He was a product of the Carter years of 'De-selection' of capable mid-grade NCOs, when so many guys with potential voted with their feet, and far too many of the guys that stayed career NCOs did so because they were at least dimly aware they could never make it on the outside. A leavening of fantastic, dedicated guys stayed in, but risk-taking and honest reporting was, shall we say, not a highly-rewarded behavior. 'Way too often dumbshits with big mouths, great PT scores, and little detectable higher brain function stayed in and became the senior NCO cohort from which that sucker came.