(5 of 5)
False Security. Even at a lower level of command, where operational difficulties are more apparent, Bucher received little help or guidance. Rear Admiral Frank L. Johnson, commander of U.S. Naval Forces, Japan, was made fully aware of Pueblo's limitations by Bucher. Yet he did nothing to upgrade the ship. Indeed, Bucher testified that Johnson had assured him that his guns would never be needed, and in fact advised the skipper not to show "any aggressive intent" if harassed by North Korean or Soviet vessels. This attitude seemed to lull Bucher into a false sense of security, which may explain his rather slow realization that the North Koreans meant business. But, as a result, he was plainly in no position to resist capture.
Finally, the inquiry also raises questions as to the validity of the Military Code of Conduct (see ESSAY), which requires brave men of conscience like Bucher to endure vicious treatment rather than sign false confessions that are of dubious value anyway. Fiercely loyal to his crew, orphanage-raised Bucher could only be made to sign such a document when he believed his men—his military family—would be shot one by one. Whatever the court of inquiry decides, it is clear that the Navy's investigation will not satisfy Congress. Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield predicted that both the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the Senate Armed Services Committee will want to know a great deal more about the whys, whats and hows of a case in which the Navy may be, for good reason, less than eager to settle for a definitive investigation.