This is what a lot of us veterans feared when the initial stand down was ordered by the new Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin. From the Military Times:

Sailors engaging with an offensive post regarding white supremacism on social media could themselves be viewed as contributing to extremism in the service, according to Chief of Naval Personnel Vice Adm. John Nowell Jr.

“Just by posting, retweeting, or liking an offensive post on social media — you could be participating in extremism,” Nowell said in a new video shared on Facebook.

“You may not personally know any shipmates with extremist beliefs,” Nowell said. “But I assure you that those forces of darkness are among us.”

So I guess it boils down to what is defined as extremist. I haven’t heard exactly what that means. And who is going to make these determinations? Is it going to be up to commanding officers?

This is a horrible idea, and it may well prove paralyzing to our services. The amount of administrative work generated is going to be at the expense of any mission. And how can this be adjudicated the same across the board?  I expect lawsuits aplenty. I expect attrition is going to go way up after this year.