General McPeak. .....Did you know him? Personally? Great man.
No...Not personally, (Though the earliest personal encounter was a bit, shall we say, less than sour)and yes, he did many a great thing. He and the commander of TAC (at the time before ACC) did a lot to force develop, but make no mistake, they were the beginning of the one-mistake Air Force that I came to know. I will admit he is not the sole owner of it and my words ought to have reflected that, but I remain...since that time the USAF has gone downward on many such things. It is a branch where there ought to be a share-point, Mil-Connect mass education program on how to walk on Pins and needles. The active Duty is a rough place to be anymore.
So, more to your point, I do not lay it all on him (McPeak) but as far as I can see in my now 27th year, it had its genesis there. Now, keep in mind a lot of our flag officers must deal with their political masters, but in this vein it has only become worse there as well.