AMosely

I'm watching the hearings live - his mic doesn't seem to be working so he's standing around chatting while the crack Senate A/V crew does some troubleshooting.

These informal chats and obtruse camera angles really show off his hair, which I am really starting to think is not real. Seems odd for a military man. I'm not sure why.

AMosely

Now he finally started talking. He likes the surge and would like to keep it going for another year. Isn't there a soft drink called 'surge?' He's got a bunch of posterboard graphs. Is there some kind of standing policy in senate hearings prohibiting the use of projectors or displays? Generals get complimentary laptops, do they not?

I do find it fascinating how fundamentally different this war is from what it was originally thought of and (so we are told) planned for. Although a changing battlefield is more common than not, I think this conflict in particular will be keeping analysts at West Point busy for decades to come.

Kerostasis

I didn't see the video, but I've been listening to the audio on the radio. Pretty good report from the sound of it. Of course, the post-report analysis will go on for weeks as everybody tries to spin it one way or another. Should be fun to watch.

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AMosely

Not getting a good vibe from Ryan Crocker, whose last name to me seems a good indicator of the validity of his statements. I can't believe that he seems to be defending de-Baathification, which has been all but proven to have served as the primary catalyst for the insurgency.

WhiskeySix

he's definitely got some hair issues....though it looks real to me...

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AMosely

that's a good shot there whiskey - now I'm back to thinking he has real hair, but needs a stylist for these public speaking engagements. The 'dumb and dumber' look is not helping his credibility.

Bc2ID

maybe he has plugs, but even so...I think it is 90% his. Very nice picture in the background btw.

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VegaBond

I was wondering that too watching the vid, but mostly heard the report in my bed... Looks to be leaving soon.. Very good news for me

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leejo

I bet the guy hasn't gotten more than 4 hours' sleep a night for the last year. I doubt he's fiddling with his hair very much.

Steeler

I'll take that bet.

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leejo

Right. Because you support the troops, just not the war.

Steeler

What? You know what, nevermind.

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AMosely

That's really obnoxious, man. We know that you know better, making it even more obnoxious.

Acreo Aeneas

It's his hair I say. Funny how he has hair style I do (minus the graying patches).

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Acreo_Aeneas
Former 9th Member

leejo

I think this thread is really obnoxious, man.

Given the gravity of the situation and the man's work, you good and well ought to know better than to mince about his hair as if he were some John Edwards or Kerry poof. But of course that's your instinct and the degree to which you hold the man in high esteem - the degree to which you support him. And Steeler is happy to wager that he's sleeping well; such is his lack of respect for the man and Steeler's belief that he is not giving this mission his full devotion. Either that or a profound lack of understanding of how soldiers in theater live.

I mean no disrespect to you or Steeler - you may think what you like about Patraeus or anything else - but I am well within my rights to believe, and to express my belief, that you two aren't exactly going out of your way to show respect, or support, here either, and call it piss even if you say it's rain.