I'd Be SERIOUSLY Remiss...

...if I didn't mention this (from the Usual USAF Source):

Army Gen. David H. Petraeus reviews troops at his retirement ceremony and official farewell on Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, Va., Aug. 31, 2011. DOD photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Chad J. McNeeley 

Petraeus Retires: Army Gen. David Petraeus, one of the most well known faces of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, retired Wednesday after 37 years of uniformed service. "You've run the race well, swifter and surer than the rest, and you now stand among the giants, not just in our time, but of all time, joining the likes of Grant and Pershing and Marshall and Eisenhower as one of the great battle captains of American history," said Adm. Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, during the retirement ceremony at Fort Myer, Va. The Army four-star was instrumental in developing the US counterinsurgency strategy that turned the tide of the war in Iraq. He led the Multinational Security Transition Command-Iraq, Multinational Forces-Iraq, US Central Command, and NATO's International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan. Now a civilian, Petraeus will be taking over at the CIA, having received the Senate's nod in June to lead the intelligence organization. (AFPS release by Jim Garamone)

Well, Gen. Petraeus retired from the Army, so we won't go into the Happy Trails bits.  He begins his new gig as DCI next week... and I think The Agency will be in the best of hands.

Apropos o' not much, the general most certainly wins the award for most ribbons, medals, badges, braid, gold leaf, and assorted other gewgaws on the uniform.  At some point in time the US military will quit taking its uniform cues from tinpot dictators of all stripes, most notably South American.  I hope.