Has the military had a love affair with General Petraeus?  Do we worship our military guys?  Is Petraeus any worse than any of his predecessors who fell short of our expectations?

Has Petraeus’ behavior made us less secure?  Has he let America down?  Do we really care who “does” whom?

22 Thoughts to “Colonel Morris Davis on the Petraius resignation”

  1. WaPo=

    The FBI probe into the sex scandal that led to the resignation of CIA director David Petraeus has expanded to ensnare Gen. John R. Allen, the commander of U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan, the Pentagon announced early Tuesday.

    So did any of these guys keep their zippers up?

    After reading abot the strength of Holly Petraeus, I want to slap both Petraeus and Broadwell.
    She is so freaking smug, like a cat pulling the feathers away from her mouth.

  2. I’m curious…if the FBI knew about the affair back when he was a general, how did he get the CIA post. When I was in intel, any RUMOR of such shenanigans was enough to keep you from higher clearances.

  3. And if he was having the affair as a general….I think that he is or was liable under the UCMJ…a conviction there would remove that 4th star. Big hit to retirement pay.

  4. Lafayette

    I have to question if the CIA investigated Patreaus as they would any other potential employee. Or did he just sail in to the director’s seat based on his military clearances, etc..
    The whole thing is disappointing on so many levels.

  5. I heard on TV if you admitted to an affair with CIA you were ok, with special rules. Military, not so. I think it was on Rachel. At any rate, he didn’t satisfy the special rules.

    Not sure who knew what and when. His replacement is now caught up in all of it. It really sounds like the gang who couldn’t shoot straight combined with a few middle school romances.

    Then there was the question of what the FBI was doing in there with its shirt off anyway.

  6. @Lafayette

    Even the ghost writer didn’t know about Petraeus.

    If you are disappointed now, read the related stories in the Post this morning. The maturity level with all these people is just astounding…Astoundingly immature.

    I don’t usually care who is doing who…it isn’t my business. In this case, I just feel Petraeus betrayed us all. Maybe he was General Betrayus although I very much disapproved of calling him that at the time.

  7. Lafayette

    Oh, I know there’s only more disappointment to come yet. I’m with you I don’t care what one does. However, this sort of behavior makes one very vulnerable to bribary. I’ll be sure and checkout the WaPo a little later. Big Luc is quite focused on this story. 😉 I wish she had a computer.

  8. Too many loose zippers—

    Luc should be having a field day.

    Luc needs an ipad.

  9. Second Alamo

    Look at the bright side, at least Petraeus had an affair with a woman. That I give him credit for. Go Army! Keeping that tradition of normal man/woman affairs alive even if the liberals object to it.

    1. As opposed to affairs with goats?

  10. At what point have we invaded the privacy of Petreaus, Allen, the women and the FBI dude? Are they on the job? What laws have they violated? Does the govt. have the right to come in to your house and haul away all your personal email, look at your private mail?

    In drooling over all the salatious suggestive details we hear on TV and read about, at what point have all or some of these people had their privacy rights violated?

    Petraeus as the top-spook really isn’t at liberty to do exactly has he pleases. Hell if I know….too complicaated for my brain.

    Perhaps Petreus because of his position stepped over the line…perhaps…from the line of legal behavior to illegal behavior. Is the director of the CIA prevented by law from having an affair?

    Are FBI agents prevented from sending shirtless pictures? What do they do at the beach if they are male?

    I think these might be questions Americans need to start asking.
    How threatening were the emails?
    (really dumb move, Broadwell)
    That seems to be the only reason anyone would have for going into anyone’s email and even that depends on the threat.

    the more I think about all this, the men were …well…acting like men and the women were just being incredibly stupid on multiple levels.

    Ultimately, it all boils down to who had the most to lose. Back to the Moon howling theory of affairs….never have an affair with someone who doesn’t have as much to lose as you do.

  11. @Cargosquid

    Goats might lie but their hooves don’t kick as hard as mule hooves.

  12. @Moon-howler
    I ….. don’t want to know.

    Petraeus and that other general are forbidden by the UCMJ to have an affair.

    Over at Blackfive.com, Uncle Jimbo puts into perspective:
    Priorities seem a might bit skewed to me.

    A US ambassador and 3 Americans are killed and the media can’t be bothered to even ask why.

    A couple of Generals screw around and they hit full over drive.

  13. George S. Harris

    It seems to me the affairs are just the keys that have unlocked some very secretive doors. Allegedly, the Petraeus/Broadwell “affair” didn’t start until after Petraeus had retired from the Army. And I am sure he wants to keep it that way since he could possibly be court martialed for adultery under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, Article 134. This is a difficult offense to prosecute because there are three “Elements of Proof” for the offense of Adultery in the Military:

    (1) That the accused wrongfully had sexual intercourse with a certain person;
    (2) That, at the time, the accused or the other person was married to someone else; and
    (3) That, under the circumstances, the conduct of the accused was to the prejudice of good order and discipline in the armed forces or was of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

    Whether the steamy e-mails are sufficient proof or not would be most interesting–usually something like pictures, eye witness accounts or admissions of guilt are the types of proof sought. There is no question they both are married to other people (at least for the moment) and it does seem that their conduct has brought discredit upon the armed forces.

    Can all of this be proven? Who knows. If they stick to their story that it all happened after Petraeus retired, the primary damage has already been done.

    The question of what secrets may have been leaked is the most disturbing issue in both cases–Petraeus and Allen. If this can be proven, both generals and the women involved could be in for some very serious legal problems and perhaps even prison. This will be interesting to follow.

  14. George S. Harris

    In another post, Moon wonders why Petraeus resigned from the CIA since they apparently don’t have the same rules as the military. It’s about being compromised Moon. Suppose this hadn’t leaked out but people knew about it and Petraeus knew they knew about it and he tried to keep it a secret–he has just set himself up for blackmail–a spook’s worst plight. May sound kind of corny in the age of 24/365 “news and commentary” but it still exists.

  15. Cato the Elder

    Kinda scary that men charged with billions of dollars of hardware and equipment and the lives of hundreds of thousands of young Americans can’t seem to manage to keep their fly zipped. Sad too. And Petraeus ain’t the only one.

    1. Maybe its that zipper that stumps them. If a zipper baffles you, keep your hands off the Apache helicopters and stealths.

      I agree Cato.

  16. George S. Harris

    Ah yes, the mighty trouser snake can defeat all zippers. Sadly men don’t have enough blood to think with two heads at the same time. And if you want to follow the whole “kinda scary” thing–think of the number of presidents who have suffered the same malady. And most of them had the nuclear “football” in their possession.

    1. George, I can’t read past the mighty trouser snake. I am roaring with laughter……

  17. Elena

    Great interview Moe!

    I imagine that need to be worshipped goes both ways. Our society is so image conscious that it easy to see how, even in the media, checks and balances are left by the way side.

  18. George S. Harris

    Moe, as usual you have done very well on this throny issue. Folks have a hard time dealing with the failures of military leaders, particularly flag officers–they are the military’s royalty. And when they fall from grace, the shock is profound. Thanks for explaining this mess so well.

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