• REPORT: West Point To Remove 'Duty, Honor, Country' From Official Mission Statement

    March 9, 2024
    Views: 35600
    Public Domain

    We received the following information via our network of service academy graduates:

    From the MacArthur Society President, Col. (Ret.) Bill Prince, who attended the USMA Board of Visitors meeting in DC last week:

    The Supe advised that "Duty, Honor, Country" will be removed from the official Mission Statement, replaced by a commitment "...to the Army Values."  Interestingly, "...service to the Nation as an officer..." now changed to "...lifetime of service to the Army and Nation." 

    The MacArthur Society, the new patriotic association of graduates, is fighting back, alongside Air Force and Navy academy grads.


    Putting It Plainly

    I will state plainly what you all are thinking: The Army Values are meant well and are important to the US Army at large but are a lower standard than the West Point Values and tradition of Duty, Honor, Country. Like in many great institutions in the United States of America, progressive ideology is eroding away at West Point and doing so in a slow but methodical march, co-opting our good intentions through the specter of cultural marxism. Our adversaries are unscrupulous but sophisticated and very patient.

    Fighting Back: Borman 2.0

    We at the MacArthur Society have been making headway on service academy reform through Project 2025 and "Borman 2.0." Borman 2.0 is joint project with two other distinguished service academy societies, Calvert Task Group (USNA, CTG) and STARRS (USAFA, STARRS.us), intended to reform USMA, USNA, and USAFA (see attached). Borman 2.0 is named after Astronaut Frank Borman, who led the presidential commission investigating the 1977 West Point cheating scandal.

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    Hart Fred

    This has been checked with some USMA alumni and it appears to be fake story

    Staff

    We don't report false information. The Supe definitely said this as advertised. Whether he changes his mind due to public pressure is another issue.

    Bill Prince

    Bill Prince here. I attended the Board of Visitors meeting. The change is written as quoted on page 4 of the official meeting agenda, bottom half of the page, it was slide number 8 and I heard the Supe discuss the changes while the slide was on the screen. Definitely not a fake story.

    Jamie Critelli

    Post the source document. Right now, it’s hearsay. Post the slide and meeting agenda.

    Courage

    Ironically most of the ones up in arms about this change are the same faction of grads who ardently support the candidate who has never embodied Duty, Honor, or Country in his business career nor his more recent political career. Leaders like McCain, Romney, Cheney are the few of their party remaining who can clearly see this, and put loyalty to those three hallowed words before loyalty to a political party.

    Mike

    Man, if those three warmonger traitors are the best you've got, then your post makes the point by itself.

    Courage

    Young Cheney…you know the one put Duty, Honor, Country above political party that has been hijacked by religious fundamentalists and a con-man, who have found alignment in putting their own self interests ahead of Duty, Honor, Country.

    Mike

    Cheney's only loyalty is to money laundering to the oligarchs in Ukraine, and his daughter just got busted for lying to the American people in her witch hunt. She should be arrested and charged, for doing the old man's dirty work.

    Bruno

    Non sequitur. Even if what you say is true (and it isn't), what does it have to do with removing the 200+ year old "Duty, Honor, Country" from West Point's mission? The fact that you hate Trump means removing "Duty, Honor, Country" from West Point's mission is a good thing?

    Oscar Peterson

    What a ridiculous and irrelevant comment.

    Your obsession with Trump has nothing to do with the point being raised in this article.

    Are you in favor of or opposed to the elimination of "Duty, Honor, Country" from the USMA mission statement?

    Last edited 8 months ago by Oscar Peterson
    Jay

    Romney? You got to be kidding!

    Mark S.

    Just because a person wore a uniform (McCain) or one served as a VP (Cheney), does NOT make them heroes. Romney is a POS with the likes of other boot-kissing scum RINOs, and the likes of the Clintons, Obamas, Kerry, and Bidens. You may not like Trump or his lack of service in uniform, but he has done more for the overall well-being of this country than all those others combined. He fulfilled his duty honorably FOR the good of this country.

    Roger C Yaste

    McCain, Romney, and Cheney have never displayed an ethos of DUTY HONOR COUNTRY.

    Roger C Yaste

    I hope this is a false story, it sounds like something concocted by a rabid leftist.
    If 'Duty, Honor, Country' is removed from West Point's mission statement then there should be a whole slew of so-called flag officers court-martialed, reduced greatly in rank, and spending the remainder of their lives in Leavenworth!
    Respectfully
    Roger Yaste
    Retired USN Cheif petty officer

    Amy Williams

    Amen!

    Mark S.

    Here, here! Chief!

    John Storbeck

    This is a bogus group.

    Jason H

    This is an overreaction. I am not familiar with the MacArthur Society, but I am a USMA graduate from the mid 90s and Duty, Honor, Country was not included in the mission statement during my cadet years either. I believe it first was included in 1998. The mission statement is tweaked here and there over time - 9 times in the last century. Duty, Honor, Country remains the USMA motto and remains a formal centerpiece of culture despite this most recent change to the mission statement wording.

    Courage

    Yup. Total clickbait article to rile up people when there is nothing to be riled up against.

    Except from the new mission:
    “….to be commissioned leaders of character committed to the Army Values {loyalty (to the COUNTRY), DUTY, respect, selfless service (in serving your COUNTRY), HONOR, integrity, personal courage)..”

    So explain to me how West Point removed Duty, Honor, Country from its mission????

    Mike

    Because they removed it from the 'Mission Statement' as you know very well. Nice slight of hand.

    Courage

    They didn’t remove it. They expanded it to include all army values. West Point’s mission is to ultimately produce leaders of character to serve in our nation’s army. So how is expanding the mission to include the army values (which clearly includes the three hallowed words) objectionable? I guess objectionable to old grads who just like to bitch about anything FFS.

    Mike

    One 'Mission Statement' has it. One 'Mission Statement' doesn't. "They didn't remove it." That's called a lie. But hey, we hear Gilland is gunning to get rid of the honor code too.

    Also, Didn't your Momma teach you respect for your elders?

    Bryan

    So, the Supe shortened it by nearly a 1/3 by making it less wordy while saying essentially the same thing? The horror….!

    And no, my two dads didn’t teach me to respect people who thoughtlessly hang on to the past and decry change because it’s simply different.

    But posting the statements side by side in this article wouldn’t have gotten nearly the attention. I’m sad that this “news” made the Real Clear roll-up.

    Mike

    What are you going to say when he makes the Honor Code 'aspirational'? This is nothing but someone trying to destroy the place as it existed, to build a new shrine to Maoism.

    Oscar Peterson

    Well, that is some useful context.

    How long has West Point had a mission statement?

    And for how much of that time has "Duty, Honor, Country" been a part of it?

    Jason H

    USMA founded in 1802. Duty, Honor, Country became motto in 1898. First mission statement appeared 1925. 9 changes between then and now, which is normal in any Army command. DHC first appeared in mission statement in 1998. The motto remains Duty, Honor, Country today and will still be the formal centerpiece of USMA culture. Cadets will continue to wear it on their uniform (it's on the crest). They will continue to literally sing about it after sporting events (Alma Mater). DHC is not going away.

    Mike

    Oh it will go away alright, just slowly. There is no good reason to make this move, unless you are a globalist wanting to destroy American institutions. The Supe says he talked with 'stakeholders'. Who the hell is that? He didn't ask the Grads. He didn't ask the cadets. The only 'stakeholders' he cares about are in Davos and Washington; ie, the Biden Maoist regime. This is classic Maoism... destroy the heritage. The Honor Code is next. Gilland is already on record saying so.

    J H

    Perhaps you should be celebrating this return to the traditions and heritage of 1802-1998 during which there was no DHC in a mission statement? Anyway, you clearly have axes to grind beyond the scope of this story. Good luck with it.

    Jim

    We must keep our Cherished motto, “DUTY; HONOR; COUNTRY” No one dare touch that. Many have served, travailed, suffered, and bled. The Corps must and will not let this happen! Jim GRUNSETH, G-1, 1974.

    Kevin M. Clement

    As we have seen in the last few years, "values" change. "Duty, Honor, Country" is succinct and on point.

    What idiot marketing major decided this was a good idea?

    This is FUBAR if the clear basics & magnetic endearment of young soldiers is melted down from 'Duty, Honor, Country' to the 'Army Values', which through slight of hand and politics has 'Army values' continually swinging to the leftward pronouns and social liberalism.

    ata777

    Shame on them.

    Frederic A Parker

    I don't see the problem. The Army Values still include Duty and
    honor plus 5 others, among which is Loyalty to country and Constitution.

    Aleks

    No intelligent take over is just a few people storming a building with guns to take it over.

    Its a few words here, a few words there, waiting awhile, then changing them again. People get used to the changes, and things changing.

    A few more years and suddenly you ask, how did we get here? Very carefully and slowly by those making small changes again, and again.

    I do not know the plan or if its good or bad. I cannot answer that.

    However, anyone pretending change is always benign...

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