The Republic was written by Plato in 380 BC, and it sought to give understating to the concept of justice in the society (Purshouse, 2007). The idea of justice is different in each setting, but the overall idea is to ensure equal treatment of all members of the society (Santas et al., 2010). The Armed Forces use a different set of rules and regulations that are placed under the Uniform Code of Military Justice - UCMJ. The reality is that the UCMJ is a code and it applies to all members of the armed forces legal officers who have had experience in both military and civilian courts offer that the military courts have a better advantage toward the accused than the civilian courts.
The ranking system in the military is one that has held on for many decades, and it forms the backbone to the armed forces service, and without it, many of the organizations within the Army would not function adequately. Officers in the military are faced with tough decisions each day, and when they make mistakes, the consequences are meted out according to the military justice system. Junior officers have the lowest ranking in the armed forces organization; they are placed above the non-commissioned officers and below senior officers (Purshouse, 2007).
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Justice ideally means that the personnel in the military are treated equally, but this is hardly the case. The officers are expected to honor the instructions given to them by their senior officers with little to no questions asked. When one enlists for service, they take an oath in which they declare to obey the orders of the president of the United States and the orders of their bosses. The officers are required to follow the orders of their seniors and those who do not suffer severe consequences under the UMCJ (Santas et al., 2010).
However, these are subject to lawful orders. Junior officers while being expected to follow the rules and regulations set by the senior officers. When a junior officer takes on an order that is deemed unlawful can result in the officer involved facing criminal charges. Military courts have long held the opinion that each officer is responsible for the actions they take even when they claim to have been following orders. There is the catch where it is not up to the officer to decide the nature of the decree but it is the responsibility of the senior officers and the courts (Santas et al., 2010).
Junior officers are answerable to their senior supervisors, and this chain of command is what sets the military apart from other government organization. The military is built on officers being obedient and learning to take orders with minimum resistance. According to Plato, the idea of justice is not born of any man; it is subject to a learning process. When the rulers of the land create laws that are just, then the defenders of the nation who are the soldiers will be inclined to implement the legislation and the citizens will follow the given laws to have peace reigning (Blackburn, 2007)
Some leaders or in this case senior officers will manipulate the junior officers and have them carry out orders for their personal benefits. The military has come under fire from civilians who accuse them of using excessive force and not being accountable for their actions during the times that the army is called upon to quell civil unrest for example. Junior officers are at the mercy of their seniors and for this reason; the concept of justice towards them is left to the mercy and the interpretation of the military system (Blackburn, 2007)
References
Santas et al, (2010). Understanding Plato’s Republic . Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell.
Blackburn, S. (2007). Plato’s Republic: A Biography . New York: Atlantic Monthly Press
Purshouse, L. (2007). Plato's Republic . London: Continuum
