Unwavering professionalism combats terrorism

  • Published
  • By James P. Fogerty
  • 35th Fighter Wing Antiterrorism Officer
Recently, the New York Times published an article about Misawa Air Base. Unfortunately, it was not a flattering story about the great deeds the men and women of this base perform every day and the daily sacrifices they make in service to our great nation. Rather, it was about the poor choices one individual made this past weekend. Despite a constant and consistent leadership message regarding professional conduct, it is sad but true that some people just don't seem to get it. As the New York Times article proves, it is becoming increasingly common for individual misconduct to have far-reaching implications for our strategic partnership in Japan. So, this is not meant to be another lecture on proper behavior in the host country, but a different angle on the need for unwavering professionalism, perhaps one you haven't thought of before.

Between August and October 2006, six terrorists performed actual surveillance of five separate military installations in the northeastern United States and discussed three other potential targets, finally settling on Fort Dix, N.J., as the target of choice to assault with rifles and grenades. One of the other possible targets, Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, was rejected because it was perceived to be too hard of a target. What has already become known as the "Dover Effect," was simply professional Airmen executing their responsibilities to the best of their ability. This is not an indictment of the professionalism of the soldiers at Fort Dix, for there was another element present at Wrightstown, N.J., that was instrumental in averting disaster. That factor was the willingness of the community to support the base. When the would-be assailants attempted to make DVD copies of their training videos, someone in the community turned them in to the FBI.

What does a foiled terrorist plot in New Jersey have to do with unwavering professionalism overseas? Perceptions count. The Dover Effect that made the terrorists look elsewhere resulted from the combined professional efforts of everyone on the base supporting the security mission. The information that led to their arrest came from someone in the community who supported the professional men and women at Fort Dix. There were most likely incidents of unprofessionalism that occurred outside the gates of both installations, but not enough to completely erode the community support. One incident at Misawa will not destroy the long established co-existence and co-prosperity partnership between the base and the Misawa community, but a series of similar events throughout Japan is certainly damaging.

Does individual misconduct matter? You bet it does. Like a snowball rolling downhill, these incidents build on each other. Unprofessional conduct erodes community support which makes it easier for those that would do us harm to operate undetected and go unreported. We will never know which incident may have been the one that caused someone to turn their back on something out of the ordinary or fail to report a threat to the base. In contrast, unwavering professionalism builds community support and creates a harder target for terrorism. It's as simple as that. The next time Misawa makes the international news, let it be for the unwavering professionalism of our hard working community, or the solid relationship we enjoy with our host country citizens.