An Embarrassment to the Nation

General David Petraeus is roughly one thousand times the man I am. He is braver, tougher, more self-sacrificing, smarter, more unselfish, more patriotic, far more disciplined, apparently able to keep up sexually with a woman twenty years younger than he is who is also an Ironman woman superstar. He is almost a superman. But not quite.

Now, let me get this straight: I do not think a man usually should have been fired for having sex with a woman not his wife. To me, that is just what men and women do. It is a part of life. But this is a highly unusual situation in every way.

Let's look at it from the point of view of how General Petraeus represented himself to President Obama and to the White House. When a man or woman is considered for high office, he or she is asked the following question (I know because I was considered for a modest government position several years ago and I was asked it, or a paraphrase), "Are you now doing or have you ever done anything which, if known, would cause embarrassment to the Administration, to the President, or to the nation? If you are doing so in the future, will you tell the responsible officials in the government?"

Obviously, David Petraeus lied in answer to that question. He was having an affair with a married woman while married himself. It now looks as if he might have had more than one affair going simultaneously. He did not divulge it when it happened and he did not divulge it until the FBI forced his hand. Read more...