The author looks at the recent firing of General Stanley McChrystal as "the exception that proves the rule"--the rule being that the military is taking over the government which he illustrates in his article.
Let's face it, though: deference has become the norm for the Pentagon and US military commanders, which is not so surprising. After all, in terms of where our money goes, the Pentagon is the 800-pound gorilla in just about any room. It has, for instance, left the State Department in the proverbial dust. By now, it gets at least $12 for every dollar of funding that goes to the State Department, which in critical areas of the world has become an adjunct of the military.However, this liberal political observer only really captures a small part of the reality in relation to the military-industrial complex which rules the Empire. You see, the generals and the corporate executives run in and out of the revolving doors between the military and the war contractors.
These people are not the most important of the political actors in the US. As I see it, the ruling class is like an onion with numerous layers--the core being mostly the pure capitalists followed by people in the banking/financial industry which, in turn, are followed by their enforcers in the military-industrial complex.
These layers constitute a ruling class whose powerful influence has permeated all areas of civilian life during this never-ending "war on terror", and is especially focused on young people to prepare them to serve the Empire. During this period the influence of the "enforcers"--the military, security services, and related private contractors--are exercising much more influence over US society.
The civilian areas of control are becoming less and less important in our society. Bill Moyers saw this all happening way back in 1987. For his excellent background on this development, you must view his 21:43m video entitled, "The Secret Government".
