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RIP Stormin Norman Schwarzkopf


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RIP. He was the first big time general of my era (31 yo).

 

edit: correct me if I am wrong, but he only has 1 star on? Was he only a 1 star general?

 

There's at least two more partially hidden in his collar from that photo that I can make out.

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Wait, here's an idea, lets check Google....

 

Several sites report him as a 4-star General.

 

IIRC both he and Powell (then Chairman of the Joint Chiefs) were both 4 stars. After the First Gulf War there was talk of making them 5 Stars, which would have put them among the ranks of Grant, Ike, and MacArthur

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The fifth star was a political move in WWII, so that American theater commanders weren't outranked by their British subordinates (e.g. Ike, as a four-star, would have been outranked by Montgomery, a Field Marshal under his command.)

 

Between that, and the fact that Schwarzkopf was an honestly ****ty general, it was ludicrous to offer him a fifth star to begin with.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_active_duty_United_States_four-star_officers

Looked this up last night. Pretty interesting that most of us have never heard of these guys. Also strange to me is the Assistant Secretary of Health is a 4 star General? I mean, really?

 

Nonetheless, it is impressive how some of these guys started as enlisted soldiers. I would think many started off silver spoon in hand, or a military academy to say the least.

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The fifth star was a political move in WWII, so that American theater commanders weren't outranked by their British subordinates (e.g. Ike, as a four-star, would have been outranked by Montgomery, a Field Marshal under his command.)

 

Between that, and the fact that Schwarzkopf was an honestly ****ty general, it was ludicrous to offer him a fifth star to begin with.

How did your plan for the invasion of Iraq differ from Schwarzopf's?

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RIP General.

 

He said that he felt fated to head an American army in a battle decisive to the nation one day.

 

A little known fact about him is his father was the superintendent of the NJ State Police and headed the Lindbergh kidnapping investigation. He (Sr.) also had a key role the installation of the Shah of Iran in the 50s.

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