Who he is:
Head of U.S. Central Command and Commander of the U.S. Armed Forces in Afghanistan
Where you’ve heard of him:
Pretty much everywhere.
Gen. Petraeus is clearly no stranger to drama or conflict. The consummate military man, he used to make a habit of challenging younger soldiers to push-up contests, which he’d usually win.
But this morning, the Commander of the U.S. Armed Forces in Afghanistan publicly condemned the planned burning of the Koran on Sept. 11 by Terry Jones and his small Florida church.
“It could endanger troops and it could endanger the overall effort,” Gen. Petraeus said in an interview. “It is precisely the kind of action the Taliban uses and could cause significant problems. Not just here, but everywhere in the world we are engaged with the Islamic community.”
Petraeus is the first military official to publicly castigate the burning. Up until today, spokespeople from the church have claimed that “no one from the Pentagon or other federal agencies had expressed concern or asked that the event be canceled.”
Now, other military figures have followed suit. “There is no question about First Amendment rights; that is not the issue,” said Gen. Caldwell, a fellow commander in Afghanistan. “The question is: What is the implication over here? It is going to jeopardize the men and women serving in Afghanistan.”
Good call, General.
I heard about this story while at work and was appalled to think that people are still thinking of going through with such behavior when it seem as if the whole nation is against them