Fallon Toes the Party Line

In an interview with CNN - his first since stepping down (being fired) from Central Command - Admiral Fallon discussed the reasons for the change of command.

Repeating that "Bush doesn't want war with Iran," Fallon attributed his resignation to his concern over generating the perception that he doesn't support the Chain of Command or intend to follow the orders of the President. Towards the end of the interview Fallon asserts that the most important thing we can do now is "retain the high confidence we have in General David Petraeus and his team out there."

The military's obsession with perception has bothered me from the moment I was introduced to it in 1997. My introduction to the military's mantra "perception is reality" came during a lecture on sexual harassment, and throughout my tenure in the Navy the slogan was applied to other situations as well. That Admiral Fallon all but repeated the above line of reasoning as his excuse for departure from CENTCOM only underscores the severe lack of cognitive dissonance within military ranks.

Military personnel swear to defend the Constitution of the United States, not to maintain the perception they are loyal to the President or the country's policies. If the President issues orders that circumvent the Constitution (like, say, invading Iraq) it is the military officer's solemn duty to protest and disobey those orders.

I liked the fact that Admiral Fallon was seen as the 'last line of defense' between Bush's lust for war with Iran and the hope that rational heads would prevail in staving off additional conflict in the region. Sadly, based on the text of his interview, it appears our last line of defense was nothing more than a house of cards built upon a foundation of sand...easily washed away by the high tide of perception.