Has there been a McChrystal thread?

[Anonymous]

If not, what is your take on all of this?
I think the guy is a nut, but in the end, Obama might have needed to hear this.

[Anonymous]

If I trashed my employer, I'd expect to be fired.

But, Obama has to put the good of the nation and the war effort first. I don't want the guy fired if he's good at his job.

[Anonymous]

I don't know enough to know if McChrystal's criticism of the administration is justified or whether he should be fired but I am stunned that someone in his position would be so foolish as to share his views with a reporter. What was he thinking?

I mean, really -- anyone who has worked their way up so high in any bureaucracy usually has a clear understanding of appropriate behavior for a leader. This error on his part makes me wonder about his overall leadership capabilities.

I don't know what Obama should do though.

[jsteele]

Anonymous wrote:I don't know enough to know if McChrystal's criticism of the administration is justified or whether he should be fired but I am stunned that someone in his position would be so foolish as to share his views with a reporter. What was he thinking?

Apparently, he was thinking "one more beer wouldn't hurt". The story is that because of the Icelandic volcano, McChrystal had to travel from Paris to Berlin by bus. They brought a long quite a bit of Bud Light Lime (barf). By the time they got to Berlin, the reporter had the story of his life.

Also, according to latest reports, McChrystal is out. Petraeus is in.

[Anonymous]

Conservative here. I wholly agree with what he is saying..i.e. merit to all his problems with Obama and his team but...he shouldn't have said it to a reporter while he was serving and I agree with the decision to fire him. I would have respected more if he quit prior to the interview or after he earlier said that Obama wouldn't take his call..that spoke volumes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If not, what is your take on all of this?
I think the guy is a nut, but in the end, Obama might have needed to hear this.

McChrystal is guilty of insobordination and was rightfully fired, as Harry Truman fired D. McArthur. The POTUS MUST have commanders whom he can trust and knows when to keep his mouth shut. McChrystal should be demoted in rank and I hope he is.

[Anonymous]

If you are a soldier and you disrespect your superior, you know what you are in for. Whatever Obama needed to hear, the Armed Forces needed to hear that the chain of command has to be respected. Either that or Obama would get eaten alive. It's not like General have never thought it - his predecessors were GW Bush and Bill Clinton. Both men had real soldiers shaking their heads. But it's one thing to think it, and another thing to say it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you are a soldier and you disrespect your superior, you know what you are in for.

Sounds like they had a man who knew what he was doing. And fired him for something oh so petty
No point going to war without a clear exit strategy.
No point having politicians interfering with the work of the generals
Stalin was wise enough to bow to the demands of the generals. Hitler was not, and we know the end result

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you are a soldier and you disrespect your superior, you know what you are in for.

Sounds like they had a man who knew what he was doing. And fired him for something oh so petty
No point going to war without a clear exit strategy.
No point having politicians interfering with the work of the generals
Stalin was wise enough to bow to the demands of the generals. Hitler was not, and we know the end result

A. He's a professional soldiers. He knows the rules on respecting the chain of command and would be no less severe to his subordinates.
B. Neither McChrystal, his replacement, or Obama actually went to war. They are forced to deal with it, however.
C. You must have missed the part about The Great Purge. Ever heard of it? Including his purge of the military? He didn't exactly fire them, either.
D. By our Constitution, the military is answerable to the President. If you feel this decision was made in error, why don't you go about a campaign for an amendment?

[Anonymous]

He showed bad judgment and it was the President's prerogative to fire him. I don't fault him for what he said, just that he said it with a Rolling Stone reporter around. Bad judgment - and he knew it and went quietly without bitching. Otherwise, I thank him for his service.

[Anonymous]

I think he was deliberately pulling his own trigger. You don't get that far and then rant in front of a Rolling Stone reporter. If he wanted to quit and let people know how he felt about his job and his boss, this is exactly how he would do it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
A. He's a professional soldiers. He knows the rules on respecting the chain of command and would be no less severe to his subordinates.
B. Neither McChrystal, his replacement, or Obama actually went to war. They are forced to deal with it, however.
C. You must have missed the part about The Great Purge. Ever heard of it? Including his purge of the military? He didn't exactly fire them, either.
D. By our Constitution, the military is answerable to the President. If you feel this decision was made in error, why don't you go about a campaign for an amendment?

A. At that level, it no longer is a master-servant relationship. You are talking about professions that speacilize in totally different fields that must work together.
B. So what, deal with it means get out. mr bush did not care how it would end because that would be someone elses job
c. General Zhukov missed the great purge because he was in the far east, Valdivostok.
D. Military is answerable to president, means also president is answerable to military. Everybody is going to be pissed if it gets dragged on and on because of political games. In the long run that will cause more deaths among soldiers, and will hurt the careers of the useless politicians, but they are not thinking long term, life of a soldier out there is not an issue to them. The life of the civilians of that other nation is definitely something they would even worry about