San Diego Mayoral candidate Nathan Fletcher served honorably in the military. Of that there is no doubt. He deserves full credit for his military service.
But what I find interesting is that his published bios seldom if ever mention his military rate or rank. If you read his Wikipedia bio (doubtless controlled by Nathan’s campaign handlers — the whole piece reads like a campaign ad), it discusses his military schools and accomplishments, but never mentions his rate or rank – a rather fundamental aspect of one’s military experience.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathan_Fletcher
Similarly his near-identical write-up on his mayoral candidacy website omits the same info.
http://www.nathanfletcher.com/about-nathan/
I think most people unfamiliar with Nathan Fletcher will ASSUME from the write-up that he was an officer with some significant responsibilities and managerial experience. But in reality he was a sergeant with relatively limited managerial requirements.
Now don’t get me wrong. Sergeants and petty officers are the backbone of the military, as far as I’m concerned. Over many years I was proud to serve with many that were great soldiers and sailors. FULL DISCLOSURE — I was active duty only 4 years in my navy career — the rest in the reserves.
Of course, rabid Nathan Fletcher supporters will feign indignity over my observation — somehow concluding that I’m in some way impugning sergeants and their key contributions to our military. But if being a sergeant is so honorable (which it most definitely is), why does the Fletcher campaign consciously and consistently omit this fundamental aspect of his military service?
To me, the answer is obvious. Nathan Fletcher and his handlers aren’t keen on revealing his actual military rank — letting the readers of his bio infer whatever they want. This consistent omission likely leads uninformed readers (most readers are not political junkies) to conclude that he was an officer with greater responsibilities than he actually was tasked with.
A clever ploy, but somewhat less than forthcoming.