L.A. Wine Critic Thinks he’s a Fashion Maven of Military Uniforms

This has got to be one of the prissiest things I’ve read:

By Matthew DeBord
April 9, 2008

Gen. David H. Petraeus may be as impressive a military professional as the United States has developed in recent years, but he could use some strategic advice on how to manage his sartorial PR. Witness his congressional testimony on the state of the war in Iraq. There he sits in elaborate Army regalia, four stars glistening on each shoulder, nine rows of colorful ribbons on his left breast, and various other medallions, brooches and patches scattered across the rest of the available real estate on his uniform. He even wears his name tag, a lone and incongruous hunk of cheap plastic in a region of pristine gilt, just in case the politicians aren’t sure who he is.

That’s a lot of martial bling, especially for an officer who hadn’t seen combat until five years ago. Unfortunately, brazen preening and “ribbon creep” among the Army’s modern-day upper crust have trumped the time-honored military virtues of humility, duty and personal reserve.

……When you’ve saved the world and managed the lives and deaths of millions, it obviously compels a certain level of modesty about showcasing your accomplishments, however monumental. Apparently when you’re trying to explain why your war-fighting achievements are “fragile” and why the conflict you’re running in a hot, dusty faraway place might never be won, it does not.

Memo to Petraeus: When you’re making the case for more patriotic gore, go easy on the glitter.
Link: http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/opinion/la-oe-debord9apr09,0,1601961.story

I can just hear the lisp in DeBord’s speech.  According to the L.A. Times he’s a writer/wine critic. Apparently he’s written a few books on the subject so that qualifies him for tactical expertise, running the Army, and doing it all in clothes that would make Mr. Blackwell proud.

Note to DeBord: When you’ve humped a ruck instead of Obama’s leg, served in a ‘hot, dusty faraway place’, and learned the difference between what constitutes the MSM’s idea of ‘might never be won’, and real military success in war, you might rate a column in the Podunk Tribune.

Your faggoty hissy fit on General Patraeus with all things considered,—not the least of which is your mealy-mouthed penchant for denigrating people far better than you—proves you’re not fit to carry his jock or lick the boots of a real Soldier.

Stick with what you do best, Matthew; critiquing whatever bottled douche comes out of France this year, before you use it.