is no mention of any master sergeants, senior master sergeants or a chief master sergeant anywhere in the article. I am sure there was a conga line at separations from those in that chain of command hoping to dodge the bullet. The article would have one believe that a staff sergeant (in this case Rosa) was running the whole show. Seriously? There was no noncommissioned officer in charge or operations superintendent in his unit?
It sounds like Rosa, who is genuinely wracked with guilt, didn’t put up much of a fight and agreed to be the sacrificial lamb. A courts-martial conviction will follow him for the rest of his life, and you can bet your lunch money that he will be separated as soon as his enlistment allows it.
Air Force Ground Safety Offices should be using this incident as training material so it may be prevented in the future.
Good luck to Senior Airman Rosa. He got a raw deal.
Chief Master Sgt. Dean Roberts (ret.)
Westbury, N.Y.
CHANGE THE CULTURE
Three recent articles in Air Force Times caught my attention. I see each as relevant to efforts to stop sexual assault and sexual harassment in the military.
First, “Welsh sitting out this Mustache March,” March 16 issue, reminded us of the controversy that arose last year surrounding Mustache March. Some airmen applauded the morale-boosting tradition; others complained it was sexist, disrespectful and exclusionary; and still others demeaned those who spoke out against it. Most importantly, many who were offended remained silent for fear of counterattack. Not coincidentally, citing amusement as a mitigating factor for poor behavior despite claims of victimization, subsequent retaliation and lack of reporting are characteristic in cases of sexual assault and sexual harassment. Sexual assault prevention training teaches that the damage perceived by the victim outweighs the intent of the perpetrator.
For a year prior to and throughout the Mustache March 2014 controversy, military sexual assault was a hot topic that victim advocates claim would be best addressed by changing the military justice system. Advocates for prevention of military sexual assault are proponents of changing some sexism-based elements of military culture to get to the root of the problem. The Mustache March tradition is a part of the Air Force culture that perpetuates an environment that is exclusionary and disrespectful of women.
On March 4, the secretary of the Air Force announced nine initiatives geared to address “barriers that prevent any of our airmen from reaching their highest levels of performance.” [“Air Force secretary announces bold moves to boost women, minorities,” posted March 4 on airforcetimes.com] Although Secretary James’ plans pertain specifically to recruiting and career development of women and minorities, the underlying principle is that officers and enlisted personnel who nurture and lead in a diverse and inclusive Air Force culture are critical to recruiting, advancement and retention. Proper nurturing and leadership are similarly essential to eradicating military sexual assault.
Despite a year to reconsider the impact of last year’s challenge and make an attempt to change this element of Air Force culture, [Chief of Staff] Gen. [Mark] Welsh has chosen the role of passive bystander instead of enforcer of the Defense Department sexual assault and sexual harassment zero tolerance policy. Gen. Welsh ignores the complaints of those who attempted to voice their negative perceptions; tolerates those who retaliated against them; and condones behavior that contributes to an intimidating environment. Furthermore his lack of leadership in this matter disheartens anyone with hope that DoD will be able to reverse the military sexual assault problem.
Finally, “Climate survey coming,” March 16 issue, announces that a forcewide climate survey will be administered from March 3 to April 27. Perhaps the timing of this survey will be perfect to capture the sentiments of those who feel offended by the Mustache March tradition and those who feel demoralized by Gen. Welsh’s failure to lead the fight to eliminate military sexual assault and sexual harassment. Hopefully men and women throughout the Air Force will seize this opportunity to describe how this, and any other barrier to full inclusion, prevents them from achieving their highest level of performance. The question that remains is: How many airmen will have to speak up before the chief of staff listens?
Navy Cmdr. Sara Zak (ret.)
Arlington, Va.
DON’T CHANGE THE CULTURE
I served in the Air Force from November 1952 through June 1979. I served with pride, dedication and competence as my service record will attest. As both a noncommissioned and commissioned officer, my responsibilities included motivating capable Air Force people with whom I came into contact to consider committing to an Air Force career. I did so, without reservation.
But that was then, and this is now. I could not today recommend in good conscience an Air Force career, should anyone happen to ask me. The March 16 Air Force Times headline displays a sterling example of one reason why I would not recommend it.
The Air Force secretary’s “Diversity move” is an outstanding example of “political correctness” gone crazy. Affirmative action and feminism have profoundly, fundamentally and significantly weakened the Air Force. With the adverse effects of politics — stemming from both the Congress and the commander in chief, and complicated by a woman as secretary — the future of the Air Force appears to me to be quite grim.
Capt. Roger Hatfield (ret.)
Del Rio, Texas
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