Did the internet just get the commander of a guided-missile destroyer fired??
Navy Commander Cameron Yaste was in charge of the USS John McCain — a guided-missile destroyer that is protecting USS Theodore Roosevelt in the Middle East — but was just relieved of duty "due to a loss of confidence in his ability to command."
The statement didn't elaborate about why Yaste was replaced.
That's code for, months ago, he went viral after someone snapped a photo of him firing a rifle with the scope mounted ... backwards. 👇
(Maybe that explains why he sucked at parallel parking the destroyer …)
The internet had a field day with all this, because nothing says "military prowess" like being the butt of every Reddit meme for a month.
Even the Marine Corps piled on, posting a picture of a Marine with a properly mounted scope with the caption "Clear Sight Picture."
Ouch.
At least the Navy had a sense of humor about all this. They posted the picture, realized the screw-up, and said, "Thanks for pointing out our rifle scope error ... Picture has been removed until [extra military instruction] is completed."
Yaste has been replaced by Capt. Allison Christy, whose first move was probably to mount a scope in public …
As for what the USS McCain and the aircraft carriers Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln are up to off the Gulf of Oman:
The Pentagon sent the carriers to the Middle East to be in position should Israel need help repelling an attack by Iran or other countries, if such a thing happens, military officials said.
On the bright side, with conflict brewing across the world, at least we're winning the meme war.
Follow Ian on Substack or X (@ighaworth).
P.S. Now check out our latest video 👇
