I was having lunch in Seattle in mid-January, 2003, with my good friend General John Shalikashvili, former Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Shali, as he was best known, had served as chairman under President Clinton from 1993 to 1997. He was one of the very few soldier-statesmen in the world.
We were discussing President George Bush's threats of invading Iraq because of the weapons of mass destruction that the Bush administration claimed Saddam Hussein was stockpiling to attack the west.
Shali told me at lunch there were "no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq." None. He also told me that he had called Defense Secretary Don Rumsfeld, Secretary of State Colin Powell (Shali's former boss) and other top Bush administration people to tell them emphatically there were NO weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. This was two months before the invasion. Not only was Shalikashvili a former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for the United States, he served as NATO's 10th Supreme Allied Commander in Europe. He was also an expert on the Middle East, not only from a military point of view, but he understood and respected the culture and people of the region. He warned Rumsfeld about the effects a war would have on Iraq's neighbors because of the thousands of family connections the Iraqi's have throughout North Africa and the Middle East. Obviously Rumsfeld didn't listen. Shalikashvili, one of the most knowledgeable people on the subject, spoke to a deaf administration.
John Shalikashvili was born in Warsaw, the son of a noble family from the Republic of Georgia. He escaped from Communist Poland with his family in a cattle car, and ended up in the U.S. in 1952. He learned English by watching movies, and especially liked to listen to John Wayne.
Shali was loved by everyone in the armed services, from the lowest ranks to the highest commanders. He was highly respected by leaders throughout the world, including U.S. adversaries.
In 2007 he stepped out in front of his peers by publically promoting the repeal of "Don't Ask Don't Tell." In an editorial in the New York Times, Shali wrote that "...gays and lesbians can be accepted by their peers" and their acceptance "would not harm military readiness."
John Shalikashvili, who has received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, was the first foreign-born Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He was a sensitive, compassionate and empathetic leader who told me over and over that the answer to solving world differences will come through understanding and not through military action.
Shali passed away on Saturday, July 23rd at 75 at a military base near Tacoma, Washington, with his wonderful wife Joanie and son Brant at his side.
He has been a positive influence on millions of people from all around the world. If only some leaders had listened to his advice in 2003, hundreds of thousands of innocent people, along with many of the troops who respected him so much, might be alive today to help us honor a truly great hero to the world.
If only they had listened to Shali.