Section: NAV

Mids find muse amid war

unknown@hometownannapolis.com (Unknown) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 00:00:00

About 50 midshipmen gathered in the Naval Academy Museum this week to read poems, some written by them after serving in combat and others as a tribute to warriors in uniform.

One mid who read his poem for the audience Tuesday, Midshipman 1st Class Eli Morales, served in Iraq as a Marine from February 2004 to April 2005.

He read his poem, "Wings Level, Cleared Hot," the first half of the title being a pilot's last check-list...

Expert: Endless war strengthens enemies

unknown@hometownannapolis.com (Unknown) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 00:00:00

Every time the United States gets bogged down in wars it cannot win - and need not fight - the nation emboldens its enemies, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and international affairs expert told the Naval Academy's Brigade of Midshipmen this week.

"Common sense always starts with the notion of what is achievable," former New York Times journalist Leslie H. Gelb told the midshipmen gathered for a Forestal Lecture in A...

Navy fans discouraged from candy-throwing tradition

unknown@hometownannapolis.com (Unknown) — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 00:00:00

It was all good fun until someone threw the cheeseburgers.

For years, bystanders have tossed candy to the Brigade of Midshipman as they marched to the Navy stadium before each home football game.

But at the game against Wake Forest in October, the tradition escalated into a food fight. People threw cheeseburgers, bottles of water and even cans of beer. And now security guards stalk the route to the stadium, calling for a cease fir...

Academy changed color guard to add diversity

unknown@hometownannapolis.com (Unknown) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:00

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Naval Academy leaders say they altered the composition of the color guard that performed at a World Series game last month so that the group would not be made up solely of white males. Capt. Matthew Klunder, commandant of midshipmen, says he considered replacing two white men on the color guard. But he decided to expand it to eight people to make it more representative of the Naval Academy.

However, only six midshipm...

Unique homecoming to Vietnam for Academy grad

unknown@hometownannapolis.com (Unknown) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 00:00:00

DANANG, Vietnam (AP) — On the day his side lost the Vietnam War, Hung Ba Le fled his homeland at the age of 5 in a fishing trawler crammed with 400 refugees. Thirty-four years later, he makes an unlikely homecoming — as the commander of a U.S. Navy destroyer. Commander H.B. Le, a 1992 Naval Academy graduate, was scheduled Saturday to pilot the USS Lassen into Danang, home of China Beach, where U.S. troops frequently headed for R&R...

Academy honor cases focus on redemption, not expulsion

unknown@hometownannapolis.com (Unknown) — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 00:00:00

Despite its reputation for setting high standards, the Naval Academy rarely dismisses anyone for lying, cheating or stealing, according to thousands of pages of documents obtained by concerned graduates under the federal Freedom of Information Act.

It's a disturbing trend, these graduates contend, because Naval Academy midshipmen, as junior officers, become responsible for weapons systems, national security and the welfare of the young men...

Honor code examples tough to piece together from documents

unknown@hometownannapolis.com (Unknown) — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 00:00:00

A group of Naval Academy graduates concerned about what they see as declining honor standards at their alma mater used the federal Freedom of Information Act to obtain more than 2,500 pages of case reports and related documents, which they shared with The Capital.

The attorney who handled the FOIA request, Curt C. Hartman, a 1987 Naval Academy graduate, worked for two years to obtain the documents, which cover the years 2005 to...

Honor has bumpy history at Naval Academy

unknown@hometownannapolis.com (Unknown) — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 00:00:00

"Midshipmen are persons of integrity: They stand for that which is right.

They tell the truth and ensure that the full truth is known. They do not lie.

They embrace fairness in all actions. They ensure that work submitted as their own is their own, and that assistance received from any source is authorized and properly documented. They do not cheat.

They respect the property of others and ensure that others are able to ...