Even Mo McChrystal

President Obama went ahead and sacked Gen. Stanley McChrystal yesterday, replacing him in the Afghan theater with Gen. David Petraeus. A few observations:

• We have always been at war with Eastasia, Winston: now that the president has chosen Petraeus, it's both highly amusing and sadly quite typical that erstwhile critics of Petraeus have decided to airbrush their criticisms away. I guess this is another way to MoveOn.
• The thing is, there really isn't any way to have a memory hole any more -- the internet is forever. It would be good if someone in the White House press corps would ask the president about this video.
• Meanwhile, our pal Gino makes a sage observation.
• Our other regular California commenter Amanda said something earlier this week that merits a little more discussion, to wit: "you throw in that last line, continuing to signal the same sort of doomsday schadenfreude you use with every mention of the President." The last line in question was saying that Barack Obama wanted to be president in the worst way and he's getting his wish. While I can see why Amanda might have interpreted the statement as schadenfreude, it wasn't. There's no joy in watching someone flounder in the most important job in the world. Barack Obama's misery, such as it is, is something we all share. And while I think Obama is in way over his head, we are hardly in anything approaching a doomsday scenario. This nation survived Millard Fillmore, Franklin Pierce and James Buchanan in the 1850s. We survived a horrific Civil War and two World Wars. We will survive our current travails.