CNN Calls Texas Colonel a "Corporal".👎
Oops.
Of course the abbreviation for Corporal and Colonel both have a "C', an "o" and an "l" in them (Col. for Colonel, Cpl. for Corporal.)
| Corporal |
| Colonel |
And considering the fact that relatively few Americans served in the military, it's no wonder CNN made the mistake.
In 2018, about 7% of U.S. adults were veterans, down from 18% in 1980, according to the Census Bureau. This drop coincides with decreases in active-duty personnel. Over the past half-century, the number of people on active duty has dropped significantly, from 3.5 million in 1968, during the military draft era, to about 1.4 million (or less than 1% of all U.S. adults) in today’s all-volunteer force. The draft ended in 1973.
I presume someone explained the difference to CNN, since their online story and later broadcasts seemed to get it right.
.jpg) |
| Pvt. Tim Lennox, 1969 |
And just to be clear, the CNN reporter was referring to a Texas Department of Public Safety Colonel, not an Army Colonel, but the same issue applies.
And let's not forget there are two Colonel ranks, as well as four general ranks (excluding the General of the Army). But most confusing of all is that a Major General is of lesser rank then a Lieutenant General, though a straight up Major is a higher rank than a Lieutenant! Whew.
ReplyDeleteAdd to the confusion; two colonel ranks, four general ranks (excluding general of the army), a Major General being a lower rank than a Lieutenant General, while a Major ranks higher than a Lieutenant. Go figure.
ReplyDelete