Public Image v Personal Reality

When we stand in front of the mirror in the morning, we see our own personal perspective of who we are, what we look like, and how we present ourselves to people. We gird our loins each morning to be whatever it is that we need to be to make it through another day the best we know how to accomplish that challenge. Some days it goes well; others days, not so much. For General McChrystal, today is not going so well as Rolling Stone magazine published an article that allegedly puts the Commander-in-Chief in a less-than-favorable light presumably based on comments that General McChrystal made to officers in his chain of command.

General McChrystal is being hammered by the media for forgetting for a moment that he’s not allowed to have an authentic self: his entire career depends on his presenting self. He may have opinions, but may not express them; he may disagree, but must keep it to himself; he may think his fellow officers fall short of the mark, but he must never make that information public. Silence is the best policy all the time, everywhere, and with everyone. Breaking silence is risky and often comes back to bite military personnel in the butt. When it’s the general in charge of the Afghan military theatre, it is potentially a career-ender.

However, the old wisdom, “There, but for the Grace of God, goeth I,” seems applicable.

McChrystal may have made an off-the-cuff comment that was allegedly passed on in one form or another by a subordinate: we all have done that; it is ill-advised, but not inexcusable unless/until the subordinate shares the comment. Did he say something? Probably. Was it a good decision? Probably not. Are the comments in Rolling Stone accurate? Maybe. Did anyone ever think that a reporter would “go there” with comments that would have been modified had the article been approved before publishing? Maybe not. Can he go back and erase the tape and pretend it didn’t happen? Nope: he’s stuck with it, regardless of what he actually did or did not say because once it’s reported, that truth exists for eternity.

President Obama can crucify McChrystal for his ill-advised, off-hand remarks allegedly passed on at least second-, if not third-hand – or he can understand that it was the guys “shooting the shit” in an environment created by the reporter to lull them into a false sense of camaraderie that would be cherry picked to present a finished product based on the editorial agenda of the publication. Rather than relieving McChrystal of his command, the president may want to remind himself of his first two high profile presidential years, commiserate with the general for being burned by the media, and suggest that they both benefit from a hard-learned lesson – and get on with the job of fighting the war against the terrorists, rather than going to war with each other.

NOTE McChrystal has been relieved of his command, which pretty much means he's also ended his career. His job was to stand at attention and say, "Yes, sir," for as long as it took, then salute and depart. Obama had to dress him down and fire him. Unfortunately, that won't be the end of it, just another beginning.