Tag Archives: Dick Cavett

Baldilocks does some sniping at Dick Cavett, etc., for complaining about Gen. Petraeus’s pyramid of ribbons (a third of them hidden by his lapel) that make his uniform look lopsided. Not a real man, Cavett, etc. Wimps, and so forth. Well, at the risk of being lumped with the girlie men, I also think all that chest candy looks ridiculous. Much as I admire the general–a modern Grant or Sherman, to be sure–I have to say that most of the stuff on his uniform is boilerplate that everyone has been awarded, such as his National Defense Service ribbon with two oak leaf clusters. It’s not personal. I would much prefer a high-ranking American officer pare his/her ribbons/badges down to the half dozen or so that really are distinctive. It would look a lot more serious; much less like a pretentious peacock.