General ‘Shali,’ the Noble General, Dies
Jul 24th, 2011 | 3 responses
Polish-born, four-star general Gen. John M. Shalikashvili, the first immigrant to become chairman of the Joint Chiefs, died yesterday at age 75 in Tacoma, Washington, of complications from a stroke.
I always liked the general—the Noble General—with the “unpronounceable” name who
Mindful of his history of living through World War II in Poland… was particularly sensitive to the plight of people displaced by war and famine. In 1991, when he was NATO commander, he led Operation Provide Comfort, a large humanitarian effort in which 23,000 Allied troops provided aid to more than 500,000 Kurdish refugees fleeing the Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein.
Here are some more excerpts from the Washington Post:
Before being named chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Gen. Shalikashvili had commanded NATO and U.S. forces in Europe. He coordinated U.S. troop interventions in Bosnia, Haiti and Zaire (now known as Congo) in the 1990s but left his greatest mark by making the military a powerful force for humanitarian relief worldwide.
::
From 1992 to 1994, he oversaw an effort in which U.S. troops maintained security and distributed food to famine-stricken Somalia.
::He retired from the Army in 1997 and had a severe stroke in 2004.
::
In recent years, Gen. Shalikashvili supported the repeal of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy banning gays from serving openly in the military.
Read more, especially about how the future general spent his young days in Poland during World War II, here.
3 Responses to “General ‘Shali,’ the Noble General, Dies”
Had no idea his grandfather “collaborated with the Nazis” until his confirmation hearings. Why do I find that hard to believe?
@Allen: Many families do keep secrets that come out at a later date. Just because he did not know that his grandfather was a Nazi collaborator until his confirmation hearings does NOT mean that he knew about it until fairly briefly before that date. Indeed, it may have been revealed to him by those who briefed him in the White House. Many times, those sorts of things come up in research.
Yes but he was a general of the highest of commands. He certainly had access to detailed historical intelligence. He knew his grandfather was a general. I cannot believe that he was never curious as to his grandfathers war time service. Family? I’m talking about military historical record.