Political Correctness at the Navy

According to the Navy Times, of all things:

Naval Academy leaders removed two midshipmen from a color guard that performed at the World Series last week because they were white men, and replaced them with a non-white man and a white woman so the academy could present a more “diverse” profile, according to several sources, a move that has reportedly angered mids and alumni.

Disgraceful. And then on top of it all, the "non-white man," a Pakistani, left part of his uniform behind and didn't participate after all. I learned later in the article that (a) all eight of them [six original and the two "replacements"] would have performed, but (b) an honor guard must have an even number of people. All eight were sent to New York for the appearance.

Since the "non-white man" could not participate, one of the original six white guys was kept out. The "white woman" participated with five white guys.

The Navy hasn't exactly handled this well in the days since, either. What they did is not in keeping with naval tradition, and the after-the-fact forbidding of discussion about it is hardly in keeping with American customs.

We have the finest navy in the world and we have the finest naval personnel. This is not going to help their image. Political correctness is no substitute for doing it right.