Clark's Campaign Releases Glowing Accounts of His Career (SHELTON MUST Say What He Knows!)

The New York Times ^ | October 16, 2003 | Katharine Q. Seelye

[lugsoul]

Clark is now releasing his military performance reviews - apparently in response to Shelton's comments. It is TIME for Shelton to step up and say what he knows.

From the article:

The comments of his commander when he oversaw a tank battalion in Germany in 1977 were typical: "The most brilliant and gifted officer I've known." The commander, Col. Charles G. Prather IV, added: "I have never been more impressed with an officer's talent and dedication." He added that he should rank with men like Douglas MacArthur.

A year later, the future General Clark, now 58, had advanced to assistant executive officer to Gen. Alexander M. Haig Jr., then Supreme Allied Commander of NATO. In his evaluation, General Haig wrote: "Major Clark is an officer of impeccable character with a rare blend of personal qualities and professional attributes which uniquely qualify him as a soldier-scholar."

[lugsoul]

ping

[lugsoul]

ping

[tioga]

-let's see...HE released this himself....mmm...I think it's really convienent to release this since the gov cannot refute or release any other info.

What did he miss? -Waco? -Kosovo? -his early retirement?

His audaciousness is showing!

[Always Right]

I bet he left out the part where he order an attack on Russian troops in Kosovo....

[lugsoul]

Maybe the gov't can't, but SHELTON sure as hell can step up and say what is behind his "character and integrity" comment. Why won't he?

[lugsoul]

As you can see from other threads on this topic, I try to maintain accuracy on these issues. It will only help Clark if those who present his dark side can be marginalized as liars or kooks. Clark ordered Sir Mike Jackson to take his troops and secure the airfield at Pristina before the Russians who had taken the terminal could be reinforced. He ordered them to block the runway so the Russians couldn't land planes. This was the order the received the "WWIII" reply. He didn't order anyone to attack Russian troops. If he did that, Jackson should've shot him.

As I've also posted, it is not wise to hold up Jackson as a paragon of virtue standing up to Clark's craziness. He is one evil son of a bitch.

[Cicero]

It's SOP for superiors to write fitness reports on all the officers under their command on a regular basis. Except in the rare case of a negative report, these documents are basically meaningless. "He's better than motherhood and apple pie, etc., etc.," is the usual form unless you really have it in for somebody.

Curiously, when I was in the army many years ago as a Hawk Missile Acquisition Radar Repairman, Specialist 5, I was given several other duties by our C.O. One of them was to be security clerk, which meant that I had to through excess classified documents into a 55-gallon drum and burn them.

Another was to write the fitness reports. He evidently was not a gifted writer, so he asked me to do the reports for him. I was happy to oblige. "Motherhood. Apple pie. Best officer in 50 years, etc. etc."

[lugsoul]

Agreed. Did you read the article? A number of the ones released by Clark address this by saying things along the lines of "I know this kind of language is boilerplate, but in this case I really mean it."

This stuff was obviously released in response to Shelton's comment that Clark was recalled from SACEUR for "character and integrity issues", on which he wouldn't elaborate. I think Shelton has an obligation to stand up and say what he knows.

[tioga]

-we can only wonder.....

[lugsoul]

We can only wonder, IF Shelton won't tell us what he was talking about.

One could [I'm not, yet] draw the inference that, if it was a serious matter, Shelton is being derelict by keeping the lid on it.

[Cicero]

but in this case I really mean it

Yeah, sure. "I really, really, really mean it."

If so, only in the sense of "You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours."

[lugsoul]

What, you don't like my paraphrase? This is what it said:

"One commander took note of the superlatives frequently used in such reviews but said that then-Lieutenant Colonel Clark deserved them."

"Every once in a while, one is privileged to encounter an officer so uniquely gifted that the overworked superlatives commonly utilized on evaluation reports are inadequate to effectively describe his duty performance," the commander wrote in 1981. "LTC Clark is that officer. A brilliant, dynamic and exceptionally innovative commander, his battalion has been characterized by superb esprit, discipline and professionalism."

"The next year, Colin Powell similarly noted the penchant for the "raters" on performance reviews to exaggerate. But in this case, he said, "The rater does not overstate." He added, "Wes Clark has been a superb battalion commander and will be a superb brigade commander. He is an officer of the rarest potential and will clearly rise to senior general officer rank. He will be one of the Army's leaders in the 1990's."