Predictions that the floodgates would open — that McChrystal would find a way to share his point of view, that he would find a way to embarrass the military — have proven unfounded.

“That’s not the boss,” said an officer who counts McChrystal as a mentor. Indeed, McChrystal’s chief aide, Col. Charles Flynn, sent word through McChrystal’s informal network of soldiers, many of whom hold some of the most sensitive positions in the government, that they were to keep silent and stay loyal. Aside from a few attempts to dispute the claims of the Rolling Stone reporter about the ground rules set for interviews, they’ve been silent squirrels.

McChrystal does not watch much American television these days. His reads the Military Times and is fond of BBC’s newscasts.

He has not figured out what he wants to do.