Tarnished sword in cadet wing

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Paul Goossen
  • U.S. Air Force Academy Public Affairs
U.S AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. (AFPN) --  In the wake of the latest incident of cadet infractions involving alcohol, Brig. Gen. John Weida, the academy commandant of cadets, addressed the recurring alcohol and sexual harassment problems within the cadet wing Aug. 28.

Three cadets were cited for underage drinking Aug. 23 at a hotel party. According to the police report, no cadets provided alcohol to minors, an offense that would have resulted in automatic disenrollment from the academy.

Walking on stage carrying the ‘Sword of a Warrior,’ representing the academy as an institution, Weida reminded the wing why they are here.

“There’s rust on this sword; there’s corrosion on this sword,” he said. “Some among (us) have tarnished that sword and introduced corrosion to this sword.”

Weida told the cadets that mediocrity, in the heart or mind, means mission failure, and that means people will die unnecessarily on the battlefield.

Weida said that the code of a warrior is one of mutual respect and trust.

Referring to comrades in arms, he said, “You don’t care what religion they are; you don’t care what sex they are or economic background. All you care about is can they do the job and can you trust them?

“We have all raised our right hands and sworn to an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States … ” Weida said. “We wield the most lethal instrument of national power. Because we do that, it’s absolutely required that the men and women (who) lead our warriors into battle are men and women of character, honor and integrity.”

He said that those who have broken the law, whether it was alcohol-related or for any other crime, diminish all of the Air Force. Weida said that irresponsible actions diminish the value of an Air Force Academy education and offends the honor of those who have gone before them.

“Those heroes in the Long Blue Line who have gone before us are counting on you to scrape the rust and the corrosion off this sword, to restore their honor,” he said. “I’m confident; I know you can do it. We will do it.”