A long time ago the Australian Defence Forces Academy ( ADFA ) was known by another name - Duntroon Military College. It was infamous for a culture of hazing and bastardisation inflicted on incoming cadets as part of the " initiation " process of turning civilians into military " officers ".
Officially, it was banned, but many senior officers believed that to achieve the discipline and perspective needed to lead men into battle, it was necessary to drive compassion, decency and human feelings from the minds of the officers who would make life or death decisions on the battlefield.
Victims suffered in silence. Some broke under the constant strain and this vindicated the thinking of senior staff. To their minds, this was a " weeding out " of those who lacked the qualities to hold the power of command. At that time our military was a "men only " occupation, reserved for those who could exhibit the " right attitude " to belong.
Today's ADFA has opened it's doors to women but that " initiation process " is still hiding in the shadows. It seems that a group of cadets went on a weekend pub crawl in which the junior members were subjected to initiation rituals which included getting some of them seriously drunk. It involved humiliation and bastardisation - which they were obliged to submit to or face being ostracised.
It is obvious that all is not well in ADFA. We have just finished an initial investigation of a sex scandal, to find that there are more reports of sexual photographs circulating in the academy. What is concerning, is that participation extends to the higher levels of rank.
Half a century ago, this culture of " initiation " extended to many trades of industry. It was common for apprentices entering a trade to suffer humiliation at the hands of senior tradesmen and this was regarded as the " right of passage ". It now exists in only the rarest of cases. Perhaps the fact that women have entered trades that were formerly " men only " has diluted the practice.
It seems that the initiation culture that afflicts ADFA will live on as long as it remains not only tolerated - but enthusiastically supported by veterans in senior levels of command. The military structure is making " the right noises " about making change, but this has been happening for many years - and the scandals just keep happening.
We have entered a new era in the way wars are fought. Brain power has become more important that sheer brawn and our future warriors will come from both genders. The time is fast coming that those who are unable to bring their thinking into the twenty-first century must bow gracefully from the scene - because the are no longer compatible with the needs of the armed forces.
Seniority of rank no longer insulates them from that requirement !
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