This letter should not require even five hundred words. The first draft was three times that amount. Three items drive this mea culpa. First, I under-estimated President Obama. Second, I imputed my cynicism to the President. Third, the sum of two counts half-accepted represents yet another bout of the unbearable greyness of being.
FIRST: UNDER-ESTIMATING the PRESIDENT
Recently, I had dinner in Kabul with some acquaintances from the Embassy who were wired into the real events of General McChrystal’s fateful half-hour meeting from which he emerged a relieved man. Apparently, General McChrytsal walked into the White House meeting proudly, almost defiantly. No surprise there. Present at the ritual slaughter with President Obama were Vice President Biden, National Security Council Chairman Jones, General Petraeus and Secretary Gates. After the usual pleasantries and, perhaps, a briefing, the meeting turned to the real subject. General McChrystal apparently stated that President Obama had his letter of resignation. The ritual slaughter for which I had previously argued should have followed. Except, it never occurred. President Obama proved his capacity as a statesman by replying that he was “considering [accepting] it.” General McChrystal asked the other four whether he still enjoyed their confidence and support. Two said ‘yea’; two remained silent, at which point McChrystal recommended that the President accept the resignation. President Obama accepted the resignation but did not bust General McChrystal’s rank down to Lieutenant General (i.e., from four to three stars on the epaulet). The senior Embassy types, like David Smith, chastised me kindly for mis-reading the situation. And so I had – thank God Himself for that!
SECOND: REALIZING the CYNIC’s PARADOX
Not one person I know - Democrat, Republican, Independent or Fair-weather partisan - has bought into my concern that President Obama appointed General Petraeus to assume command in Afghanistan to hang the Afghanistan War on the latter. Most people think that General Petraeus accepted the request with all of the earnestness at his command for three reasons. His theory of counter-insurgency faces a steep test in Afghanistan; the South is not progressing well. ‘Governance in a box’ appears to be ‘government as a hoax’. Additionally, General Petraeus has the credibility to squeeze one more year out of the American people if conditions do not favour the commencement of withdrawal in mid-2011. Lastly, I genuinely believe that General Petraeus remains, to his core, a devoted citizen-soldier of the United States of America. Three plausible reasons; three cheers for General Petraeus.
THIRD: TWO HALF-COUNTS of SECONDARY IMPORTANCE
The two half-counts, in view of their moral ambiguity, can only unleash a torrent of ‘Hamletizing’. Since you, the reader, are about as interested in contemplating my navel as I have time to do so, I prefer to leave those debates to you. First, intelligence types tell me that the locals, most Pashtuns included, welcome U.S. special forces as they kill very bad men; in fact, these villagers want to see more aggressive attacks by the U.S. Fair enough. Nevertheless, I cannot help but wonder if Afghans, conditioned to a culture of conflict, find such ethical finery to be just so much nit-picking. After all, had the social lottery placed me in Afghanistan as a subsistence farmer, I would most likely be dead by now and dead for several years. The other half-count, whether General McChrystal should have lost his command over the Rolling Stone article, really is anyone’s judgement call. While I remain unconvinced, people more intelligent than I seem to agree that Gerneral McChrystal went too far and was fortunate not to be summarily fired.
In conclusion, the irony remains that I was not a big fan of General McChrystal. In any case, President Obama deserves credit for pre-meditated statesmanship after the die was cast. The lesson for me? Oscar Wilde was right: a cynic knows the price of everything and the value of nothing. Best I quit counting my pennies and put them back into my loafers.
FIRST: UNDER-ESTIMATING the PRESIDENT
Recently, I had dinner in Kabul with some acquaintances from the Embassy who were wired into the real events of General McChrystal’s fateful half-hour meeting from which he emerged a relieved man. Apparently, General McChrytsal walked into the White House meeting proudly, almost defiantly. No surprise there. Present at the ritual slaughter with President Obama were Vice President Biden, National Security Council Chairman Jones, General Petraeus and Secretary Gates. After the usual pleasantries and, perhaps, a briefing, the meeting turned to the real subject. General McChrystal apparently stated that President Obama had his letter of resignation. The ritual slaughter for which I had previously argued should have followed. Except, it never occurred. President Obama proved his capacity as a statesman by replying that he was “considering [accepting] it.” General McChrystal asked the other four whether he still enjoyed their confidence and support. Two said ‘yea’; two remained silent, at which point McChrystal recommended that the President accept the resignation. President Obama accepted the resignation but did not bust General McChrystal’s rank down to Lieutenant General (i.e., from four to three stars on the epaulet). The senior Embassy types, like David Smith, chastised me kindly for mis-reading the situation. And so I had – thank God Himself for that!
SECOND: REALIZING the CYNIC’s PARADOX
Not one person I know - Democrat, Republican, Independent or Fair-weather partisan - has bought into my concern that President Obama appointed General Petraeus to assume command in Afghanistan to hang the Afghanistan War on the latter. Most people think that General Petraeus accepted the request with all of the earnestness at his command for three reasons. His theory of counter-insurgency faces a steep test in Afghanistan; the South is not progressing well. ‘Governance in a box’ appears to be ‘government as a hoax’. Additionally, General Petraeus has the credibility to squeeze one more year out of the American people if conditions do not favour the commencement of withdrawal in mid-2011. Lastly, I genuinely believe that General Petraeus remains, to his core, a devoted citizen-soldier of the United States of America. Three plausible reasons; three cheers for General Petraeus.
THIRD: TWO HALF-COUNTS of SECONDARY IMPORTANCE
The two half-counts, in view of their moral ambiguity, can only unleash a torrent of ‘Hamletizing’. Since you, the reader, are about as interested in contemplating my navel as I have time to do so, I prefer to leave those debates to you. First, intelligence types tell me that the locals, most Pashtuns included, welcome U.S. special forces as they kill very bad men; in fact, these villagers want to see more aggressive attacks by the U.S. Fair enough. Nevertheless, I cannot help but wonder if Afghans, conditioned to a culture of conflict, find such ethical finery to be just so much nit-picking. After all, had the social lottery placed me in Afghanistan as a subsistence farmer, I would most likely be dead by now and dead for several years. The other half-count, whether General McChrystal should have lost his command over the Rolling Stone article, really is anyone’s judgement call. While I remain unconvinced, people more intelligent than I seem to agree that Gerneral McChrystal went too far and was fortunate not to be summarily fired.
In conclusion, the irony remains that I was not a big fan of General McChrystal. In any case, President Obama deserves credit for pre-meditated statesmanship after the die was cast. The lesson for me? Oscar Wilde was right: a cynic knows the price of everything and the value of nothing. Best I quit counting my pennies and put them back into my loafers.
No comments:
Post a Comment