Obama Sacks 5th General
Monica Davis
Many say the current and growing scandals in the officer corps of the military is noting but continued tradition. According to a historian, today’s sex scandals are tame, compared with historic sexploits of generals in the US military.
A leading historian of American leaders in war and espionage said the exploits of David Petraeus, John Allen and the Tampa, Fla., Centcom crew seem tame by the standards of the men who led the nation in World War II and the Cold War.
“Marital fidelity was not a requirement of the great commanders in World War II,” said Princeton professor Evan Thomas, whose latest book, Ike’s Bluff: President Eisenhower’s Secret Battle to Save the World, was published this fall to good reviews. READMOREHERE
While Congress twitches and bemoans Petraeusgate, many in the nation’s general officer corps continue to get dragged into the spotlight for alleged instances of infidelity, financial duplicity and other scandalous doings.
General Kip Ward (Left)
William Ward, Four Star General, Demoted, Ordered to Repay $82,000
Four star General William E. Ward landed himself in hot water with his extravagant spending on hotels and other unauthorized purchases.
General Ward, who was nominated by President Bush and put in charge of US Army Africa Command (AFRICOM) in 2007, used his government spending card to provide his family and staff with lavish vacations.
Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has demoted Ward, stripping him of one of his stars, which means he will retire as a three star lieutenant general……..readmorehere
USA Today has an interesting article on whether the power of elitism creates a sense of entitlement among the upper hierarchy of organisations.
Experts speculate that these lapses stem from the sense of entitlement in the upper reaches that exists not just in the armed services.
“It’s an old narrative that those at the top often become poisoned by their power,” said Peter Singer, director of the 21st Century Defense Initiative at the Brookings Institution. “We’ve unfortunately seen the same thing in business, politics, sports, etc. on a regular basis. The difference is I guess we’ve come to expect the worst in these other once respected institutions, sadly even in the church.” READMOREHERE