'Tact'



A young Naval officer was severely wounded in the head in combat in Viet Nam, but the only visible, permanent injury was that both of his ears were amputated.

However, since his remaining hearing was sufficient, he remained in the Navy.

Many years later he eventually rose to the rank of Admiral. He was, however, very sensitive about his appearance. One day the Admiral was interviewing three servicemen who were candidates for his staff.

The first was a Lieutenant who had a great interview.  At the end of the interview the Admiral asked him…

 "Do you notice anything different about me?"
The Lieutenant answered…

 "Why, yes, sir, I couldn't help but notice that you have no ears."
The Admiral was displeased with his lack of tact and threw him out.

The second interview was with a very experienced Commander and he was even better. The Admiral then asked him the same question…

"Do you notice anything different about me?"
The Commander replied sheepishly…

 "Well, sir, you have no ears."

…The Admiral threw him out also.
The third interview was with an old Chief Petty Officer, a Boatswain's Mate with many red hashmarks. He was smart, articulate, fit, looked sharp, and seemed to know more than the two officers combined.

The Admiral liked this guy and went ahead with the same question…

 "Do you notice anything different about me?"
To his surprise the Master Chief said…

"Yes, sir, you wear contact lenses."
The Admiral was very impressed and thought, 'What an incredibly observant man, and he didn't mention my ears.' 

He asked…

"Master Chief, how do you know I wear contacts?"

"Well, sir," he replied, "it's pretty hard to wear glasses with no fucking ears."