MILITARY LEADERS HAVE RIGHTS, TOO.(PERSPECTIVE)

Byline: DAVID S. JONAS and HAGEN W. FRANK

Some commentators unfamiliar with the American military seem to perceive military professionals as mindless automatons who surrender their ability to reason when they enter the service. We presumably surrender all rights, including the right to speak freely, and are expected to build careers based on mute, unthinking obedience to any and all orders.

The truth is that our military puts a premium on aggressive, independent thinking and initiative. The fact is that we also retain most constitutional rights including, subject to narrow limitations, those under the First Amendment. We are not issued "gag orders" …