McChrystal Gets the Hollywood Treatment

So, Brad Pitt’s THE OPERATORS Won’t Be About Folks Who Help With Phone Calls??

McChyrstal vindicated?

AP: Pentagon inquiry clears McChrystal of wrongdoing

From the article: "Obama at the time called the dismissal the right decision for U.S. national security and said McChrystal's conduct represented in the magazine article also "undermines the civilian control of the military that is at the core of our democratic system. And it erodes the trust that's necessary for our team to work together to achieve our objectives in Afghanistan."

WIRED post on Gen. McChrystal

Stan McChrystal’s Very Human Wired War

I think this is the first of two.

Stanley McChrystal Likes National Service

Step Up For Your Country
The general who led U.S. forces in Afghanistan makes the case for national service and the ‘basic responsibilities of being an American.’

I don't have anything new to say here. I don't see National Service as being compatible with true relocalization efforts. There can be a "national," that is nation-wide, mobilization of young people to learn new skills and promote sustainable living in their communities, and if such knowledge does not exist there, then they can go to other areas to learn it. But having another bureaucratic machine at the "Federal" level? I say no.

He should have stuck to the Army. I hope he's not thinking of running for office.

Bacevich on the McChrystal affair

Endless war, a recipe for four-star arrogance (via Rod Dreher)

But indications that the military's professional ethic is eroding, evident in the disrespect for senior civilians expressed by McChrystal and his inner circle, should set off alarms.

Earlier generations of American leaders, military as well as civilian, instinctively understood the danger posed by long wars. "A democracy cannot fight a Seven Years War," Gen. George C. Marshall once remarked. The people who provided the lifeblood of the citizen army raised to wage World War II had plenty of determination but limited patience. They wanted victory won and normalcy restored.

The wisdom of Marshall's axiom soon became clear. In Vietnam, Lyndon B. Johnson plunged the United States into what became its Seven Years War. The citizen army that was sent to Southeast Asia fought valiantly for a time and then fell to pieces. As the conflict dragged on, Americans in large numbers turned against the war -- and also against the troops who fought it.

After Vietnam, the United States abandoned its citizen army tradition, oblivious to the consequences. In its place, it opted for what the Founders once called a "standing army" -- a force consisting of long-serving career professionals.

For a time, the creation of this so-called all-volunteer force, only tenuously linked to American society, appeared to be a master stroke. Washington got superbly trained soldiers and Republicans and Democrats took turns putting them to work. The result, once the Cold War ended, was greater willingness to intervene abroad. As Americans followed news reports of U.S. troops going into action everywhere from the Persian Gulf to the Balkans, from the Caribbean to the Horn of Africa, they found little to complain about: The costs appeared negligible. Their role was simply to cheer.

This happy arrangement now shows signs of unraveling, a victim of what the Pentagon has all too appropriately been calling its Long War.

The Long War is not America's war. It belongs exclusively to "the troops," lashed to a treadmill that finds soldiers and Marines either serving in a combat zone or preparing to deploy.

To be an American soldier today is to serve a people who find nothing amiss in the prospect of armed conflict without end. Once begun, wars continue, persisting regardless of whether they receive public support. President Obama's insistence to the contrary notwithstanding, this nation is not even remotely "at" war. In explaining his decision to change commanders without changing course in Afghanistan, the president offered this rhetorical flourish: "Americans don't flinch in the face of difficult truths." In fact, when it comes to war, the American people avert their eyes from difficult truths. Largely unaffected by events in Afghanistan and Iraq and preoccupied with problems much closer to home, they have demonstrated a fine ability to tune out war. Soldiers (and their families) are left holding the bag.

Throughout history, circumstances such as these have bred praetorianism, warriors becoming enamored with their moral superiority and impatient with the failings of those they are charged to defend. The smug disdain for high-ranking civilians casually expressed by McChrystal and his chief lieutenants -- along with the conviction that "Team America," as these officers style themselves, was bravely holding out against a sea of stupidity and corruption -- suggests that the officer corps of the United States is not immune to this affliction.

To imagine that replacing McChrystal with Gen. David H. Petraeus will fix the problem is wishful thinking. To put it mildly, Petraeus is no simple soldier. He is a highly skilled political operator, whose name appears on Republican wish lists as a potential presidential candidate in 2012. Far more significant, the views cultivated within Team America are shared elsewhere.

The day the McChrystal story broke, an active-duty soldier who has served multiple combat tours offered me his perspective on the unfolding spectacle. The dismissive attitude expressed by Team America, he wrote, "has really become a pandemic in the Army." Among his peers, a belief that "it is OK to condescend to civilian leaders" has become common, ranking officers permitting or even endorsing "a culture of contempt" for those not in uniform. Once the previously forbidden becomes acceptable, it soon becomes the norm.

"Pretty soon you have an entire organization believing that their leader is the 'Savior' and that everyone else is stupid and incompetent, or not committed to victory." In this soldier's view, things are likely to get worse before they get better. "Senior officers who condone this kind of behavior and allow this to continue and fester," he concluded, "create generation after generation of officers like themselves -- but they're generally so arrogant that they think everyone needs to be just like them anyway."

He repeats the recommendations that he has written previously:

The responsibility facing the American people is clear. They need to reclaim ownership of their army. They need to give their soldiers respite, by insisting that Washington abandon its de facto policy of perpetual war. Or, alternatively, the United States should become a nation truly "at" war, with all that implies in terms of civic obligation, fiscal policies and domestic priorities. Should the people choose neither course -- and thereby subject their troops to continuing abuse -- the damage to the army and to American democracy will be severe.

ISAF: Statement by General Stanley McChrystal

VFR: McChrystal approved Rolling Stone article prior to publication

Items of Interest, 24 June 2010

Daniel Larison, McChrystal and Afghanistan
Sean Scallon, Doesn’t BP have enough corporate spokespersons?
John Willson, Why I am a Conservative

Zenit:
Church in Japan Notes Falling Numbers
What to Do About Pornography (Part 1)
Saintly Founder Lived Charity to the Extreme
Papal Homily During Visit to Dominican Cloister

Energy Bulletin:
Eat less meat, eat better meat (original)

Ralph Loglisci, Civil Eats

The list of Meatless Monday supporters continues to grow across the globe, and surprisingly to some, many of the latest enthusiasts make their living either cooking meat, such as chef Mario Batali or producing it, like rancher Nicolette Hahn Niman. What makes Meatless Monday so successful is its simple and inclusive message which promotes moderation with the goal of improving public health and the health of the planet.

Peak oil — a crisis postponed (original)
Dave Cohen, Decline of the Empire

As the global economy goes, so goes oil demand. If the outlook for the global economy is not so good, oil consumption will stagnate or increase very slowly. If oil demand grows slowly or not at all, consumption will remain below the world's productive capacity, as measured in millions of barrels-per-day. If oil demand remains below the available supply, there will be no oil price shock.

Counterpunch:
Gareth Porter, Why McChrystal Did Obama a Big Favor
Paul Craig Roberts, Is Petraeus McChrystal's Replacement or Obama's?
Alan Farago, The Forty Year War on the Environment

The Tillman Story

trailer @ Yahoo!

website
Sundance 2010

Sundance ‘10 | Amir Bar-Lev Deconstructs the Hero Myth in “Tillman Story”



It's somewhat appropriate that I find the trailer on the same day that General McChrystal's resignation was accepted.

COIN still the order of the day.

US President Barack Obama, General David Petraeus, and Defense Secretary Robert Gates (R) make their way through the Colonnade for Obama to make a statement in the Rose Garden June 23, 2010 at the White House in Washington, DC. Obama announced the resignation of Afghan war commander General Stanley McChrystal and named Petraeus as his replacement. (Getty/Daylife)

(L-R)US General David Petraeus, Defense Secretary Robert Gates, US Vice President Joe Biden, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen make their way through the Colonnade for a statement by US President Barack Obama in the Rose Garden June 23, 2010 at the White House in Washington, DC. Obama announced the resignation of Afghan war commander General Stanley McChrystal and named Petraeus as his replacement. (Getty/Daylife)

WASHINGTON - JUNE 23: U.S. President Barack Obama (C) makes a statement as (L-R) Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen, Vice President Joseph Biden, Commander of U.S. Central Command Gen. David Petraeus, and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates listen in the Rose Garden of the White House June 23, 2010 in Washington, DC. Obama has named Gen. Petraeus to replace Gen. Stanley McChrystal as top commander of the U.S. Force in Afghanistan, after an article quoting Gen. McChrystal disparaging the Obama Administration was published in Rolling Stone magazine. (Getty/Daylife)

WASHINGTON - JUNE 23: U.S. President Barack Obama (C) announces his decision to put U.S. Army Gen. David Petreaus (R) in charge of American and NATO forces in Afghanistan with Vice President Joe Biden (L) in the Rose Garden of the White House June 23, 2010 in Washington, DC. Obama accepted the resignation of Gen. Stanley McChrystal after a Rolling Stone magazine article quoted Gen. McChrystal disparaging Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and other leaders in the administration. (Getty/Daylife)

U.S. President Barack Obama announces that Gen. David Petraeus will replace Gen. Stanley McChrystal as his top commander in Afghanistan while in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, June 23, 2010. (Reuters/Daylife)

WASHINGTON - JUNE 23: Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen (R) and Commander of U.S. Central Command Gen. David Petraeus (L) leave after U.S. President Barack Obama (C) made a statement in the Rose Garden of the White House June 23, 2010 in Washington, DC. Obama has named Gen. Petraeus to replace Gen. Stanley McChrystal as top commander of the U.S. Force in Afghanistan, after an article quoting Gen. McChrystal disparaging the Obama Administration was published in Rolling Stone magazine. (Getty/Daylife)

From earlier that morning:





US commander in Afghanistan Gen. Stanley McChrystal (C) arrives at the White House in Washington,DC on June 23, 2010. President Barack Obama is to confront his top commander in Afghanistan amid speculation that the four-star US general might be fired for disparaging remarks in a magazine article. (Getty/Daylife)

That Rolling Stone interview

The Runaway General by Michael Hastings
Stanley McChrystal, Obama's top commander in Afghanistan, has seized control of the war by never taking his eye off the real enemy: The wimps in the White House

"The entire COIN strategy is a fraud perpetuated on the American people," says Douglas Macgregor, a retired colonel and leading critic of counterinsurgency who attended West Point with McChrystal. "The idea that we are going to spend a trillion dollars to reshape the culture of the Islamic world is utter nonsense.

Douglas Macgregor (youtube channel)

Kelley Vlahos, Stan the Man and the people who own the war
Obama’s McChrystal Gaffe--Thomas Fleming
Patrick J. Buchanan, From MacArthur to McChrystal

Counterpunch: Deepak Tripathi,The Obama-McChyrstal Showdown
Jayne Lyn Stahl, The McChrystal Shield

AP: Source: Petraeus chosen to succeed McChrystal (via Drudge)

Sarge just called to say that it's happening right now.

AP: US general in Afghan war at risk of losing his job

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama rebuked his Afghanistan war commander for "poor judgment" Tuesday and considered whether to fire him in the most extraordinary airing of military-civilian tensions since Harry Truman stripped Gen. Douglas MacArthur of his command a half-century ago.

Gen. Stanley McChrystal is prepared to submit his resignation at a meeting with Obama on Wednesday at the White House, two military officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.

ISAF Who's Who


WASHINGTON - MAY 10: US military commander in Afghanistan General Stanley McChrystal listens during the White House daily briefing May 10, 2010 at the White House in Washington, DC. McChrystal and Eikenberry briefed the media prior to the visit of Afghan President Hamid Karzai to Washington. (Getty/Daylife)

ARLINGTON, VA - MAY 13: Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai (C) visits Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery with Commander U.S. Forces Afghanistan, Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal (L), and U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates (not pictured) May 13, 2010 in Arlington, Virginia. Section 60 is where the majority of U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan and Iraq are buried, including 140 casualties from Afghanistan. (Getty/Daylife)

WASHINGTON - MAY 13: Commander of the International Security Assistance Force and Commander of U.S. Forces Afghanistan General Stanley McChrystal speaks during a news briefing at the Pentagon May 13, 2010 in Arlington, Virginia. McChrystal spoke on the current situations happening at the war in Afghanistan. (Getty/Daylife)

Items of Interest, 15 June 2010

Daniel Larison, Obviously, Iran Would Retaliate Against U.S. Attacks
Rod Dreher, Life according to Seventeen magazine and Technology in the classroom goes bust
Michael Shedlock, Stephen Roach says China's Housing Boom is Not a Bubble; I say "Nonsense"

The Spearhead:
Welmer: Girls Display Entitlement in Fight With Cop, Feminist Actress Beats Boy at Mall,
SPLICE — Hollywood is Finally Getting it Right!

Energy Bulletin:
Peak water? (original)

Lakis Polycarpou, Columbia University Water Center

In the last few years, scientists have begun to look at whether consumption of renewable resources follows Hubbert’s model. So how useful is the concept of “peak water”?

More accidents await with President Obama’s errant energy policies (original)

Brent Blackwelder, the Daly News

President Obama triumphantly entered office with the popular promise of moving the United States to a cleaner energy basis, but his actions to date, along with those of the Congress, have promoted two types of dangerous energy developments: off-shore oil drilling and nuclear reactors. Nuclear expert Harvey Wasserman highlighted the dual dangers by noting, “As BP’s ghastly gusher assaults the Gulf of Mexico, a tornado has forced a shutdown of the Fermi 2 atomic reactor at the site of a 1966 melt-down that nearly irradiated the entire Great Lakes Region.”

The facts of life (original)

Dave Cohen, Decline of the Empire

Counterpunch:
Mike Whitney, The Next Housing Crisis
Fred Gardner, Helen Thomas' Watergate Scoop

Asia Times:
The Pentagon strikes it rich
The motive of the United States Department of Defense in using old data to publicize the potential US$1 trillion in mineral riches in Afghanistan's war-ravaged land is under scrutiny. Given increasingly negative news from the counter-insurgency campaign, the headline-generating figure could reverse growing public sentiment that the war is not worth the cost. - Jim Lobe

China not yet a miracle
Visitors to China impressed by its emergence as a modern power can too easily overlook the continuing extent of subsistence farming, a dependence on low-value-added manufacturing and an absence of innovation. Nor can any country progress without deep crises and severe setbacks, as the United States can attest. - Benjamin A Shobert

China's wind power has faulty connection
With China requiring increasing amounts of imported coal and oil to drive its economic growth, the country is encouraging the use of alternative energy, with wind power a favored sector. That has led to investment in wind farms outpacing the infrastructure for delivering their energy to consumers. - Ryan Rutkowski

McChrystal faces 'Iraq' moment
A double dose of bad news concerning the troop surges of the United States in Afghanistan suggests things are about to get worse for US General Stanley McChrystal, who faces a collapse of political support in line with an increase in unfavorable media coverage. The situation is painfully similar to that in Iraq in 2006, when support from US elites tanked following months of reports showing that Washington had lost control of the war. - Gareth Porter

Gareth Porter, Gen. McChrystal and Afghanistan

But McChrystal’s background sends a very different message from the one claimed by Gates and the news media. His long specialisation in counter-terrorism operations suggests an officer who is likely to have more interest in targeted killings than in the kind of politically sensitive counterinsurgency programmes that the Obama administration has said it intends to carry out.

In announcing the extraordinary firing of Gen. David McKiernan and the nomination of McChrystal to replace him, Gates said that the mission in Afghanistan "requires new thinking and new approaches by our military leaders" and praised McChrystal for his "unique skill set in counterinsurgency".

Media reporting on the choice of McChrystal simply echoed the Pentagon’s line. The Washington Post said his selection "marks the continued ascendancy of officers who have pressed for the use of counterinsurgency tactics, in Iraq and Afghanistan, that are markedly different from the Army's traditional doctrine".

The New York Times cited unnamed "Defense Department officials" in reporting, "His success in using intelligence and firepower to track and kill insurgents, and his training in unconventional warfare that emphasizes the need to protect the population, made him the best choice for the command in Afghanistan..."

The Wall Street Journal suggested that McChrystal was the kind of commander who would "fight the kind of complex counterinsurgency warfare" that Gates wants to see in Afghanistan, because his command of Special Operations forces in Iraq had involved "units that specialize in guerilla warfare, including the training of indigenous armies".

But these explanations for the choice of McChrystal equate his command of the Special Operations forces with expertise on counterinsurgency, despite the fact that McChrystal spent his last five years as a commander of Special Operations forces focusing overwhelmingly on counter-terrorism operations, not on counterinsurgency.

Whereas counterinsurgency operations are aimed primarily at influencing the population and are primarily non-military, counter-terrorism operations are exclusively military and focus on targeting the "enemy".

Will Gen. McChrystal be able to deal with 4GW? Can it be done by the military alone, or does policy have to originate with the White House? Can one general respond to 4GW if the White House is undermining him by its policies towards Afghanistan and Pakistan? How much control over the situation (that is, leadership and policy-making) does the military really have?

Counterinsurgency is supposed to be the task of Army Special Forces. Some have cast doubt as to whether the Pentagon understands counterinsurgency, given the current Army culture at the top, and regular Army does not seem to be trained for it. (Hence, the reliance upon those in the reserves or National Guard who serve as police officers in their civilian life to model policing and a different way of interacting with the people of Iraq.)

But again, I don't think the responsibility of waging 4GW can be laid at the feet of the military, or even primarily with the military -- it is the civilians in the National Government who are responsible for foreign policy, and pacifying regions under the control of the empire. The military is just one instrument.

AP: US fires top general in Afghanistan as war worsens

FOB AIRBORNE, AFGHANISTAN - MAY 8: (FILE PHOTO) U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates (L) and U.S. Army General David McKiernan, the top U.S. and NATO Commander in Afghanistan (R) listen to Afghan governors and local officials during their visit to Forward Operating Base Airborne May 8, 2009 in the mountains of Wardak Province, Afghanistan. Gates has decided to replace McKiernan less than a year after he took over the war effort in Afghanistan according to officials on May 11. (Getty/Daylife)

This undated US Army handout photo shows General David Rodriguez. Defense Secretary Robert Gates has decided to replace the commander of US forces in Afghanistan, General David McKiernan, in a shake-up of the US military mission, a Pentagon official said on May 11, 2009. McChrystal is a three-star general and would likely be promoted to a four-star rank before taking over the post, the official said. The defense secretary planned to bolster the US mission in Afghanistan with another senior officer, General David Rodriguez, who would serve under McChrystal, the official said. (Getty/Daylife)

FILE - In this April 2, 2003 file photo, then-Maj. Gen. Stanley McChrystal takes part in a briefing at the Pentagon. McChrystal will replace Gen. David McKiernan as the top general in Afghanistan as President Barack Obama tries to turn around a stalemated war, defense officials said. (AP/Getty)