Major Major

Catch 22 - The movie

When I read an article that revolves around the oxymoron of military intelligence, I think of the novel by Joseph Heller entitled, Catch 22, published in 1961 and made into a movie in 1970.  The novel addresses a paradoxical situation in which an individual cannot avoid a problem because of contradictory constraints or rules.  In other words, solving one problem leads to another problem that leads back to the original problem.

In the novel, The narrator explains:

There was only one catch and that was Catch-22, which specified that a concern for one's safety in the face of dangers that were real and immediate was the process of a rational mind. Orr was crazy and could be grounded. All he had to do was ask; and as soon as he did, he would no longer be crazy and would have to fly more missions. Orr would be crazy to fly more missions and sane if he didn't, but if he were sane he had to fly them. If he flew them he was crazy and didn't have to; but if he didn't want to he was sane and had to. Yossarian was moved very deeply by the absolute simplicity of this clause of Catch-22 and let out a respectful whistle. (p. 56, ch. 5)

If you are not able to follow this logic, think of it this way:

A person right out of college is looking for a job but all employers tell him/her that they first need experience, but to acquire this pre-requisite they need a job which they cannot get until they have experience.

This unfortunately makes perfectly good sense to HR Managers, but that is beside the point.

So, to get back to the point, let me say that I first starting reflecting upon Catch 22 this week after all the news about the military (and anytime I see the word military, I automatically add intelligence to it) and the General Petraeus quad triangle or GPQT for short. 

 

Patraeus and Broadwell

 

 

 

Confused? 

Let me explain…

 

 

 

Wife of General Patraeus à  General Patraeus à  Paula Broadwell

General Patraeus à Paula Broadwell à Husband of Paula Broadwell

Paula Broadwell à  General Patraeus à  Jill Kelley

Husband of Jill Kelley à Jill Kelley à  General Allen

 

Allen and Kelley

 

I would venture to say that whoever writes the first novel on this scenario will definitely be able to sell the movie rights as well as coin a new catch 22-like phrase.

Now, here’s the real kicker:  did President Obama know about all of this or even parts of this before the election?  And, if he did, his “intelligence” department did a much better job at concealment than the actual military Generals did…

But, the real award for stupidity has got to be jointly given to these two women.  First to Paula for not doing her homework before sending emails to Jill Kelley.  Then, to Jill Kelley for not thinking it through before contacting the FBI knowing she had General Allen hidden in a closet.

Is it any wonder that America is losing respect around the world?