A Space Force Member Was Busted Down a Rank for Bailing on PT to Get a PlayStation 5

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The memorandum for record posted on the Air Force amn/nco/snco Facebook page.
The memorandum for record posted on the Air Force amn/nco/snco Facebook page.

This article by David Roza originally appeared on Task & Purpose, a digital news and culture publication dedicated to military and veterans issues.

A recent Space Force letter of reprimand is truly a sight to behold. According to the letter and an accompanying memorandum for record, a Space Force member was 30 minutes late for a fitness lesson because he was scouting out nearby Target stores for the new PlayStation 5 console.

When the Space Force member was reminded by his superior to get to the fitness lesson, he responded "Yolo, PS5 > letters of discipline."

Yolo, as the kids say, means “you only live once,” and it’s that kind of reckless attitude that gets one’s name written up in a letter of reprimand.

"You were late to work and insinuated to your supervisor that buying a PlayStation was more important to you than the disciplinary consequences of your actions," reads the letter, which was shared on the popular Air Force amn/nco/snco Facebook page Tuesday. "Your actions are an extreme deviation from the professionalism expected of you as a member of the armed forces."

As a result, the Space Force member was knocked down a rank from senior airman to airman 1st class on Tuesday, according to the letter. It might have been a worthwhile trade-off to get a highly sought-after PlayStation 5, but the letter does not indicate whether his search was successful.

The letter has remarkable timing: It was posted just days after the Space Force trounced American and British military teams at a Call of Duty tournament. As the letter clearly demonstrates, Space Force members will put their careers on the line to maintain their gaming dominance. We can only hope they employ a similar ferocity in their fight for American interests in the final frontier. Semper Supra!

This article originally appeared at Task & Purpose. Follow Task & Purpose on Twitter.

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