LT Alkonis; Lost in Japan

a Shipmate, left behind

One of my favorite things about the Navy was being part of something bigger than myself. There is none of that here. I feel worthless.

- Lieutenant Ridge Alkonis, USN

If there is a characteristic of the last few years; abandonment.

Abandonment, either of duties, friends, families, or principals was once seen as a disgrace and blight on one’s honor. Now? I don’t think so.

We abandoned thousands, really tens of thousands, of American citizens, family members, and allies in Afghanistan.

Recently we abandoned almost as many in Sudan.

After a news cycle or two, the press loses interest. Our politicians - or at least most of them - move on.

The fault is not so much our government or civil society, but really it is all of our’s fault.

We allow this abandonment - this disregard for ethics, this amoral failure of responsibility to protect and honor our word - to stand for unwritten agreements. Abandonment breaks the bonds stewardship that binds a society together.

We fail the fundamentals - and then wonder why we cannot execute anything more effectively. We shrug at dishonor, and then wonder where the quality of civil society went.

No one in power is challenged. No one is held accountable … unless it fits a certain agenda.

Our Navy can be no different. Every oath has a price, to some. It isn’t all that precious. It is a priority … but a fungible one; a principal only to suckers.

We covered the story of LT Alkonis back in December. Read the post then to catch up. I’m a little sheepish here it is the last week in May am only now returning to the topic.

The quote at the top was from a letter he sent a month ago from a Japanese prison to his wife Brittany who decided to share it.

I’ll repost it here for you to read.

To his great credit, former Naval Officer, USNA Class of 2000, and now Congressman Nick LaLota (R-NY) last week wrote a letter of support for LT Alkonis to President Biden;

h/t AE.