LT McDonough is in a position of leadership and has to act accordingly. Everything he does is held to a higher standard due to his position. PFC King carelessly triggered his M-79 grenade launcher towards LT McDonough and acted nonchalantly about the severity of his action. This was a critical moment for LT McDonough because this will set the tone for how his platoon will see him. LT McDonough raged at PFC King, which I think was the right thing to do. PFC King did not have “muzzle awareness” or care about his surroundings. He could have killed LT McDonough or anyone in the platoon, thus affecting the mission they were set out to do.

Leaders are faced with an opportunity to handle situations in a calm or enraged tone. If a soldier was being disrespectful or defiant towards me, I would pull them aside from the group and ask them (one-on-one) to fix themselves. I’m the type of person to give someone a chance to correct themselves and not let it happen again. However, if I was in a tactical environment and a soldier was purposefully aiming their weapon towards me, I would’ve done the same exact thing that LT McDonough.