Recent breakdowns in US command channels and org decline was traced to a group on a relay point who were intensely critical of management and “knew best.”

They did not “know best” since their actions were followed by decline.

The undermining of authority made it very difficult for command to handle the resulting situation.

It is a betrayal of juniors for a person on a point of command channel to undermine authority. For it sets the junior up for a rough time.

“Flag doesn’t really know . . .,” “They are not actually informed . . .” is usually followed by “so we will. . .” and when the crash comes the junior catches it. either by being the effect of a messed-up area or the resulting discipline.

If Flag or management doesn’t know, it’s because the person saying “Flag doesn’t know . . .” is not informing his seniors and is not reporting.

In the final analysis, it is top management that has to pick up the pieces.

In the final analysis, a person is comm-eved, not on some person’s “know best” ideas, but on FOs and policy letters, just what they say, line by line.

In an area in which someone’s withholds have caused natter about management, there is a decay of confidence in the management. This makes a decline in itself. Uniforms, living conditions, food, all can decline in the area.

Then when top management tries to repair the situation, it is doing so in an area that doesn’t comply. So the situation is extended in time and is much harder to remedy.

The usual cycle is

“We know best. ‘They’ don’t know.”

“So we will (goofball orders).. ..”

“It’s going crazy so we won’t tell ‘them.’”

“Now you see what ‘they’ve’ done.”

“I can’t for the life of me understand why all you fellows are now catching it from ‘them.’”

You’ll find all this on the Chart of Human Evaluation in Science of Survival. Someone who perverts comm lines causes trouble.So a POLICY is laid down:

A JUNIOR WHO IS GIVEN ILLEGAL OR CONTRARY ORDERS AND WHO FOLLOWS THEM INSTEAD OF FOs AND POLICY LETTERS AND EDs AND WHO DOES NOT REFUSE THE ILLEGAL ORDERS AND WHO DOES NOT REPORT THE MATTER IS SUBJECT TO COMM EV FOR ACCENTING ILLEGAL ORDERS.

LEGAL ORDERS ARE DEFINED AS ORDERS KNOWN TO AND AUTHORIZED BY FLAG IN WRITING OR AS FOUND IN POLICY, FOs, BASE ORDERS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTIVES AND FLAG DIVISIONAL DIRECTIVES.

IF IT IS NOT WRITTEN AND SEEN IN WRITING, IT IS NOT TRUE. VERBAL RELAYS OF FLAG COMMANDS ARE NOT ACCEPTABLE.

RELAYING OR CARRYING OUT A LEGAL ORDER IN SUCH A WAY AS TO MAKE IT UNWORKABLE IS A COMM-EV OFFENSE.

ANYONE BREAKING DOWN CONFIDENCE OR TRUST IN TOP MANAGEMENT MUST BE REPORTED TO TOP MANAGEMENT WITH ALL FACTS BEFORE THE SITUATION DECAYS BEYOND CONTROL.

If you want to know the plain truth of it, top management usually works harder and tries harder than anyone else to make things go right.