Well, war with Iran just got more likely
Adm. William J. Fallon, the top American commander in the Middle East whose views on Iran and other issues have seemed to put him at odds with the Bush administration, is retiring early, the Pentagon said Tuesday afternoon.
The retirement of Admiral Fallon, 63, who only a year ago became the first Navy man to be named the commander of the United States Central Command, was announced by his civilian boss, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, who said that he accepted the admiral’s request to retire “with reluctance and regret.”
Coming as this does less than a week after Tom Barnett wrote that the Bush administration was looking to push him out because of his tendency to stand up to them and obstruct their path to war with Iran, it is very hard to see this as anything more than getting rid of someone unwilling to toe the neocon line.
Secretary Gates may say that it is "ridiculous" to suggest this portends a more aggressive US approach, but then it doesn't have to. The US has been plenty bellicose as it is. Fallon was a nuisance because he undermined the administration's rhetoric by throwing cold water on their blatherings. Without such a brake in place, the tensions can ramp up without interference until Junior gets his wish. All they need to do is find the proper yes-man for Fallon's position.
