Afghan commander Allen being investigated for numerous contacts with the “other other woman,” Jill Kelley

Oh my gosh! Up to this point, my remarks about the inappropriateness of Jill Kelley as “Social Liaison” to Joint Special Operations and about our sexed-up, tacky military that she seems to symbolize, were insinuations based on her dress and demeanor and job title, not on anything that had been done by or to her (except, of course, for Paula Broadwell’s intimidating e-mails to her which set off the whole scandal). Now it turns out, as reported by the AP, that Kelley was the object of extensive inappropriate e-mail contacts from David Petraeus’s successor as top commander in Afghanistan, Gen. John Allen, which are being investigated by the FBI. Which further suggests that Paula Broadwell may have had reasons to be suspicious that Kelley was muscling in her territory. As the reader who sent the story said to me, “More things seem to be coming out that are making the whole military command look like a joke.”

General investigated for emails to Petraeus friend
1:38AM EST November 13. 2012 -

ABOARD A U.S. MILITARY AIRCRAFT (AP)—In a new twist to the Gen. David Petraeus sex scandal, the Pentagon said Tuesday that the top American commander in Afghanistan, Gen. John Allen, is under investigation for alleged “inappropriate communications” with a woman who is said to have received threatening emails from Paula Broadwell, the woman with whom Petraeus had an extramarital affair.

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said in a written statement issued to reporters aboard his aircraft, en route from Honolulu to Perth, Australia, that the FBI referred the matter to the Pentagon on Sunday.

Panetta said that he ordered a Pentagon investigation of Allen on Monday.

A senior defense official traveling with Panetta said Allen’s communications were with Jill Kelley, who has been described as an unpaid social liaison at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida, which is headquarters to the U.S. Central Command. She is not a U.S. government employee.

Kelley is said to have received threatening emails from Broadwell, who is Petraeus’ biographer and who had an extramarital affair with Petraeus that reportedly began after he became CIA director in September 2011.

Petraeus resigned as CIA director on Friday.

Housewife and mother, or sexual adjunct to the armed forces? Joint
Special Operations “Social Liaison” Jill Kelley at her Tampa home on Monday.

Allen, a four-star Marine general, succeeded Petraeus as the top American commander in Afghanistan in July 2011.

The senior official, who discussed the matter only on condition of anonymity because it is under investigation, said Panetta believed it was prudent to launch a Pentagon investigation, although the official would not explain the nature of Allen’s problematic communications.

The official said 20,000 to 30,000 pages of emails and other documents from Allen’s communications with Kelley between 2010 and 2012 are under review. He would not say whether they involved sexual matters or whether they are thought to include unauthorized disclosures of classified information. He said he did not know whether Petraeus is mentioned in the emails.

“Gen. Allen disputes that he has engaged in any wrongdoing in this matter,” the official said. He said Allen currently is in Washington.

Panetta said that while the matter is being investigated by the Defense Department Inspector General, Allen will remain in his post as commander of the International Security Assistance Force, based in Kabul. He praised Allen as having been instrumental in making progress in the war.

The FBI’s decision to refer the Allen matter to the Pentagon rather than keep it itself, combined with Panetta’s decision to allow Allen to continue as Afghanistan commander without a suspension, suggested strongly that officials viewed whatever happened as a possible infraction of military rules rather than a violation of federal criminal law.

Allen was Deputy Commander of Central Command, based in Tampa, prior to taking over in Afghanistan. He also is a veteran of the Iraq war.

In the meantime, Panetta said, Allen’s nomination to be the next commander of U.S. European Command and the commander of NATO forces in Europe has been put on hold “until the relevant facts are determined.” He had been expected to take that new post in early 2013, if confirmed by the Senate, as had been widely expected.

Panetta said President Barack Obama was consulted and agreed that Allen’s nomination should be put on hold. Allen was to testify at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday. Panetta said he had asked committee leaders to delay that hearing.

Panetta also said he wants the Senate Armed Services Committee to act promptly on Obama’s nomination of Gen. Joseph Dunford to succeed Allen as commander in Afghanistan. That nomination was made several weeks ago. Dunford’s hearing is also scheduled for Thursday.

- end of initial entry -

David P. writes:

There was a time when an army was accompanied by camp followers. These provided essential and non-essential services to the fighting men, while keeping out of the fray of combat. In addition, a victorious army could rely on booty of all sorts. The “system,” if I may call it that, worked quite well for centuries.

All that changed in the last hundred years or so. Camp followers were deemed as immoral, and neither was war booty considered moral or ethical. Even fraternizing with the locals was prohibited. Under these circumstances, it would be quite normal for frustration to build up among a large number of young and potent men, in a state of war in some foreign country. This frustration could, and possibly did lead to local insurrection and even mutiny. The Vietnam war comes to mind.

Given such a set of circumstances, the high command must have given the matter some thought. As it was not permissible to have camp followers, or fraternize with the locals, the next best thing was to incorporate women within the military. For a start, only as administration and other such duties. However, after 9/11, the nature of combat changed. No longer did we have huge concentrations of forces, staying in fixed camps, with administrative backup, but small groups of soldiers isolated in forward areas, and reliant on supplies from the air. In such a situation, the way forward would be to have a “integrated” units, able to supply itself on items that could not be dropped from the air.

Given the huge disparity of combat strength between us and our current enemy, the present situation is not bad. If we are engaged in combat with an enemy of the same capability that we have, then there will have to be a re-think on the configuration of combat units, specially if the combat effectiveness of “integrated” units was less then all male unit.

We are fortunate that our present enemy is unable to challenge us seriously, thus giving us the luxury of experimenting, as well as satisfying vocal feminists. I believe the situation will resolve itself when the going gets tough.

Adam Taxin writes:

Hasn’t Gen. Allen been extremely outspoken on the awfulness of insulting Islam or whatever?

LA replies:

As the successor of McChrystal and Petraeus and a practitioner of the same “hearts and minds” strategy, I’m sure he has.

Matthew H. writes:

You mean the feminization of our armed forces has resulted in a military culture in which women use sex as a vehicle to gain access to power? Get outta here! It looks more and more as though our military is being led by men who embody a cross between Hugh Heffner and Homer Simpson. The military, that supposed “last bastion of traditional values,” has apparently succumbed. In America today, the rot goes all the way up and all the way down.

And when one of our admirals tries to do his job he is sacked. (A story that has gotten little play.)

From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment. (Isaiah 1:6.)

Patrick H. writes:

The human fleet in Battlestar Galactica had prostitutes on board who were called “facilitators.” It appears the United States Army might have its own “facilitators,” except the euphemism they use is “Social Liaison.”

Daniel F. writes:

Broadwell and Kelly look to me pretty much like the kind of “ladies” who appear on those horrible “Real Housewives” “reality” shows, with artificially enhanced breasts, unnaturally slim waists for women of their age, and hard, angular, excessively made-up, and probably surgically modified faces. Not obese wrecks like Mrs. Petraeus, but lacking in any traditional feminine softness. And, as you have noted, they dress like trashy gold-diggers. Pretty sad that these sort of women are now considered desirable.

James P. writes:

The AP story says:

“The official said 20,000 to 30,000 pages of emails and other documents from Allen’s communications with Kelley between 2010 and 2012 are under review.”

Twenty to thirty THOUSAND pages of email??? That is 41 pages a day. Did the guy do NOTHING ELSE but write to this tramp? There are professional novelists who can’t sustain that level of output.

Even if each email is a few words or one sentence, that is a LOT of emails from a four star to an obscure person not in his chain of command.

Why does the military have “unpaid social liaisons”? What do they do besides being sexual opportunities for four star generals?

James P. continues:

The Washington Post quotes a “senior official” who says the volume of emails was nothing like 20,000 to 30,000 personal messages, and the content was not incriminating.

David P. writes:

The Israel Defense Forces get around the problems that are created by having integrated combat units, by having all-female units. So, for example, the IDF has all-female paratroop units, trained to a high level. They are required to go to combat only when male paratroop units are incapacitated.

Trust the IDF to come up with the right approach.

Posted by Lawrence Auster at November 13, 2012 02:24 AM | Send