Gorak disapproves

From the files of the "more proof that the world is up-side-down", comes some vague revelations surrounding the firing of 4 star general in the Army. Yesterday, there were no reason given, and I just assumed it was a dick sticking incident. Turns out, I was right (duh). WaPo has the details here:

Gen. Kevin P. Byrnes, 55, led the Army's Training and Doctrine Command at Fort Monroe, Va., where he supervised the recruitment and academic programs at 33 Army schools, from basic training to the war colleges. Byrnes, who several military sources said had a previously unblemished record, was set to retire in November after 36 years of service.

So here we have a guy who gave 36 years of his life to the military and our country, with an exemplary record. All of that flushed down the toilet because?

Several defense sources familiar with the case, speaking anonymously because the investigation is not complete, said Byrnes is accused of having an "inappropriate relationship," and some described him as being involved in an extramarital affair.
[...]
Relieving a general of his command amid such allegations is extremely unusual, especially given that he was about to retire.

Hmmmm.. extremely unusual.. gets one to thinking, eh?

Byrnes has been separated from his wife since May 2004; their divorce was finalized on Monday, coincidentally the same day he was relieved of command, Robertson said.

The Army has been hurt over the past year by detainee-abuse cases and has been accused of not going after top officers allegedly involved in such abuse. Army officials said relieving Byrnes was meant to show the public that the service takes issues of integrity seriously.

"Relief of command is a huge consequence. He's had an extraordinary career, but at the end of the day, the Army has to hold people accountable for their conduct."

A few points...

First, doesn't it seem incredibly bizarre that no officers have been held responsible for the prisoner torture scandal? Perhaps that is because it is official U.S. policy that abuse, and extradition for torture, is quite all right...

But god forbid you stick your dick in somebody other than your wife!

That's simply ridiculous. If every man who cheated on his wife suddenly lost his job, there would be very few people showing up to work. Now this guy was a few months short of a glorious retirement and the military is destroying his career, retirement, and future opportunities. He's only 55 years old for god's sake. All because of sex? Gah....

But notice the use of the terms "unusual" and "unprecedented" and so on. Notice that some sources used "inappropriate relationship" and some used "extramarital affair". There is something else going on here I think. While the "anonymous sources" indicated he was having an affair, they didn't identify the gender of the person he was cheating with. The picture of him set my gaydar off. I suspect he was fooling around with a guy.

I'll try and keep up on this, but I don't think there's going to be any more news. If the other person was a woman, I'd suspect he'd fight this tooth and nail. If it's a guy, and I really believe it is, I'll bet we don't hear another word about it.

Still, isn't it bizarre that a man does everything right, performs brilliantly for 36 years, and is ruined because of sex? The United States is just a really repressed and screwed up moral society, and it's screwed up because of the people with tiny peckers that aren't getting laid at all..

Well.. boohoo for them...

** update **

Doing some reading about this on some blogs, and the consensus is that the guy has to be gay. He was separated from his wife during the time of the "affair", and given his short time to retirement, most military commentators are flabbergasted.

Now.. if he is gay, he should come out and fight the Army anyway. I don't know the exact retirement pay for a 4 star general, but I'll bet it's a lot.

I'm just sure this is more about "don't ask, don't tell" then a garden variety affair.

** update 2 **

The other theory being floated is that Rumsfeld nailed this guy. Apparently the general had some conflicts with Rummy over troop strength. Some people think this is retribution on the military from our glorious leader's administration.

Either way, it stinks.

** update 3 **

From the NYT

WASHINGTON, Aug. 10 - A four-star general who was relieved of command this week said Wednesday through his lawyer that the Army took the action after an investigation into accusations that he was involved in a consensual relationship with a female civilian.

I guess it must be political payback after all.