U.S. Naval Reserve Insignia reprise
Sometimes the U.S. Navy doesn’t quite get it right. Back in the 1970s CNO Admiral Zumwalt embarked on a noble experiment: for men beards and sideburns were allowed and crackerjacks were removed from an enlisted sailor’s sea chest. A bluejacket could sport sideburns reaching the end of his earlobes, and everyone got to wear a reefer and a combination cap! Regarding the latter, career Petty Officers clamored for their traditional uniforms back despite the professional appearance the new uniforms promoted. In the early eighties, the CNO had enough of weird beards and mandated them shaved off because they didn’t work with the Navy-issue Mark V gasmasks.
When the CNO announced the retirement of the USNR badge in 2011 and further singling out (Kings Point) midshipmen as not able to wear its replacement, the Academy authorized its return, albeit in a different form. No one complained – then again who would listen? For an organization bent on tradition and group cohesion, the U.S. Navy got it wrong with the SSWO badge (and the anacronym is terrible).
(See the link above.)