David Petraeus resigns as CIA Director over extramarital affair

[The Mikado]

My question: what does David Petraeus having an affair have anything to do with his (by all accounts stellar) career?

America is losing a fine public servant today, it seems.  Maybe in a few years he will be rehabilitated and able to be Defense Secretary or something.

[The Mikado]

Timing is rather suspicious. Maybe Obama is using this as a pretext to get rid of him?

Nonsense.  Petraeus is a great public servant and Obama is losing someone special at the helm over there....this is nothing that benefits the President.

Damn stupid reason to have to resign too.

It does make sense from the perspective that if Petraeus has been sleeping around, he could be blackmailed, which is dangerous for a CIA Director.  Nevertheless, once you admit you've had the affair, aren't you blackmail-proof over it?

[The Mikado]

Apparently, she spent the last year he was in Afghanistan embedded in his office, examining him from every possible point of view.

Paraphrasing from an actual description of her book.

EDIT:  Everyone needs to click Lief's link RIGHT NOW.

[The Mikado]

if Al was chiming in on the Assange saga being a postmodern hack thriller novel... what is this?

This is a Shakespearean sex comedy, of course.