A boner of contention!
He sprinted on seven-mile stretches along the rugged terrain at the crack of dawn, was a 4-star General who savored a great camaraderie with his fellow soldiers up-and-down the chain of command) - and quite possibly - ate nails for breakfast.
And, at the height of his brillliant military career, stumbled.
Uh-huh.
General McChrystal was given (allowed to hand-deliver) his walking papers.
Background Story
Post: 06/22/10
http://ijulian.blogspot.com/2010/06/general-mcchrystalgets-sack-according.html
In the infamous Rolling Stone interview at the aforementioned link, one of McChrystal's crusty chronies was heard to lament that the General was never given the President's undivided attention.
"He (Barack Obama) didn't even fu**king know who his top dawg in Afghanistan was," barked out the Officer in so many words.
The boss was pissed.
The comments didn't fall on deaf ears, though.
When the General was "summoned" to the White House, a spokesperson underscored that the top honcho in charge of Afghanistan would be getting Obama's "undivided attention".
Ironic that!
The meeting he longed for was his last.
Though tough to make, the decision to let McChrystal go ended up being best for the country, the troops overseas, and the Afghanistan war.
In a nutshell, President Barack Obama triggered - and in the aftermath - re-established civilian control over the military.
On the heels of the General's resignation, the President noted for the record that his decision to relieve McChyrstal of his duties was not due to any disagreement in policy or out of any sense of personal insult.
It all boiled down to a code of conduct unbefitting an officer.
I happen to be one of those inquiring individuals who believes that the General and his men made a deliberate effort to engage the Rolling Stone writer - and thereafter - hurled the insults knowing full well they'd be published.
Why?
To cast dissent, stir up the stakes, you name it.
Interestingly, on Larry King Live last night, the insightful writer was asked on-camera via satellite if they (the General and his jarhead buddies) knew it was coming.
The journalist paused longer than usual, reflected for a moment, then told Larry he had warned them there might be a couple of rough days ahead.
But, I had another take on Larry's question.
Did he mean did they know what the reaction would be or that the article he was penning was about to perform a full-frontal lobotomy on these yahoos?
Only Larry King has the answer to that question.
In my mind, because General MChrystal and his gung-ho grunts courted the reporter, they ended up getting their just desserts.
The big swinging dick stopped here.
I never promised you a Rose Garden!
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