Moral and Ethical Responsibilities of General Officers in the Military, Essay Example

Problem Statement:

While it is a common notion that General Officers in the Military are given the power to command and direct the army, it is often a misconception among the members of the society to see them as mere individuals who are hungry for power. Behind the authority that they have are several protocols and policies that they have to adhere to, just to be able to respond to their duties to the public. Being leaders, they are faced with the most crucial points of decision making especially when facing crucial situations right within their troupes.

Military men are known for their sworn promise to protect the safety and the peaceful living of their people and their nation. The government remains to be at the highest command, which means that they are in high need to respond to the missions presented to them by the government. There are instances however when such missions are not easy to accomplish nor do they comply with the personal idealisms of the generals. Nevertheless, they have to follow orders just the same. Question is, how would the generals be able to respond to their moral and ethical responsibilities both to the people and to the army even when they are already facing the need to set their personal ideals aside? Should there be a specific policy or rule regarding the idea of responding to ethical measures of commanding the army? Should there be an established law on certain situations that govern the moral values that the general officials need to respond to?

These questions are designed to give attention to how the leadership capacity of generals should be established not only according to their duties but also according to their morality and their understanding of what is right and what is wrong. Through proper research on the matter, it is expected that this research would provide a more thorough presentation on how specific policies and rules could be best used to help generals decide upon matters that would involve their views of ethics and morality.