Obviously a different sector of Central Casting was consulted for the new leadership at Central Command. Gen. David Petraeus, well-known and well-regarded for his military-intellectual mien, is now in Kabul. His replacement: Marine Corps Gen. James Mattis.
Where Petraeus was articulate and politically savvy, Mattis is blunt and often nuance-challenged. We know war is not heck and is never fought in the abstract, but this Curtis LeMayesque quote of Mattis’ is still disturbing.
“Actually, it’s a lot of fun to fight,” he once acknowledged. “You know, it’s a hell of a hoot…It’s fun to shoot some people. I’ll be right up front with you. I like brawling.”
That was from a public speech in 2005–not an outtake from a Rolling Stone interview.