General (ret) Peter Pace at the Wall

Posted By Blackfive

This has been hitting the blogosphere since Sunday.  CNN also broadcast a piece about it.  You can watch Barbara Starr talk about unpopular wars or you can read the words of a retired Lieutenant Colonel:

From: Edwards, Lloyd, LtCol, USMC (Ret), CTR, OSD-ATL
Sent: Monday, October 15, 2007 12:15 PM
Subject: Fw: This Speaks volumes

I suspect General Pace would be embarrassed by any attention paid to this act of loyalty. History will debate his effectiveness as CJCS, but their is no debating his decency as a leader. I wanted to share with you what we saw in Washington DC last week.

After the mid-term brief, we toured the Mall and made the usual stops at the WWII Memorial, the Wall, Lincoln Memorial, etc.  At the Vietnam Wall we saw something unbelievable. We noticed three small index cards at the base of the Wall.

I knelt down for a closer look and noticed that a 4-star general's rank was pinned to each card.

The cards were personally addressed and said something like:

These are Yours - not mine!
With Love and Respect,
Your Platoon Leader,
Pete Pace 1 Oct

The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs had laid down his rank for his boys who died in Nam just the day before! I later found out that 1 Oct was also the same day he stepped down as chairman.

So, Peter Pace steps down as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, heads to the Wall, and leaves his stars - the representation of his successful career - because his men are responsible for that career.  And some of those men are on the Wall....

Update:  This action by General (ret) Pace should not be a surprise to regulars...

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Comments

[Mr.Sparkle]

What a lovely gesture

From a 2005 article:

Pace said he can still remember the names and see the faces of the Marines whom he served with in Vietnam. "I never want to lose that," he said. "Under the glass on my desk is a picture of Lance Cpl. Guido Farinaro of Bethpage, N.Y., a 19 year-old corporal killed by a sniper. He was the first Marine I lost in combat. I keep his picture as a reminder that he and Lance Cpl. Chubby Hale, and Lance Cpl. Buddy Travers and Cpl. Mike Witt and Staff Sgt. Willie Williams and all the others died following 2nd Lt. Pace's orders. I can never repay that."

Farinaro's death taught Pace another lesson. "We were on patrol and my immediate reaction was one of complete rage," Pace said when the sniper killed his Marine. "I called in an artillery strike on the village from which the fire came."

Between the time he called in the mission and the time the guns were laid and ready to fire, his platoon sergeant, who was on his second tour in Vietnam, said nothing. "He just looked at me," Pace said. "And I knew I was wrong, and he was right, and I called off the artillery barrage."

The unit swept through the village like it should have and found nothing but women and children. "I tell you that because I ask you to think through who you are - check your moral compass - as you get closer and closer to go into combat," Pace said. "The time to decide whether or not you will do what I almost did ... is not when one of your soldiers gets shot.

"Because the waves of emotion that roll over you are so strong, that if you are not holding onto an anchor that you have already thought through, you can get swept away," he said. "Thanks to Sgt. - now Sgt. Maj. Retired - Reed B. Zachary, I did not get swept away."

http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=31329

[LL]

Wow.

What a leader of distinguishing character.

[Maggie45]

Omg, I have no words, except THANK YOU.

[bthun]

Not to put too fine a point on topic but if I might be so bold as to correct a closing statement Barbara Starr made... General Pace did not serve a second term as CJCS due to the contentious, despicable and generally sorry excuse for leadership we have self-serving in our Senate.

Those illustrious U.S. Senators who were expected to use the Pace/CJCS Senate confirmation hearings to pitch a tantrum over U.S. policy. All this while we have warriors fighting and dieing in foreign lands to suppress and/or kill those who would attack us in our beds.

My eternal gratitude to General Pace and the countless U.S. patriots like him, always ready. Thank you for your outstanding service.

[Deltabravo]

A giant of a man. Thanks for posting this. It's good to be reminded how a class-act officer behaves when he retires.

[defendusa]

Well, there you have it. A man of honor, integrity and strength. Cause it took all of those things to do the right thing. THAT is leading by example! Congratulations, enjoy your retirement, sir.

[thebronze]

Gen. Pace has Honor and that's something that CodePink and the rest of the Lefty Loons know absolutely nothing about.

Semper Fi! Gen. Pace.

[Proud Infidel]

General Pace's act shows the man's fundamental decency and honor. He is one hell of a man, and I thank him and all of his fellow Marines for their exemplary service to America.

I'm ex-Air Force but I'll aways have The United States Marine Corps' back. Semper Fi.

Proud Infidel

[mindy1]

a sad but nice thing to do.

[jordan]

Sheer class.

Gen. Pace reportedly refused to resign so as not to give the message that he was abandoning the troops in a time of war. He forced DoD's hand, and Gates took the step to remove him. There are times when you don't go quietly into that good night.

Previously, Gates had intended to keep Pace on for another term, but as bthun says above, Demmies warned they would nail him to the wall (or at least try) as a proxy for the "Bush war."

[Deebow]

The entire country owes General Pace a debt that cannot be repaid. His years of selfless service speak for themself.

This act speaks volumes about what kind of leader the General is. He never forgot who he was, just one man leading others, and asking them to do extraordinary things.

I am sorry to see him go. Should he ever decide to lead a mission into Hell, I shall follow him there with 2 gas cans and a lit match.

[MaryAnn]

It's good to be reminded how a class-act officer behaves when he retires.

My sentiments exactly (although, as correctly noted, he did not retire).

S/F, General Pace.

[Marieanne]

An officer and a gentleman, to be sure.

[Old Tanker]

The entire country owes General Pace a debt that cannot be repaid. His years of selfless service speak for themself.

I'll second that!!!

[Subsunk]

When you look up Leader of Men in the dictionary, you will find General Peter Pace's photo.

Class, Integrity, Humility, Courage, Bravery, And Love of his Fellow Men, and Ruthlessness in his Attack on the enemies of his beloved country. An officer with all the distinguished qualities of the Marine Corps' Finest Leadership.

Congress isn't worth his spit.

And I am grateful in the extreme that he chose to serve my country, all of you here, my family, and even myself, as the best that our Leadership has to offer, and for the distinguished record of care for our troops, attention to detail, and determination in accomplishment of his assigned missions that he has exhibited his entire life.

Thank you, General. There ain't many who deserve that title. You are one I can name so as the first who comes to mind. Ever. God Bless.

Subsunk out.

[Subsunk]

And I second Deebow's sentiments. Pass over one of those gas cans. Hell ain't hot enough to phase us yet.

Subsunk out.

[douglas]

I hope a really talented biographer gets the rights to do his bio. I want my children to read about men like him to understand what words like valor, honor, duty, sacrifice, loyalty, commitment, love, respect, service, gentleman, and Marine really mean.