A Tale of Two Men: Harry Reid and Peter Pace

On his last day in office as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, after the speeches, the parades and the honors, Marine General Peter Pace paid a visit to the Vietnam War Memorial.

It was in the rice paddies of Vietnam that 2nd Lieutenant Peter Pace first commanded men. Some of the marines under his command died there, forever young, men of lives unlived, timeless memories to lessons learned. The Wall commemorates those men amongst the more than 50,000 similar stories, memories, losses.

So it was on the first of October that Peter Pace, newly a retired Marine, left handwritten notes to three of his soldiers whose names shine on the Wall, including Lance Corporal Guido Farinaro, the first soldier Peter Pace lost in combat, killed by a sniper in 1968. To those notes he attached the sign of his rank, a token of his 40 year effort to serve his nation and to serve those who serve his nation. He left them his general's stars with his message

For Guido Farinaro, USMC
These are yours–not mine!
With love and respect,
Your Platoon Leader
Peter Pace

Contrast this with the leadership style of Majority Leader Harry Reid, who publicly described General Pace, just before the start of the Baghdad surge, as incompetent. This is the same Harry Reid whose best known remembrance for those who've served under him was $3,300 he passed out in tips to the doormen at his home, Washington's five star Ritz Carlton, money he illegally took from supporters' campaign donations.
Recent polls show Harry Reid to be unpopular in Nevada, the state that elects him, but he could probably buy a pretty good turnout at the Ritz.