Mercy! Mercy! That Dang Nabed PERCY!

More on Leaks

We all say things we come to regret. It happens in our personal lives and a popular saying these days is “Once the toothpaste is out of the tube there is no getting it back in.

The Wikileaks showed the gulf of separation that often exists between public policy and private views. Shown below are two examples. The lesson to be taken from these is that anything that is recorded electronically and poked into a file is subject to compromise.

“A State Department Cable, dated April of 2009 that appeared on WikiLeaks demonstrated that Biden was particularly skeptical from the start that the United States could build a legitimate Afgan government.”

With regard to the Vice President I am not saying that having a differing view makes someone a leaker. He is well known for the colorful manner in which he expresses himself. However, showing the world, even if he turns out to be right, that his views conflicted with his boss is not something that engenders trust and confidence. What I am saying is that because his position was opposed he might come under suspicion as one.
As my daddy used to say, “If you can’t say something good about a situation, it is often a good idea to shut up….” unless pressed by the boss to speak otherwise.

The next WikiLeak example shows the importance of reporting in an impersonal and dispassionate manner even if your think your communications are protected by a security classification. The lesson learned is one that everybody who writes should understand. This is that if you would be uncomfortable with what you write being displayed on the church bulletin board, then don’t write it. This is particularly true regarding e-mails. Eikenberry’s impassioned cable, once aired openly, destroyed his relationship with the head of state he interfaced with.

“But right before the new strategy was announced another critical leak emerged.” Ambassador Eikenberry made a blunt assessment of Karzi, decried Pakistan and counseled against an expanded role in Afghanistan.“ When the cable was published in the New York Times, Eikenberry feared his relationship with Karzai was over. He was right.”

The next type of leak I want to discuss is letting your emotional feelings color the climate of the organization you lead. It happens all the time and it was toxic for Gen McChrystal who was a pretty good commander in other regards. As president Obama was to learn the hard way, subordinates take their cues from the boss. When the President openly criticized the Supreme Court at his State of the Union address it sent a bad message to some of his minions who saw an opportunity to ingratiate themselves. Bad behavior in a leader translates into bad behavior down the chain of command.

“In the summer of 2010 Gen Stanley McChrystal made the inexplicable decision to participate in a Rolling Stone profile on how he was conducting the war. In an article “The Runaway General,” Michael Hasting reported a series of profanity—laced conversations in which McChrystal and his staff were portrayed as openly disparaging of Obama, Vice President Biden and other senior civilian officials.” McChrystal was fired.