"...a lack of situational awareness..."

Those words probably mean more to the average reader of the Army Times than to the average citizen. It's an important charge, the kind of thing that causes officers of every rank to be relieved of command, because it's the kind of thing that causes battles to be lost and soldiers to be killed. When the Army Times levies that kind of charge against the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, people should pay close attention.

Here's part of the Army Times editorial, and I can't find a word to disagree with in the whole thing (though I've taken the liberty of emphasizing a few points I particularly endorse).

"There is no excuse for the behavior displayed by soldiers in the now-infamous pictures and an even more damning report by Army Maj. Gen. Antonio Taguba. Every soldier involved should be ashamed. But while responsibility begins with the six soldiers facing criminal charges, it extends all the way up the chain of command to the highest reaches of the military hierarchy and its civilian leadership.
"The entire affair is a failure of leadership from start to finish. From the moment they are captured, prisoners are hooded, shackled and isolated. The message to the troops: Anything goes."

***

"On the battlefield, Myers’ and Rumsfeld’s errors would be called a lack of situational awareness — a failure that amounts to professional negligence.

"To date, the Army has moved to court-martial the six soldiers suspected of abusing Iraqi detainees and has reprimanded six others.
Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski, who commanded the MP brigade that ran Abu Ghraib, has received a letter of admonishment and also faces possible disciplinary action.

"That’s good, but not good enough.

"This was not just a failure of leadership at the local command level. This was a failure that ran straight to the top. Accountability here is essential — even if that means relieving top leaders from duty in a time of war."

This isn't the liberal beltway establishment talking. This isn't a voice the President can afford to ignore. This is about saving American lives, and what shreds remain of America's prestige.