An ethical problem facing the Army today is the misunderstanding of the term "taking care of soldiers." I've experienced recent situations where the misguided perception of some junior leaders that he or she is taking care of a soldier by allowing that subordinate soldier to perform at substandard levels. It seems normal for these NCOs to look the other way while their subordinates continue their poor performance and sometimes bad behavior. I think this is a continuing ethical dilemma because of the junior NCOs' concern for maintaining relationships that were forged with their now subordinate soldiers as peers. When the senior NCO leader fails to provide mentoring and make the necessary correction to this unacceptable behavior, it then makes this behavior the norm.

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