One of the more intriguing stories of the Iraq War is how General Ray Odierno metamorphosised from the door-kicking tough guy of 2003 to the culturally sensitive counterinsurgent of today. It's a story that has yet to be told (even Tom Ricks, who portrays Odierno quite harshly in Fiasco and quite positively in The Gamble, never really explains the General's transformation). But if you watch this clip of Odierno gamely (if slightly awkwardly) participating in a comedy skit with Stephen Colbert and President Obama, you definitely get the sense that the man is anything nothing* if not adaptable:
| The Colbert Report | Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| Obama Orders Stephen's Haircut - Ray Odierno | ||||
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It's fun to think what must have been going through the heads of Odierno's fans at The Weekly Standard when they watched that: Et tu, Ray?
P.S. How much juice does Stephen Colbert have, getting both the MNF-I commander and POTUS to appear in a skit on his show? He's bigger than Cronkite.
*-- Thanks for the editing, ironyroad.
--Jason Zengerle