On the other hand, I watched good sailors absolutely ruined for small stuff by someone who disliked them. Depended on the Division, Department, XO and CO. What someone in AS Div skated on, someone in M Div was keelhauled for.
I’ve seen that too...IMHO, it’s not a flaw in the system, just the people working it. Civilians get rail-roaded in court too, but yeah....the military’s a small community and once you’re on somebody’s sh!t-list, it can be hard to get off it.
I wouldn’t say I was ruined, but it took me 10 years to make Chief and that’s where I stayed for the next ten. I think I took the Chief Petty Officer creed too much to heart. I’m looking at it now. It’s right above my monitor. “These privileges, these responsibilities, do not appear in print, they have no official standing, they cannot be referred to by name, number, or file. They exist because for over 200 years chiefs before you have freely accepted responsibility beyond the call of printed assignment, and have by their actions and by their performance demanded the respect of their seniors, as well as their juniors. I’ll never forget that day I put on those anchors.