How to keep retired generals honest

Can any retired three- or four-star general be a West Point professor upholding the standards of academic\nintegrity; a corporate advocate advancing through personal contacts the\nfortunes of defense contractors; an independent observer and objective reporter\nof current events for major news corporations; and, simultaneously, a moral\nexemplar for the Army Profession? The answer is a qualified yes; i.e., only if\nthere is no possible perception of conflicts of interest.

[The chief of staff of the army] should quickly establish under the auspices\nof the Profession an electronic registry of retired three- and four-star\ngenerals that details the affiliations of each officer, both with for-profit\nand not-for-profit entities. To rightly restore the moral obligations over the\nlegal, the registry would be voluntary. Each retired officer would voluntarily\nenter their own affiliations and keep them current. Most importantly, the\nregistry would be open to the public so that any interested person could see at\nany time, under the auspices of the Profession, the ties each individual\nretired general has and has voluntarily offered to the public. Perceptions of\nconflicts of interest can best be avoided if all affiliations are well-known in\nadvance of commitments and contracts.

Read Snider's full commentary here.