Nest Builders& Bird Hatchers

For years, a sure way to make any flag officer blanch in dismay has been to suggest that Vice Admiral Hyman Rickover, father of the nuclear submarine, might become Chief of Naval Operations. He never will. But in idol-smashing testimony released last week by a House subcommittee on defense appropriations, he demonstrated what a lively tour of duty he would have:

ON NAVY OFFICERS. "I believe we have about 70,000 officers in the Navy. One of the most salutary things that could be done to improve naval efficiency would be to reduce this number by 20,000. Most officers become administrators, so you remove a useful working person and you make him another straw boss. Many of the jobs that are being done by officers today could be done just as well by sailors."

ON ASSIGNMENTS. "We should at once knock off this infernal rotation of military people. The character of warfare has changed. It is becoming more and more scientific. The Navy seems to exist for officer career planning, to make certain that every naval officer has exactly the same chance to become the Chief of Naval Operations."

ON BUREAUCRACY. "Things in our Government today are not done by individuals; they are done by bureaus, by offices, by groups, by nameless organizations. A man gets to be the head of an organisation. He says, 'This got started before I came in here so I cannot be blamed.' In a short time he leaves. The new man takes over, and he can say the same thing. If you really had set out to devise a system for evasion of responsibility, you couldn't have done better."

ON NAVY PSYCHIATRISTS. "I view with horror the day the Navy is induced to place psychiatrists on board our nuclear submarines. We are doing very well with out them because the men don't know they have problems. But once a psychiatrist is assigned, they will learn that they have lots of problems."

ON THE NAVAL ACADEMY. "Midshipmen are quite immature in their attitude. They have been kept in a state of adolescence. Almost everything is done for them. They are subject to petty rules. They are being trained for a Navy which no longer exists, by officers many of whom do not know the real needs of today's Navy, and who are not aware that they don't know. Once the midshipmen get out, their mental growth comes to an end. They putter around the house, repair cars and build furniture; they become nest builders and bird hatchers. If drastic steps are not taken immediately to improve the service academies, I would advocate that you consider abolishing them."

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