If only Admiral William Fallon had been involved with a $5,500 call girl named Kristen, or maybe had murdered a blond coed...
I don't say this to libel this honorable man, but only to make the point about what it might take to get the attention of the addled, coddled, willfully ignorant American people about the really important things that are happening in the world. These thing will affect them far more than the hookers or coeds, or the "local news" that dominates their corporate-owned newspapers.
Admiral Fallon, the commander of all U.S. forces in the Middle East, resigned suddenly yesterday, citing "perceptions" of differences between his views and those of the Bush administration. As the New York Times put it, "Admiral Fallon had rankled senior officials of the Bush administration in recent months with comments that emphasized diplomacy over conflict in dealing with Iran, that endorsed further troop withdrawals from Iraq beyond those already under way and that suggested the United States had taken its eye off the military mission in Afghanistan."
So, in other words, he was someone who lived in the reality based world rather than the White House's faith-based world.
It's interesting to note that Fallon was picked by Bush (or Cheney) and had been in the job for only a year. I recall when he was selected, progressive commentators noted that an admiral had been put over what had been two ground wars, perhaps signaling the naval-based conflict with Iran to come. As it turns out, Fallon was one of the good guys. Maybe he was pushed to go. I hope he really resigned.
If senior commanders who knew Vietnam was the wrong war in the wrong place had resigned en mass rather than feathered their career nests, that great tragedy might have been averted. The same is true of the current misadventure in Iraq, where only then Army Chief of Staff Gen. Eric Shinseki had the guts to say it would take far more troops than Rumsfeld claimed.
Speaking of Rumsfeld, there had been a sense that with Robert Gates, the administration had backed away from the recklessness of its early years. Now, who knows? Could Bush and Cheney be preparing for a strike on Iran that will mire the next president in the regional war no matter what? Or was this more petty Bush loyalty at work.
Again, a shame the headlines go to Eliot Spitzer today. They should go to the actions of an honorable man, who did the right thing. Then, the questions should begin and impeachment should not be off the table.
Read the Esquire piece on Fallon here.
Dan Froomkin asks, "are we closer to war?"
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