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West Point gets rid of “Duty, Honor, Country”

by Mason••86

The Long Grey Line removed “Duty, Honor, Country” from their mission statement this week. It was replaced with “Army Values.” The three words were made the official motto for the US Military Academy at West Point more than 100 years ago. It was adopted as part of the school’s official coat of arms in 1898. They were selected as they “represent the national character of the Academy, it’s military function, its educational function and its spirit and objectives.”

The line was also famously used as a talking point in a speech that General of the Army Douglas MacArthur (USMA Class of 1903) gave to the Corps of Cadets at West Point in 1962. MacArthur understood a thing or two about the USMA, having graduated at the top of his class in 1903 from the institution and then serving as superintendent just 16 years later.

The new mission statement reads:

To build, educate, train, and inspire the Corps of Cadets to be commissioned leaders of character committed to the Army Values and ready for a lifetime of service to the Army and Nation.

Lieutenant General Steve Gilland, USMA Superintendent says,

Both the Secretary of the Army and Army Chief of Staff approved this recommendation.

Our updated mission statement focuses on the mission essential tasks of Build, Educate, Train, and Inspire the Corps of Cadets to be commissioned leaders of character, with the explicit purpose of being committed to the Army Values and Ready for a lifetime of service. The Army Values include Duty and Honor, and Country is reflected in Loyalty, bearing truth faith and allegiance to the U.S. Constitution, the Army, your unit, and other Soldiers. In the past century, West Point’s mission has changed nine times. Many graduates will recall the mission statement they learned as new cadets did not include the motto, as Duty, Honor, Country was first added to the mission statement in 1998.

Sounds like he wanted to change it just for change’s sake.

Source; Breitbart

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86 thoughts on “West Point gets rid of “Duty, Honor, Country””

  1. That rumbling sound you hear is Douglas MacArthur spinning in his grave.

    1. As a Navy guy, I CANNOT FUCKING believe it…
      However, remember this asshole graduated from West Point, so what the hell going on on the banks of the Hudson?
      The Commissars’ illegitimate son?

      2. This is outrageous! How did this twerp merit an appointment?
        am disgusted.
        May I adopt him?

      3. Can this guy be the first ashore in Gaza to secure the “temporary” port to Terra firma?

    2. Like literally what the fucking fuck. I haven’t the words but I know somebody who did.

      “Duty, Honor, Country” — those three hallowed words reverently dictate what you ought to be, what you can be, what you will be. They are your rallying point to build courage when courage seems to fail, to regain faith when there seems to be little cause for faith, to create hope when hope becomes forlorn.

      Unhappily, I possess neither that eloquence of diction, that poetry of imagination, nor that brilliance of metaphor to tell you all that they mean.

      The unbelievers will say they are but words, but a slogan, but a flamboyant phrase. Every pedant, every demagogue, every cynic, every hypocrite, every troublemaker, and, I am sorry to say, some others of an entirely different character, will try to downgrade them even to the extent of mockery and ridicule.

      But these are some of the things they do.º They build your basic character. They mold you for your future roles as the custodians of the nation’s defense. They make you strong enough to know when you are weak, and brave enough to face yourself when you are afraid.

      They teach you to be proud and unbending in honest failure, but humble and gentle in success; not to substitute words for action; not to seek the path of comfort, but to face the stress and spur of difficulty and challenge; to learn to stand up in the storm, but to have compassion on those who fall; to master yourself before you seek to master others; to have a heart that is clean, a goal that is high; to learn to laugh, yet never forget how to weep; to reach into the future, yet never neglect the past; to be serious, yet never take yourself too seriously; to be modest so that you will remember the simplicity of true greatness, the open mind of true wisdom, the meekness of true strength.

      1. They give you a temper of the will,º a quality of theº imagination, a vigor of the emotions, a freshness of the deep springs of life, a temperamental predominance of courage over timidity, an appetite for adventure over love of ease.

        They create in your heart the sense of wonder, the unfailing hope of what next, and the joy and inspiration of life. They teach you in this way to be an officer and a gentleman.

        And what sort of soldiers are those you are to lead? Are they reliable? Are they brave? Are they capable of victory?

        Their story is known to all of you. It is the story of the American man at arms. My estimate of him was formed on the battlefieldº many, many years ago, and has never changed. I regarded him then, as I regard him now, as one of the world’s noblest figures; not only as one of the finest military characters, but also as one of the most stainless.

        His name and fame are the birthright of every American citizen. In his youth and strength, his love and loyalty, he gave all that mortality can give. He needs no eulogy from me, or from any other man. He has written his own history and written it in red on his enemy’s breast.

        But when I think of his patience under adversity, of his courage under fire, and of his modesty in victory, I am filled with an emotion of admiration I cannot put into words. He belongs to history as furnishing one of the greatest examples of successful patriotism. He belongs to posterity as the instructor of future generations in the principles of liberty and freedom. He belongs to the present, to us, by his virtues and by his achievements. º

        In twenty campaigns, on a hundred battlefields, around a thousand campfires, I have witnessed that enduring fortitude, that patriotic self-abnegation, and that invincible determination which have carved his statue in the hearts of his people. From one end of the world to the other, he has drained deep the chalice of courage.

        1. As I listened to those songs, in memory’s eye I could see those staggering columns of the First World War, bending under soggy packs on many a weary march, from dripping dusk to drizzling dawn, slogging ankle-deep through theº mire of shell-pocked roads, to form grimly for the attack, blue-lipped, covered with sludge and mud, chilled by the wind and rain, driving home to their objective, and for many, to the judgment seat of God.

          I do not know the dignity of their birth, but I do know the glory of their death. They died unquestioning, uncomplaining, with faith in their hearts, and on their lips the hope that we would go on to victory.

          Always for them: Duty, Honor, Country. Always their blood, and sweat, and tears, as we soughtº the way and the light and the truth.º And twenty years after, on the other side of the globe, againº the filth of murky foxholes, the stench of ghostly trenches, the slime of dripping dugouts, those broilingº suns ofº relentless heat, those torrential rains of devastating storms, the loneliness and utter desolation of jungle trails, the bitterness of long separation of those they loved and cherished, the deadly pestilence of tropicalº disease, the horror of stricken areas of war.

          Their resolute and determined defense, their swift and sure attack, their indomitable purpose, their complete and decisive victory — always victory, always through the bloody haze of their last reverberating shot, the vision of gaunt, ghastly men, reverently following your password of Duty, Honor, Country.

          1. But the most important part, the nitty-gritty if you will:

            The code which those words perpetuate embraces the highest moral law and will stand the test of any ethics or philosophies ever promoted for the uplift of mankind. Its requirements are for the things that are right, and its restraints are from the things that are wrong. The soldier, above all other men, is required to practice the greatest act of religious training: sacrifice. In battle and in the face of danger and death, he disposes those divine attributes which his Maker gave when he created man in His own image. No physical courage and no brute instinct can take the place of the divine help which alone can sustain him. However hard the incidents of war may be, the soldier who is called upon to offer and to give his life for his country is the noblest development of mankind.

            Let’s just take a big old dump all over that.

            West Pointers for the most part are dicks. I get it. But at least with the ones that got it they were straight shooters… a little too straight for my tastes but I wouldn’t cut sling load on a good one. But this… out of all the stupid shit I have seen the Army do in the last 40 years is by far the dumbest.

            Anyone who hasn’t read the whole speech please do. If you have never read it and you have served, especially in combat, it is quite a gut punch. MacArthur went to his reward not long after and left us all a little poorer.

            https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Places/America/United_States/Army/USMA/MacArthur/1962_speech_to_the_Corps.html

            MacArthur had his failings like all of us, but he got it.

            1. 5JC,

              The ninja family would like to thank you for pointing out that not all West Pointers are dicks…😉😎😆

              1. CPT Humbert Roque “Rocky” Versace.

                USMA Class of 1959.

                CPT Versace was a United States Army officer of Puerto Rican–Italian descent who was posthumously awarded the United States’ highest military decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his heroic actions while a Prisoner Of War during the Vietnam War. He was the first member of the U.S. Army to be awarded the Medal of Honor for actions performed in Southeast Asia while in captivity.

                https://homeofheroes.com/heroes-stories/vietnam-war/humbert-rocky-versace/

                https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/7531924/humbert-roque-versace

                Rest In Peace, Sir.

                Salute.

                Never Forget.

            2. I served under several West Pointers, only one stood out as being a dick. I’m very sure he was a dick before West Point, they just sharpened his dickishness.

                  2. Excuse me, but you are OFF TOPIC! Please refrain from distracting the rest of us from having an intellekshual discussion of whatever it is this thread is about.

  4. The lackeys of our current NCA consider it an honor to do the duty of continuing to destroy our Country.

    It is the Duty of Loyal Patriots to restore Honor to our Country.

    I gots a Mission Statement for you Mon’ General’…”Do your Duty in all things…you can never do more…you should never strive to do less.”

    I guess that the West Point Code of Honor will be the next thing to go. Oh…wait…

  5. Personally, I think this change was done because “Army values” is a vague phrase that can be defined to mean anything at some point in the future. “When I say a word, it means what I say it means–nothing more and nothing less.” Humpty Dumpty, “Alice in Wonderland.”

    1. Yep. Thinking the same.
      And as for being endorsed and approved by the Army CoS & Sec Army…..nope, not feeling all warm and fuzzy right now.
      Right now…..I weep.

    2. No it is an actual thing. *sigh* it never really caught on despite leadership’s best attempts. It doesn’t quite have the same ring and it doesn’t include honor or country.

      The Army Values

      Many people know what the words Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, and Personal Courage mean. But how often do you see someone actually live up to them? Soldiers learn these values in detail during Basic Combat Training (BCT), from then on they live them every day in everything they do — whether they’re on the job or off. In short, the Seven Core Army Values listed below are what being a Soldier is all about.

    3. “Army Values” is a very fungible term which of course means it means nothing. They are not even good words.

    1. Wow! A fantastic read.

      I’m not MacArthur fan, but the last three paragraphs of the speech posted in the article are just…too damn true. I retired three years ago and…dang it, it got dusty where I’m sitting.

  8. “Commissioned Leaders of Character” sounds like something you’d hear in a Bud Light commercial.

    1. “Here’s to you, Commissioned Leader of Character…”
      I understand Dylan Mulvaney is available. Might as well complete this travesty.

      1. Yes, Dylan could do one of those “Army Strong” commercials, with the modified slogan “Be all the queer you can be.” (I understand “queer” now encompasses all the various deviances of the Alphabet People.)

  9. Hmmm…

    The title to the Article “West Point Gets Rid of Duty, Honor, Country” is misleading.

    Here is THE REST OF THE STORY…with clarification…

    West Point’s MOTTO and West Point’s MISSION STATEMENT are two complete DIFFERENT Subjects/Topics.

    “Duty, Honor, Country” has been, still is and will ALWAYS BE the MOTTO of West Point.

    That will never change.

    West Point’s MISSION STATEMENT HAS CHANGED NINE (9) TIMES since 1925:

    https://www.usma.edu/news/press-releases/west-point-mission-statement-timeline

    “Duty, Honor, Country” was not added to West Point’s MISSION STATEMENT UNTIL 1998. It was not in West Point’s mission statement when a member of the ninja family attended and graduated from West Point (before 1998).

    This interesting paper about changing West Point’s MISSION STATEMENT was written in 1992:

    “Evolution Of West Point’s Mission Statement : A Necessary Condition For Survival”

    “Description: How has the mission evolved to this point, and what have been the factors behind this evolution? In over 190 years since the Academy’s establishment, its mission has changed numerous times, primarily influenced by four factors: “wars, national military policy, changing national environment~ and the personality of West Point’s leaders.”

    https://usmalibrary.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16919coll1/id/60/

    Yours Truly,

    A Ring Knocker/USMA Graduate/ninja family member 😉😎

    DUTY/HONOR/COUNTRY!

      1. West Point’s Mission Statement has changed 9 times since 1925.

        “Duty, Honor, Country” was included in West Point Mission Statement in 1998, i.e. 26 years ago.

        “Duty, Honor, Country” has always been West Point’s Motto. It will never change.

        To be fair to Mason, Mason did point out that West Point’s Mission Statement was changing. Just wish the title of his post was not “West Point Gets Rid Of Duty, Honor, Country”, because that statement is NOT TRUE.

        Are we, members of the ninja family, happy how our beloved Army and West Point have changed to appease the Liberal Left? HECK NO…Just as we are not happy our beloved Fort Bragg, Benning, Hood, Lee, etc etc names were changed.

        To be honest with you all, it does not bother the ninja family that the words “Army Values” replaced “Duty, Honor, Country”. However, we get it/respect what others are thinking reference the term “Army Values”.

        Duty, Honor, Country. The West Point Motto.

          1. 5JC,

            We always enjoy reading your thoughts and insights on this blog.

            Thank You for being honest and fortright.

            👍👌

        2. Any idea on when the Term Army Values was coined and how many times they have changed since 1925?

  10. Went thru West Point in 1960.
    In the back of a 59 Chevy wagon.
    I recall seeing lots of cadets marching around in groups.
    Apparently you can’t go anywhere unless in an organized group.
    So when I got older I went Signal Corps.

  11. Much ado about nothing, in my opinion. The article accurately differentiates between motto (with no change) and mission statement (which is changing, as they sometimes do). Full disclosure: not a West Pointer and don’t really care about this. Definitely not getting spun up. Will have forgotten by the time I get home from work.

    1. Prior Service:

      Agree (Please see our comments).

      We still respect other TAH member’s comments/viewpoints on the term “Army Values”.

      That is the beauty of this blog. We all bring to the table a different perspective on a topic (Except on the topic of Military Phonies/Liars/Embellishers…)

      Besides, it is STILL GO ARMY! BEAT NAVY!

      THAT will NEVER change…🫡😉😎😆

      1. Yeah,I’ve been ambivalent on values since I was first given that dog tag… I’ve never looked at my neck to see what to do or believe.

        I have to admit, as a son, grandson, and brother of navy (and almost navy, myself); ROTC grad; and a witness to some of USMA’s more unfortunate 1980s products (and their “leadership”) I’m okay when navy wins! However I have slowly become more enlightened over the last couple decades and dropped my judgment. As a Co CDR I did have four of ‘em in my company and it made for some fun conversations!

        1. When I served as an LT in the 509th in Germany, I served with quite a few West Pointers. Plus, we had a couple of cadets in my company one summer. Competence wise, they were much better officers than those from OCS. By this was back in 1969-70.

          1. Considering the qualifications for entry into OCS back then, that is not saying much.
            18.5 years of age, HS diploma or GED, GT score of 110 or above, “good moral character”.

  14. Uh, “Army Values” doesn’t mean sh*t the public that the Mission Statement is supposed to inspire and gain their trust.

    Use concrete English words that have clear definitions, not buzzword crap. People don’t “just know” what that means.

    1. They should name all seven (7) Army Values and add Country. (Or is that too “racist” for unpatriotic “woke”-sters today?)

  15. When my nephew graduated ROTC I gave him George Washington’s Address to the Virginia Regiment in 1756, (I know the context is not perfect but the words work). “Remember that it is the actions, and not the commission, that make the officer, and that there is more expected from him, than the title.” The second thing I told him was remember, your only “borrowing” the platoon from the NCOs.

    1. My first rifle platoon sgt. told me, “when we are in garrison, I run this platoon. You can run it when go to the field.” He was a great NCO, I learned a great deal from him.

  17. Keep it Army! Keep lowering your standards! Keep playing games with the things that Soldiers have taken pride in since the organization started!

    What could go wrong?

    An army of undisciplined, self important, feelings above all else (including battle buddies), that run away from a fight rather than mix it up with the enemy.

    Just my opinion. Glad I’m short on time with them.

  18. I’m proud of this place. Not only for calling out fuckface over yonder but for all the awesomeness here.
    We’ve done a good. And will continue to do the good, just like Platoon Daddy asked of us!

    So, me and my sore back (one wall: framed, window boxed, sheathed. all damn plumb!) are going to drink til the pain is at a 2-out-of-10

    To build, educate, train, and inspire the Corps of Cadets to be commissioned leaders of character committed to the Army Values and ready for a lifetime of service to the Army and Nation…

    …even if the only way we know what that is, if’n we’re told by the centralized authority.

  20. Started ROTC with one service (who shall remain nameless) and their cadre dude asked me why (beside wastin’ bad guys, of course) I wanted to serve and I said “Duty, Honor, Country.”

    He replied “Oh, all that Country, Duty, Honor stuff is obsolete– today we compare ourselves with civilian industry.”

    I said (to quote Robin William’s Good Morning Vietnam character, Ernest Lee Sincere) “F*ck it, I’ll join the Army and be with people in green!” and changed services. Thank God I did.

    1. A twenty says it was the ChairForce. I balked on AFROTC because their drill team didn’t have rifles; they apparently did various hand salutes. Looked ridiculous. In Army ROTC, we drilled with M-1’s and chrome bayonets.

          1. Right before I left, he said his greatest fear was that he’d “have to strap on [his] .38 and be put on a position where [he] might have to use it.”

            I said my greatest fear was that I’d go to war and he’d be my commander.

            (Sent him a pic from A’stan with jump wings, 101st combat patch and packing heat years later just to be that way, too.)

        2. Nice.

          Now let’m do Tucker in Moscow, see if the results match.

          (hint: I bet they won’t)

  22. They’re gonna replace it with “Diversity, Equity, Inclusion” because that seems to be the theme these days.

  23. “Country is reflected in Loyalty, bearing true faith and allegiance to the U.S. Constitution, the Army, your unit, and other Soldiers.” YOU CAN ONLY HAVE ALLEGIANCE TO ONE THING. If the Army comes into conflict with the Constitution, which takes precedent? What if “Other Soldiers” say “Fuck It” and start firing on civilians? I understand this is an extremely unlikely scenario but it demonstrates the craziness of today’s Army. What. The. Hell.

  24. While the optics suck, is it really a big deal as apparently Duty, Honor, Country didn’t get added until 1998? That was 36 years after MacAs speech.

  26. I like “Duty, Honor, Country”. Simple, direct, easy to understand and remember, and traditional. If “Army values” differs in any significant way, it’s crap.

  27. No they want Army values like the tranies in dog masks, and Biden’s posse in dresses, and now wymen in infantry squads. And they wonder why the military is smaller than it was than Dec 7 1941?

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