Wally Jaremko's Sentiments

At Bill Bishop's 400 Squadron gathering last summer it was great to see a few familiar faces from my era. But it was also wonderful to meet a few people from Bill's era, before my time. One of these that I had not met before was Wally Jaremko. Wally was a Commanding Officer at one time. He was now in bad health and said he had little time left. In the past he had viewed my website and I had his email address so he use to receive my email newsletters, when I use to send those out to the troops. He received my email message about Bill's party and decided at the last minute to drop by, as it would probably be the last Air Force related event he would attend.

He gave me a couple of photocopied photos. He shared a bunch of stories. He related to a few of us some feelings about a pilot I knew from my period (let's call him Major Chas). He always felt that It was a shame that the Major was never made Commanding Officer of 400. He knew him well when the Major was a Junior Rank in the unit. Watched him go through pilot triaining and followed his career through the ranks, his pilot career at Air Canada, and Wally still kept in touch after he retired from 400.

I liked Chas. He was compitent, confident, a favourite among the Junior Ranks, his peer pilots - I think everyone liked him. He loved to party, fraternize with the techs, and blow of steam. When we were in North Bay, he brought out his violin, wore his apron with the bottle opener dong, and sang bawdy songs with us. Although he commanded respect, you could trust him - he had your back, whether in the air or on the ground in some misadventure!

I don't know how the selection process for CO works. Wally offered no suggestion as to why Chas was overlooked for the position. I would guess that image or political agendas might have something to do with it. In which case, Chas's popularity and party image, his lack of detachment from the troops, may have been considered a detriment compared to other candidates. So he was always overlooked. Yet Chas bled 400 and when he was moved to another unit, he went but his loyalty and heart was always with Canada's Senior Squadron.

I wasn't shocked when the news broke about the base commander of Trenton had a secret side that included murder. dismayed but not shocked. Everyone has a "Heart of Darkness" (from Joseph Conrad's book that was referenced in the film "Apocalypse Now") that can appear if allowed to flourish. A Colonel at Trenton can be viewed like a god, at least they were at one time. I don't know the man's background but he was probably groomed as a pilot. The privileged who never were denied can begin to believe that, like a well known quote from a Canadian politician, that they are "entitled to their entitlements". Or like the recent head of the IMF, they can get away with their sexual assaults because of their position & power. The Colonel went from kink, to rape, to serial killings. Someone, subordinates, peers, or superiors, must have had an inkling that something wasn't quite kosher, you'd think. Perhaps an underling who was instructed to say he was somewhere when he was actually breaking into women's houses? But there is a tendency to cover for a powerful person in the military. Or perhaps this fellow was so skilled at playing the game that he could deceive everyone into believing that he was a good guy? It seems that many these days have trouble determining merit. The gate keepers and decision makers seem to be asleep at the switch and allow the unworthy to pass. Perhaps because they are fooled by image and the gift of gab, or is it because they are bound by agendas and are blind to quality?

President Harry Truman famously said "The buck stops here". A training instructor of mine told me that if you screw up, get caught, you take your lumps. You don't find a scapegoat, deflect blame, just man up, accept your responsibility and receive punishment. But these kind of sentiments appear to belong in Truman's time or at least a generation ago. These days nobody wants to be accountable or take responsibility. Even those who are paid the big bucks to ultimately be responsible. I recall a city official who allegedly embezzled public funds and gambled them away at casinos. He was found out and dismissed. Not a dime was recovered. He then sued the city for wrongful dismissal because the poor man was sick! So then he"s entitled to severances or bonuses on top of what he absconded with? Then there were the Wall Street firms whose greed caused the final meltdown of recent years. Some of these characters got government bailout money, so they could have bonuses & perks, while the Average Joes lost their homes! Or the incompetent folks at EHealth, who wasted tons of money and now must also receive various payouts?!

Ever hear of the broken window theory? When I was a kid & we broke someone's window, dad owned up to the cost & we were punished. Then things changed sometime. Parents refused to take responsibility for their errant kids action. They denied that " my kid would do that".at abandoned buildings, broken windows became the norm. No one cares. Maybe it is learned early now that you can get away with it and later on, that you just need a good lawyer & money (like O.J. Simpson had).

Well Wally could recognize merit when he saw it. He said to Bill that for future events, Bill should contact Chas to get the word out & muster the troops. Such is the clout that Chas still has among the retired pilots & probably current ones too. The class acts are known among many, if you are around long enough and look. In these days of mobile talent, people who leap frog around for promotions or are parachuted into an organization, it's harder to know what they're made of. But Chas had the Right Stuff. Air Commodore Burchill too. It's apparent to many.