Truer words, and all that

Col George Petrolekas, for those who don't know, is one of those colonels. You know, the ones who punch well above their weight in the CF. And he weighs in with typical eloquence on the tempest swirling around the media teapot regarding the Strategic Advisory Team - Afghanistan (or SAT-A for short):

Former ambassador Chris Alexander, along with his key staff and high-ranking NATO officials whom I met to confirm Mr. Karzai's request, were unequivocal in endorsing the plan. Yet, even then, they cautioned that this team would become a lightning rod of envy for those who did not comprehend it or felt threatened by it. That warning sadly proved true, as ready access to the President's office, to important ministries and the unprecedented freedom that went with it, challenged the bureaucratic status quo. On one occasion, David Sproule, who succeeded Mr. Alexander as ambassador, had to send one of his staff back to Canada as this person objected to SAT members using the embassy swimming pool, not understanding that we are all Canadians in a foreign land.

Mr. Alexander and Mr. Sproule understood that the SAT did not diminish their position as Canada's chief representative in Kabul — it only enhanced their stature. Other countries could not even hope for such influence. Colonel Mike Capstick, the team's first commander (now retired), went to the landmark Afghanistan Compact discussions in London as an Afghan delegate, and the whole SAT was more of an adjunct to, or seconded to, the Afghan civil service than Canadians working in their government. It is a subtle difference, but that nuance means everything.

That's just a taste; go and spend a couple of minutes reading the whole thing - I guarantee it will be worth your time.