Looks like General Abizaid just walked the plank.

[Dr.Phool]

It's not nice to disagree with Lord Pissypants.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aRkNGw.LPui0&refer=home

Abizaid, Top U.S. Mideast Commander During Iraq War, to Retire

By Tony Capaccio

Dec. 20 (Bloomberg) -- General John Abizaid, the top U.S. commander in the Middle East during most of the Iraq war, said today that he will retire in mid-March.

Abizaid has opposed a major increase in U.S. troops in Iraq -- an idea President George W. Bush is considering -- saying extra forces would only increase Iraqis' dependency on U.S. forces and strain a U.S. military that's already stretched.

Abizaid, at a press conference in Baghdad today, said ``the time is right'' for his retirement and ``it has nothing to do with dissatisfaction'' with U.S. strategy in the war. Abizaid was with new Defense Secretary Robert Gates who's in Iraq to reassess that strategy.

(snip)

Yeah right.

[Kerrytravelers]

1. Aw, did the Boy King not get his way?

:cry:

[Avalux]

2. Good. Maybe once he takes off that uniform, he'll talk.

That would be cool. :hi:

[bmbmd]

3. "Nothing to do with dissatisfaction"

bull and shirt.

[TahitiNut]

13. That's called a "non-denial denial."

:shrug:

[rodeodance]

4. whow

[Norquist Nemesis]

5. Next!

[Tesha]

6. Of course not.

> Abizaid, at a press conference in Baghdad today, said
> ``the time is right'' for his retirement and ``it has
> nothing to do with dissatisfaction'' with U.S. strategy
> in the war.

Of course not.

Tesha

[lebkuchen]

7. Seems like only yesterday the DoD was touting "light and lean"

Maybe Rummy was referring to MREs?

How is the DoD going to get more soldiers without lowering the bar even further?

There is nothing about General Jones' EUCOM transformation that will encourage reenlistments in light of the 2 to 3 year long unaccompanied tours to Iraq/Afghanistan. I mean, gees, what soldier wants to be rotated with his unit to Bulgaria or Romania unaccompanied for 6 months after dodging IEDs in Iraq for 12 mo. or more?

Now that Bush has said we aren't winning in Iraq, that will put a damper on recruitment as well.

[Sapere aude]

8. I hear the right wingers calling C-Span most days saying we need to listen to the Generals.

But no one does. On the other hand it is the civilians that should conduct war policy. The problem here is the generals say to end the war and the civilians say to "SURGE." This is just the opposite of the battle between Truman and MacArthur. The wing nuts don't seem to understand this difference.

[Dr.Phool]

11. Not those Generals! The Other Generals!!!

Like that nutjob who saw Satan flying over Somalia.

[rodeodance]

9. He has a big stake here_as now he will not be going down as a big

FAILURE on his dossier.

[spanone]

10. With bush* you either agree or retire (i.e. get the fuck out of the way]

He'll get the boot and the medal of something.

[NewJeffCT]

12. Those generals - just a bunch of

liberal pinko commie-symp elitist tree-hugging latte-sipping elitist surrender monkeys.

[Morgana LaFey]

14. I hold him in about as much esteem as

Genl Sanchez, who is associated with all the Abu Ghraib authorizations.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

15. Yeah, Abizaid's a nut.

He's one of those that's been calling for more troops.