@ Michael Harold

“If you are telling me that the internal politics of the military has changed radically in the last forty years, I will listen. But I have seen nothing but politics since the day George Bush was elected. I have seen the best generals fired for providing their honest opinions and the the remaining generals elevated through attrition. That sounds like politics to me.”

@ Bryan Hayward

“This is the real world that military members live in. This is the real reason, credibility and competence aside, why NO ONE should be taking anything a general says at face value. They are not free to speak their mind except when it agrees with their superiors. Thus, it has no probative value.”

@ L.W.M.

“As I have mentioned before, propaganda and information content management have become major pre-occupations of the US armed forces in the post Vietnam era. Why? It is because all of us who experienced defeat in Vietnam have spent decades trying to understand why that happened and the conclusion reached (mistakenly I think) is that the left successfully propagandized the American people against us and our effort.”

Having served as an Air Force public affairs officer from 1963-1991, in Pacific Air Force Headquarters in Hawaii from 1971-1974 and in CENTCOM Headquarters during its creation from 1982-1986, I have seen first hand the times when dirty, diseased presidential politics infects normally honorable members of the military, especially general officers. What I experienced during the Nixon and Reagan administrations pales in comparison to what I am witnessing with the Rumsfeld-Cheney-Bush Administration.

The all-volunteer force clearly produced the highest quality military we have ever had. We fought for and won a level playing field for minorities and women. If you have read some of my posts, you would understand that I did not fit the typical military personality mold, yet I was able to function well enough to reach Lt. Col. and keep my integrity with the media and my commanders throughout my career. The fact that I was called a “nigger-lover” by my peers in Korea, got a lot of bars of dove soap in my in-box at Squadron Officer School because I opposed my peers’ cries to nuke the North Koreans during the Pueblo crisis and professionally disagreed with my superiors often, probably hampered my chances to reach full colonel. It did not diminish my love of the military, my decision to be a career officer and the fine men and women I served with.

I strongly supported Bush #41’s decision to not go on to Baghdad and vociferously opposed his son’s Iraq invasion. As wrong as Gen. Petraeus is in his belief that he has a chance of succeeding, we should not forget that he is faced with having to accept defeat and face the reality that our military deaths in Iraq and the political mess created, was totally avoidable to believe he can still succeed. That is not easy for someone who has not met many setbacks on his way up the officer promotion ladder and has seen the horrors of combat firsthand. Unfortunately, he will probably end up being another scapegoat along with us liberals and the Democratic party on why the war was lost.

There is nothing more disgusting than when conservative “ends justify the means” politics interferes with military integrity and weak, misguided leaders like generals Meyers, Franks, Pace and perhaps Petraeus are placed at the top to serve as puppets and honorable people below suffer and die.

We need Glenn and the many fine bloggers on Glenn’s Salon site to keep on with their current brand of outstanding service to our country. Hopefully, through the 2008 election and recognition by the American people that they are as disgusted as we are, we can bring our country safely through this period, start healing ourselves and minimize the neocon, RWA disease that has threatened our freedoms.

Thanks. To have read my post and found that posting referring to me so quickly, proves you are the fastest blog "gun" in the west.

I always did dislike "comrades" who dismissed my desk job as insignificant. A news summary briefing of Middle East media reports that I set up for our CINC at CENTCOM every morning, that caused our intell guys to often get scooped and lessened the CINC's calls to the pentagon by 40-60%, is just one example of how us desk guys were so useless.

Politics always plays a role in the life of general officers, especially when striving for three and four stars. Your logic, that two wrongs make a right is so typical of the neocon thinking that got us into this mess and keeps us there for purely political reasons. Your burning desire to keep from facing the truth by using this kind of argument, just proves how desperate you are. Why not try a more factual, meaningful argument?

Exactly. The political mess and psychological. religious, tribal scars were there the first time and I think the results would have been almost as tragic for the Iraqi people. The damage to our image and prestige in the world, would have been much less and the build-up of al-Qaeda not nearly as damaging. Although the jihadists would have been given an earlier head start. Saddam if left to his ugly devices, could have been contained and eventually would have died, been deposed or assassinated.

You really read me well. It is why I go through each day with much sadness and anger. I try to use my anger in a positive way, remain a pessimistic optimist and refuse to stoop to the level of useless name-calling and derision.

The fact that you know the cliff is there, you don't have to worry about going over it. It's those who drive over before they know it is there and then blame everyone but themselves for the ensuing deaths, who may be beyond help.