Metal Sludge Gossip Board

No discussion about this... opinions?

The very idea of the community organizer browbeating a four-star general is just plain silly. McChrystal crossed the line. But it pains me to see an army career ended by a commander-in-chief who isn't fit to shine his military boots.

Nevermind wrote:The very idea of the community organizer browbeating a four-star general is just plain silly. McChrystal crossed the line. But it pains me to see an army career ended by a commander-in-chief who isn't fit to shine his military boots.

These fuckers have to suck it up. There were generals serving under Bush for Christ's sake and they managed to keep their traps shut.

I don't really care either way, these stupid wars have completely lost my interest. We should just shut these things down and come home.

McChrystal wouldn't tolerate insubordination from his subordinates. Why shouldn't his Commander in Chief expect the same? You always respect the chain of command. It's one of the first lessons a recruit learns in boot camp. Like MacArthur, he forgot where the chain of command ended.

Nevermind wrote:The very idea of the community organizer browbeating a four-star general is just plain silly. McChrystal crossed the line. But it pains me to see an army career ended by a commander-in-chief who isn't fit to shine his military boots.

He's not just a community organizer, he's the Commander in Chief. All members of the military serve the office, not the man. Your pain marks you as a fucking pussy who thinks that the military should respect the president at their discretion only, a fact that totally invalidates the chain of command that is so important to military discipline.

tin00can wrote:

Nevermind wrote:The very idea of the community organizer browbeating a four-star general is just plain silly. McChrystal crossed the line. But it pains me to see an army career ended by a commander-in-chief who isn't fit to shine his military boots.

He's not just a community organizer, he's the Commander in Chief. All members of the military serve the office, not the man. Your pain marks you as a fucking pussy who thinks that the military should respect the president at their discretion only, a fact that totally invalidates the chain of command that is so important to military discipline.

It also demonstrates profound ignorance.

Someone somewhere else blamed the Iceland volcano.

McChrystal was one of the millions who were unable to fly out of Europe. So he, and apparently the RS reporter were on a chartered bus or something and the booze was flowing. The General got liquored up and shoved his foot/career in his mouth. Ooops.


I don't know if the above is true, but if it is, the guy has got to be something of an idiot to say the things he did (or drunk). I mean, it's Rolling Stone, for fuck's sake.

Oh..and this. Nevermind, what is so special about McChrystal other than the fact that he was able to climb the career ladder of the Army. It isn't a though he was actually out there fightin'. That said, he is/was quite capable.

SeminiferousButtNoid wrote:I don't think we should be over there anyway but I just think it's funny that the left clamours about this guy speaking out
against the Obama administration's leadership while that's exactly what they wanted old Davey "Betray Us" Petraus to do to the Shrub three years ago. Typical.

Just a slight difference between the two situations. What was wanted form Petraeus was an honest assessment in front of Congress. "The left" didn't want the off the cuff cracks like:

"Are you asking about Vice President Biden?" McChrystal says with a laugh. "Who's that?"

Or this:

"Oh not another e-mail from Holbrooke," [McChrystal] groans. "I don't even want to open it." He clicks on the message and reads the salutation out loud, then stuffs the BlackBerry back in his pocket, not bothering to conceal his annoyance.

"Make sure you don't get any of that on your leg," an aide jokes, referring to the e-mail.

Or stuff like this...

"I'd rather have my ass kicked by a roomful of people than go out to this dinner," McChrystal says.

He pauses a beat.

"Unfortunately," he adds, "no one in this room could do it."
With that, he's out the door.

"Who's he going to dinner with?" I ask one of his aides.

"Some French minister," the aide tells me. "It's fucking gay."

I have no problem with McChrystal and his team thinking this stuff, but there's some things that you should just keep to yourself, or at least not in front of a reporter. Save it for your memoirs after you're retired.

Personally, I wouldn't have minded if he'd gotten to keep the job, after eating a big old helping of public shit.

SeminiferousButtNoid wrote:I don't think we should be over there anyway but I just think it's funny that the left clamours about this guy speaking out
against the Obama administration's leadership while that's exactly what they wanted old Davey "Betray Us" Petraus to do to the Shrub three years ago. Typical.

I'm sure that was true for a lot of people, but not for me.

vlad wrote:Someone somewhere else blamed the Iceland volcano.

McChrystal was one of the millions who were unable to fly out of Europe. So he, and apparently the RS reporter were on a chartered bus or something and the booze was flowing. The General got liquored up and shoved his foot/career in his mouth. Ooops.


I don't know if the above is true, but if it is, the guy has got to be something of an idiot to say the things he did (or drunk). I mean, it's Rolling Stone, for fuck's sake.

Oh..and this. Nevermind, what is so special about McChrystal other than the fact that he was able to climb the career ladder of the Army. It isn't a though he was actually out there fightin'. That said, he is/was quite capable.

I imagine he did some fighting when he was a Green Beret. It's not as if he got HIS command position without ever serving a day in the military or actually fighting.

However, you're right. The chain of command is not something you ignore without severe repercussions. I sort of think he wanted this. He had to know it would turn out this way. Although replacing him with a man who just collapsed in front of Congress is questionable, but who else did they have?

I understand his disdain for having Obama and Biden as first and second up at the top, but that doesn't mean he should have voiced it. If you mock the boss you're probably gonna get fired.

JakeYonkel wrote:I understand his disdain for having Obama and Biden as first and second up at the top, but that doesn't mean he should have voiced it. If you mock the boss you're probably gonna get fired.

I don't know about that. He said he voted for Obama. I think that he and his cadre just got way too comfortable and hence very unprofessional with the embedded Rolling Stone reporter (now there's a weird phrase. Embedded RS reporter). And they forgot that they serve the civilian government. it was a very costly loose move. I wonder what has happened to the others who were making cracks. Their careers probably aren't going to flourish.

vlad wrote:

JakeYonkel wrote:I understand his disdain for having Obama and Biden as first and second up at the top, but that doesn't mean he should have voiced it. If you mock the boss you're probably gonna get fired.

I don't know about that. He said he voted for Obama. I think that he and his cadre just got way too comfortable and hence very unprofessional with the embedded Rolling Stone reporter (now there's a weird phrase. Embedded RS reporter). And they forgot that they serve the civilian government. it was a very costly loose move. I wonder what has happened to the others who were making cracks. Their careers probably aren't going to flourish.

I guess I find it odd that somebody who is going to be working, essentially, directly beneath the President would have chosen Obama - NOT a military man by any definition - over McCain. Other politics aside, of course.

JakeYonkel wrote:

vlad wrote:

JakeYonkel wrote:I understand his disdain for having Obama and Biden as first and second up at the top, but that doesn't mean he should have voiced it. If you mock the boss you're probably gonna get fired.

I don't know about that. He said he voted for Obama. I think that he and his cadre just got way too comfortable and hence very unprofessional with the embedded Rolling Stone reporter (now there's a weird phrase. Embedded RS reporter). And they forgot that they serve the civilian government. it was a very costly loose move. I wonder what has happened to the others who were making cracks. Their careers probably aren't going to flourish.

I guess I find it odd that somebody who is going to be working, essentially, directly beneath the President would have chosen Obama - NOT a military man by any definition - over McCain. Other politics aside, of course.

Well, just because McCain was in the military, it doesn't follow that a career military person would automatically vote for him. In fact it is possible (hard to believe i know ) that a career military person would recognise just what a loose cannon McCain would have been.

Being in the military does not automatically suggest a desire to "bomb, bomb, bomb Iran" or go into every little clusterfuck in the world, like say Georgia, another of McCain's pet conflicts. Oh yeah, and the whole Israel thing. McChrystal actually came out and said that our support for Israel has put American soldiers at risk.

I wonder, and probably wrongly, the McChrystal and his aides were putting on a show for the reporter, going for some kind of "cool" cred, Not realising how badly it would backfire.

I'm sticking with the liquor on the bus scenario.

JakeYonkel wrote:

vlad wrote:

JakeYonkel wrote:I understand his disdain for having Obama and Biden as first and second up at the top, but that doesn't mean he should have voiced it. If you mock the boss you're probably gonna get fired.

I don't know about that. He said he voted for Obama. I think that he and his cadre just got way too comfortable and hence very unprofessional with the embedded Rolling Stone reporter (now there's a weird phrase. Embedded RS reporter). And they forgot that they serve the civilian government. it was a very costly loose move. I wonder what has happened to the others who were making cracks. Their careers probably aren't going to flourish.

I guess I find it odd that somebody who is going to be working, essentially, directly beneath the President would have chosen Obama - NOT a military man by any definition - over McCain. Other politics aside, of course.

Most presidents aren't "military men." There's always going to be some sort of disconnect between the president and his military commanders as a result.