Reagan & Conservatives -- Revisonist History 101

[regent]

I think Pickens was one of those that gave a bundle of money to the swift boaters for their version of Kerry's Vietnam experiences?
How many purple hearts were awarded in Vietnam for injuries that never required a day in the hospital?
The military issued medals in Vietnam on a more generous basis for morale.
During the election the navy issued a bulletin that Kerry's medals were all in order and shippy-shape.
In any case the history books will read that Kerry went to Vietnam, saw combat and was wounded, and how will the the Swift Boaters go into the history books?

 

[Dante]

Reagan & Conservatives -- Revisonist History 101

1988: Reagan Abandoned, Mocked by Hardline Conservatives​

This is why the GOP lost in 2008 and 2012: They are living in a past that never existed, just like Reagan did. Reagan raised taxes, grew government, backed socialist programs, and more. When a political party lives on myth, sooner or later it all just collapses into a warm pile of shit

1988: Reagan Abandoned, Mocked by Hardline Conservatives
George Will

As the end of President Reagan’s final term approaches, conservatives and hardliners have radically changed their view of him. They originally saw him as one of their own—a crusader for good against evil, obstinately opposed to communism in general and to any sort of arms reduction agreement with the Soviet Union in specific. But recent events—Reagan’s recent moderation in rhetoric towards the Soviets (see December 1983 and After), the summits with Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev (see November 16-19, 1985 and October 11-12, 1986), and the recent arms treaties with the Soviets (see Early 1985 and December 7-8, 1987) have soured them on Reagan.

Hardliners had once held considerable power in the Reagan administration (see January 1981 and After and Early 1981 and After), but their influence has steadily waned, and their attempts to sabotage and undermine arms control negotiations (see April 1981 and After, September 1981 through November 1983, May 1982 and After, and April 1983-December 1983), initially quite successful, have grown less effective and more desperate (see Before November 16, 1985). Attempts by administration hardliners to get “soft” officials such as Secretary of State George Shultz fired do not succeed. Conservative pundits such as George Will and William Safire lambast Reagan, with Will accusing him of “moral disarmament” and Safire mocking Reagan’s rapport with Gorbachev: “He professed to see in Mr. Gorbachev’s eyes an end to the Soviet goal of world domination.” It will not be until after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the tearing down of the Berlin Wall (see November 9, 1989 and After) that conservatives will revise their opinion of Reagan, in the process revising much of history in the process. [Scoblic, 2008, pp. 143-145]

Entity Tags: George Will, George Shultz, William Safire, Mikhail Gorbachev, Ronald Reagan

So it was Reagan's becoming more liberal towards the Soviets, that brought about Reagan's deals with the Soviets, that led to a warming of the cold war and the end of the Soviets' hostility distrust of the west and the USA

You can't revise what I lived through and be factious with your comments.

Just read what was written at the time. Memory serves you poorly

 

[Dante]

I think Pickens was one of those that gave a bundle of money to the swift boaters for their version of Kerry's Vietnam experiences?
How many purple hearts were awarded in Vietnam for injuries that never required a day in the hospital?
The military issued medals in Vietnam on a more generous basis for morale.
During the election the navy issued a bulletin that Kerry's medals were all in order and shippy-shape.
In any case the history books will read that Kerry went to Vietnam, saw combat and was wounded, and how will the the Swift Boaters go into the history books?

Kerry was awarded Bronze and Silver Stars. He helped the swift Boats develop tactics that saved many an American life. He's an arrogant S.O.B., but he's not a Dick Cheney, so the right absolutely despises him

 

[bigrebnc1775]

Reagan & Conservatives -- Revisonist History 101

1988: Reagan Abandoned, Mocked by Hardline Conservatives​

This is why the GOP lost in 2008 and 2012: They are living in a past that never existed, just like Reagan did. Reagan raised taxes, grew government, backed socialist programs, and more. When a political party lives on myth, sooner or later it all just collapses into a warm pile of shit



So it was Reagan's becoming more liberal towards the Soviets, that brought about Reagan's deals with the Soviets, that led to a warming of the cold war and the end of the Soviets' hostility distrust of the west and the USA

You can't revise what I lived through and be factious with your comments.

Just read what was written at the time. Memory serves you poorly

The liberal media wrote many lies on Reagan those who had to live through Reagan era know better.

 

[Oldstyle]

I think Pickens was one of those that gave a bundle of money to the swift boaters for their version of Kerry's Vietnam experiences?
How many purple hearts were awarded in Vietnam for injuries that never required a day in the hospital?
The military issued medals in Vietnam on a more generous basis for morale.
During the election the navy issued a bulletin that Kerry's medals were all in order and shippy-shape.
In any case the history books will read that Kerry went to Vietnam, saw combat and was wounded, and how will the the Swift Boaters go into the history books?

Kerry was awarded Bronze and Silver Stars. He helped the swift Boats develop tactics that saved many an American life. He's an arrogant S.O.B., but he's not a Dick Cheney, so the right absolutely despises him

Oh for God's sake...I don't "despise" John Kerry! I simply find the "war hero" narrative that was constructed by him so that he could run for political office to be a joke. Now you're claiming that John Kerry developed Swift Boat tactics that saved many American lives? Look, his testimony in front of the Winter Soldier Committee was total bullshit. He lied. Why? Because he wanted to be the darling of the anti-war crowd and use that for a run for political office so he sold his comrades in arms down the proverbial river. He's a man who parlayed his "war hero" status into a life long political career.

 

[Dante]

I think Pickens was one of those that gave a bundle of money to the swift boaters for their version of Kerry's Vietnam experiences?
How many purple hearts were awarded in Vietnam for injuries that never required a day in the hospital?
The military issued medals in Vietnam on a more generous basis for morale.
During the election the navy issued a bulletin that Kerry's medals were all in order and shippy-shape.
In any case the history books will read that Kerry went to Vietnam, saw combat and was wounded, and how will the the Swift Boaters go into the history books?

Kerry was awarded Bronze and Silver Stars. He helped the swift Boats develop tactics that saved many an American life. He's an arrogant S.O.B., but he's not a Dick Cheney, so the right absolutely despises him

Oh for God's sake...I don't "despise" John Kerry! I simply find the "war hero" narrative that was constructed by him so that he could run for political office to be a joke. Now you're claiming that John Kerry developed Swift Boat tactics that saved many American lives? Look, his testimony in front of the Winter Soldier Committee was total bullshit. He lied. Why? Because he wanted to be the darling of the anti-war crowd and use that for a run for political office so he sold his comrades in arms down the proverbial river. He's a man who parlayed his "war hero" status into a life long political career.

To his crew, Kerry was one of the most daring skippers in the US Navy, relentlessly and courageously engaging the enemy. But the battles and moral dilemmas were in shades of gray, and Kerry to this day wrestles with the scenes of death he commanded.

In an intense three months of combat following that Christmas Eve battle, Kerry often would go beyond his Navy orders and beach his boat, in one case chasing and killing a teenage Viet Cong enemy who wore only a loin cloth and carried a rocket launcher. Kerry's aggressiveness in combat caused a commanding officer to wonder whether he should be given a medal or court-martialed.

No period better captures the internal conflicts besetting John Kerry than Vietnam. He enlisted as a Navy officer candidate despite his criticisms as Yale's class orator of America's intervention in Southeast Asia. He would become a war hero, recipient of the Silver and Bronze stars, but would also become an antiwar leader, causing some former crewmates to feel he had betrayed them.

oh boo fucking hoo.


Boston Globe Online | John Kerry: A Candidate in the Making

---

Claim: John Kerry's Vietnam war service medals (a Bronze Star, a Silver Star and three Purple Hearts) were earned under "fishy" circumstances.

Status: False.

 

[Dante]

back on topic..................

-------------------------------------------------------------

You can't revise what I lived through and be factious with your comments.

Just read what was written at the time. Memory serves you poorly

The liberal media wrote many lies on Reagan those who had to live through Reagan era know better.

so now George Will represents the liberal media, and none of this is true?

Conservative Opposition

Hardline conservatives protest Gorbachev’s visit to Washington, and the signing of the treaty, in the strongest possible terms. When Reagan suggests that Gorbachev address a joint session of Congress, Congressional Republicans, led by House member Dick Cheney (R-WY—see 1983), rebel. Cheney says: “Addressing a joint meeting of Congress is a high honor, one of the highest honors we can accord anyone. Given the fact of continuing Soviet aggression in Afghanistan, Soviet repression in Eastern Europe, and Soviet actions in Africa and Central America, it is totally inappropriate to confer this honor upon Gorbachev. He is an adversary, not an ally.”

Conservative Paul Weyrich of the Free Congress Committee is more blunt in his assessment of the treaty agreement: “Reagan is a weakened president, weakened in spirit as well as in clout, and not in a position to make judgments about Gorbachev at this time.”

Conservative pundit William F. Buckley calls the treaty a “suicide pact.”

Fellow conservative pundit George Will calls Reagan “wildly wrong” in his dealings with the Soviets.

Conservatives gather to bemoan what they call “summit fever,” accusing Reagan of “appeasement” both of communists and of Congressional liberals, and protesting Reagan’s “cutting deals with the evil empire” (see March 8, 1983).

They mount a letter-writing campaign, generating some 300,000 letters, and launch a newspaper ad campaign that compares Reagan to former British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain.

Senators Jesse Helms (R-NC) and Steven Symms (R-ID) try to undercut the treaty by attempting to add amendments that would make the treaty untenable; Helms will lead a filibuster against the treaty as well.
[Scoblic, 2008, pp. 142-145]
George Will

 

[Jroc]

No he has no psychic advisers and he has all his marbles in his second term. Among other things he will not be drooling all over himself while not being able to remember who his cabinet secretaries are.

"A few months ago I told the American people I did not trade arms for hostages. My heart and my best intentions still tell me that's true, but the facts and the evidence tell me it is not." - Ronald Reagan

Obama is simply not the man Reagan was, by any measure.

In what regard was Reagan more of a man?

He challenged the evil Empire and won which let to the freedom of 100s of millions of people, all the while the liberals like Ted Kennedy sought to make deals with Soviets Reagan also no press on his side, unlike our current poor excuse for a president, who has his own personal propaganda machine called the mainstraim media.


[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtYdjbpBk6A]Reagan at Brandenburg Gate - "tear down this wall" - YouTube[/ame]

Kennedy's message was simple. He proposed an unabashed quid pro quo. Kennedy would lend Andropov a hand in dealing with President Reagan. In return, the Soviet leader would lend the Democratic Party a hand in challenging Reagan in the 1984 presidential election. "The only real potential threats to Reagan are problems of war and peace and Soviet-American relations," the memorandum stated. "These issues, according to the senator, will without a doubt become the most important of the election campaign."

Kennedy made Andropov a couple of specific offers.

First he offered to visit Moscow. "The main purpose of the meeting, according to the senator, would be to arm Soviet officials with explanations regarding problems of nuclear disarmament so they may be better prepared and more convincing during appearances in the USA." Kennedy would help the Soviets deal with Reagan by telling them how to brush up their propaganda.

Then he offered to make it possible for Andropov to sit down for a few interviews on American television. "A direct appeal ... to the American people will, without a doubt, attract a great deal of attention and interest in the country. ... If the proposal is recognized as worthy, then Kennedy and his friends will bring about suitable steps to have representatives of the largest television companies in the USA contact Y.V. Andropov for an invitation to Moscow for the interviews. ... The senator underlined the importance that this initiative should be seen as coming from the American side."

Kennedy would make certain the networks gave Andropov air time--and that they rigged the arrangement to look like honest journalism.

Ted Kennedy's Soviet Gambit - Forbes.com

 

[Dot Com]

He'd be labelled a RINO & be run out of the Primaries by today's Repubs

Fact

tissue?

 

[Jroc]

He'd be labelled a RINO & be run out of the Primaries by today's Repubs

Fact

tissue?

Please... Tired liberal talking point

 

[Toronado3800]

He'd be labelled a RINO & be run out of the Primaries by today's Repubs

Fact

tissue?

Please... Tired liberal talking point

Bailouts, tariffs and deficits are Republican talking points?

Claiming Ronald as an effective President is a defensible position. Claiming him as a Conservative hero is peculiar.

 

[Oldstyle]

Kerry was awarded Bronze and Silver Stars. He helped the swift Boats develop tactics that saved many an American life. He's an arrogant S.O.B., but he's not a Dick Cheney, so the right absolutely despises him

Oh for God's sake...I don't "despise" John Kerry! I simply find the "war hero" narrative that was constructed by him so that he could run for political office to be a joke. Now you're claiming that John Kerry developed Swift Boat tactics that saved many American lives? Look, his testimony in front of the Winter Soldier Committee was total bullshit. He lied. Why? Because he wanted to be the darling of the anti-war crowd and use that for a run for political office so he sold his comrades in arms down the proverbial river. He's a man who parlayed his "war hero" status into a life long political career.

To his crew, Kerry was one of the most daring skippers in the US Navy, relentlessly and courageously engaging the enemy. But the battles and moral dilemmas were in shades of gray, and Kerry to this day wrestles with the scenes of death he commanded.

In an intense three months of combat following that Christmas Eve battle, Kerry often would go beyond his Navy orders and beach his boat, in one case chasing and killing a teenage Viet Cong enemy who wore only a loin cloth and carried a rocket launcher. Kerry's aggressiveness in combat caused a commanding officer to wonder whether he should be given a medal or court-martialed.

No period better captures the internal conflicts besetting John Kerry than Vietnam. He enlisted as a Navy officer candidate despite his criticisms as Yale's class orator of America's intervention in Southeast Asia. He would become a war hero, recipient of the Silver and Bronze stars, but would also become an antiwar leader, causing some former crewmates to feel he had betrayed them.

oh boo fucking hoo.


Boston Globe Online | John Kerry: A Candidate in the Making

---

Claim: John Kerry's Vietnam war service medals (a Bronze Star, a Silver Star and three Purple Hearts) were earned under "fishy" circumstances.

Status: False.

You can recite the "John Kerry War Hero" narrative until the cows come home, Dante and it won't change my opinion that his Purple Hearts received for wounds that were treated with bandaids is and always has been...a crock. John Kerry went to Vietnam for one reason and one reason alone...to get something "heroic" on his resume before he went back to seek political office and he pursued that end with dogged determination. Not by actually BEING heroic but by pestering his commanding officer for medals that countless other Vietnam vets wouldn't have even thought of requesting.

The Kerry "hero" narrative that's been told for decades is rather bizarre in that it comes from a man who was shown to have been a bald faced liar when he was testifying before that Senate committee way back when. You see with Kerry...the truth is whatever gets him what he wants. In his case it's gotten him a life time job in politics.

 

[Dante]

Oh for God's sake...I don't "despise" John Kerry! I simply find the "war hero" narrative that was constructed by him so that he could run for political office to be a joke. Now you're claiming that John Kerry developed Swift Boat tactics that saved many American lives? Look, his testimony in front of the Winter Soldier Committee was total bullshit. He lied. Why? Because he wanted to be the darling of the anti-war crowd and use that for a run for political office so he sold his comrades in arms down the proverbial river. He's a man who parlayed his "war hero" status into a life long political career.

To his crew, Kerry was one of the most daring skippers in the US Navy, relentlessly and courageously engaging the enemy. But the battles and moral dilemmas were in shades of gray, and Kerry to this day wrestles with the scenes of death he commanded.

In an intense three months of combat following that Christmas Eve battle, Kerry often would go beyond his Navy orders and beach his boat, in one case chasing and killing a teenage Viet Cong enemy who wore only a loin cloth and carried a rocket launcher. Kerry's aggressiveness in combat caused a commanding officer to wonder whether he should be given a medal or court-martialed.

No period better captures the internal conflicts besetting John Kerry than Vietnam. He enlisted as a Navy officer candidate despite his criticisms as Yale's class orator of America's intervention in Southeast Asia. He would become a war hero, recipient of the Silver and Bronze stars, but would also become an antiwar leader, causing some former crewmates to feel he had betrayed them.

oh boo fucking hoo.


Boston Globe Online | John Kerry: A Candidate in the Making

---

Claim: John Kerry's Vietnam war service medals (a Bronze Star, a Silver Star and three Purple Hearts) were earned under "fishy" circumstances.

Status: False.

You can recite the "John Kerry War Hero" narrative until the cows come home, Dante and it won't change my opinion that his Purple Hearts received for wounds that were treated with bandaids is and always has been...a crock. John Kerry went to Vietnam for one reason and one reason alone...to get something "heroic" on his resume before he went back to seek political office and he pursued that end with dogged determination. Not by actually BEING heroic but by pestering his commanding officer for medals that countless other Vietnam vets wouldn't have even thought of requesting.

The Kerry "hero" narrative that's been told for decades is rather bizarre in that it comes from a man who was shown to have been a bald faced liar when he was testifying before that Senate committee way back when. You see with Kerry...the truth is whatever gets him what he wants. In his case it's gotten him a life time job in politics.

Your opinion is shit, and no one is trying to change your opinion, and no one cares about your shit opinion, and I post only so when people read your shit opinion they know it's shit and they can wipe their asses with your shit opinion.

I met the very men who actually served in combat side by side in the boat with Kerry. I heard their stories. I never cared that much for Kerry and was puzzled why a seriously decorated veteran said to me with fire in his eyes "I would follow that man into hell" that is powerful.

I also heard what Rassman had to say. He didn't even know Senator Kerry was the guy who saved his life until he saw news about Kerry and Vietnam in the media. He contacted Kerry, not the other way around. I spoke with Brinkley the Presidential historian about this. Rassman was a Republican and a Police Officer in Oregon.

Unlike a person with piece of shit opinions like you possess, I changed my mind about Kerry. I went from support for his candidacy to support for the man

Several other witnesses insist that there was hostile fire during the incident. Jim Rassmann, the Special Forces captain Kerry rescued, wrote, "Machine-gun fire erupted from both banks of the river. … When I surfaced, all the Swift boats had left, and I was alone taking fire from both banks. To avoid the incoming fire, I repeatedly swam under water." Del Sandusky, the driver on Kerry's boat, PCF-94, stated, "I saw the gun flashes in the jungle, and I saw the bullets skipping across the water." Wayne Langhofer, who manned the machine gun on Don Droz's PCF-43, stated, "There was a lot of firing going on, and it came from both sides of the river."[5] Michael Medeiros, aboard PCF-94, recalled "a massive ambush. There were rockets and light machine gun fire plus small arms." Jim Russell, the Psychological Operations Officer of the unit, who was on PCF-43, wrote "All the time we were taking small arms fire from the beach… Anyone who doesn't think that we were being fired upon must have been on a different river."

 

[DougReese]

My "choice" in 2004 was between George W. Bush and John Kerry. As much as I didn't like many of the things that Bush was doing, Kerry by comparison would have been a jump out of the frying pan into the fire. He's the prototypical "empty suit" albeit with a nice head of hair...a career politician who's all about John Kerry.

I'm from Massachusetts, have watched "JFK Lite" in action for thirty plus years and wouldn't put him in the Oval Office for love nor money. I voted for George W. Bush in 2004because he was a better option than the other guy...just as I voted for Bush over Al Gore four years earlier. With all due respect? That doesn't disqualify me from being a "decent human". It simply makes me a pragmatist.

Well said from the MA personal point of view.

My vote always went to the national interest. Kerry's "Winter Soldier" testimony put me off him for sure, and your assessment from a local point of view seems valid.

Still, by 2004 it was clear that filthy little cokehead inheritor from Tejas was over his head. Kerry had been a surface based decorated Naval officer. His Winter Soldier testimony brought on the Swift Boat folks, which is how the cookie crumbles. Some people never really get out of the zone; Swift Boaters are entitled to their juvenile take. However, it wasn't much of a decision for me to pick the proven performer over the proven failure.

In sum, the country that re elected a degenerate scum like Junebug deserves the fucking Bush League policies produced. And Obama. It is meet and right that the United States suffer the consequences of ill considered actions, whatever those consequences are.

I'll leave it at that and wish you the best.

With all due respect, Jukes? The fact that John Kerry got "decorated" and then transferred Stateside for the injuries that he incurred was a joke. How you can refer to him as a "proven performer" mystifies me. He used the system back then to claim 3 very minor injuries in a six month period as "Purple Heart" wounds and get the heck out of Vietnam. Then he went back to the US and made up stuff about the people he served with committing attrocities...using his Winter Soldier testimony as his ticket into politics. I have the ultimate respect for those that served their "country" in Vietnam but John Kerry was never about that. He went to Vietnam to serve "himself". He went to Vietnam toting a movie camera to capture his military career on film. Who does that? The fact that John Kerry is our Secretary of State disgusts me, quite frankly.

He bought that camera, in Vietnam, at the PX, as did thousands of others over there. Which is to say, it was not at all unusual.

Neither are Purple Hearts for minor wounds unusual . . . . Bob Dole's 1st PH was also for a minor wound, but well deserved, as were Kerry's.

Doug Reese

 

[Dante]

He went to Vietnam toting a movie camera to capture his military career on film. Who does that?

He bought that camera, in Vietnam, at the PX, as did thousands of others over there. Which is to say, it was not at all unusual.

Neither are Purple Hearts for minor wounds unusual . . . . Bob Dole's 1st PH was also for a minor wound, but well deserved, as were Kerry's.

Doug Reese

Poor Oldstyle, he's misinformed and a cowardly loser on this subject.

 

[bodecea]

Geez. what a crock of crap.

try to be specific...what exactly do you dare dispute?

Reagan brought the US from the brink of ruin under liberal progressive Jimmy Carter and his alcoholic brother and put pride back in the US. Reagan policies made sure that we became the last super power in the world. If you wanted to examine the eight years of any administration you could find some bills that don't quite measure up to modern scrutiny and you can cherry pick junk and spin it anyway you want to but Reagan had to deal with a radical left wing congress and he did it with style. Reagan had to compromise with the radical left and deal with an obscure amendment to a Military appropriations bill sponsored by a left wing congressman named Boland that all but guaranteed Communist infiltration to Central America and true to form the left wing media blew it up into Iran/Contra. Reagan still triumphed on that issue.

I see that you believe that Jimmie Carter's brother was part of our government. Says a great deal about your failure to grasp reality.

 

[Oldstyle]

Well said from the MA personal point of view.

My vote always went to the national interest. Kerry's "Winter Soldier" testimony put me off him for sure, and your assessment from a local point of view seems valid.

Still, by 2004 it was clear that filthy little cokehead inheritor from Tejas was over his head. Kerry had been a surface based decorated Naval officer. His Winter Soldier testimony brought on the Swift Boat folks, which is how the cookie crumbles. Some people never really get out of the zone; Swift Boaters are entitled to their juvenile take. However, it wasn't much of a decision for me to pick the proven performer over the proven failure.

In sum, the country that re elected a degenerate scum like Junebug deserves the fucking Bush League policies produced. And Obama. It is meet and right that the United States suffer the consequences of ill considered actions, whatever those consequences are.

I'll leave it at that and wish you the best.

With all due respect, Jukes? The fact that John Kerry got "decorated" and then transferred Stateside for the injuries that he incurred was a joke. How you can refer to him as a "proven performer" mystifies me. He used the system back then to claim 3 very minor injuries in a six month period as "Purple Heart" wounds and get the heck out of Vietnam. Then he went back to the US and made up stuff about the people he served with committing attrocities...using his Winter Soldier testimony as his ticket into politics. I have the ultimate respect for those that served their "country" in Vietnam but John Kerry was never about that. He went to Vietnam to serve "himself". He went to Vietnam toting a movie camera to capture his military career on film. Who does that? The fact that John Kerry is our Secretary of State disgusts me, quite frankly.

He bought that camera, in Vietnam, at the PX, as did thousands of others over there. Which is to say, it was not at all unusual.

Neither are Purple Hearts for minor wounds unusual . . . . Bob Dole's 1st PH was also for a minor wound, but well deserved, as were Kerry's.

Doug Reese

Are you really going to compare Bob Dole's injuries with John Kerry's and call both of their Purple Hearts "well deserved"? Bob Dole was machine gunned by the Germans in World War II, a wound that left him with one arm totally useless. John Kerry received a small sliver of shrapnel in his forearm from being too close to the grenade that "he" fired from a grenade launcher...an injury that was treated with a bandaid. Comparing the two isn't even an "apples and oranges" type thing...it's more like a "blueberry and watermelon" type thing.

 

[Dante]

With all due respect, Jukes? The fact that John Kerry got "decorated" and then transferred Stateside for the injuries that he incurred was a joke. How you can refer to him as a "proven performer" mystifies me. He used the system back then to claim 3 very minor injuries in a six month period as "Purple Heart" wounds and get the heck out of Vietnam. Then he went back to the US and made up stuff about the people he served with committing attrocities...using his Winter Soldier testimony as his ticket into politics. I have the ultimate respect for those that served their "country" in Vietnam but John Kerry was never about that. He went to Vietnam to serve "himself". He went to Vietnam toting a movie camera to capture his military career on film. Who does that? The fact that John Kerry is our Secretary of State disgusts me, quite frankly.

He bought that camera, in Vietnam, at the PX, as did thousands of others over there. Which is to say, it was not at all unusual.

Neither are Purple Hearts for minor wounds unusual . . . . Bob Dole's 1st PH was also for a minor wound, but well deserved, as were Kerry's.

Doug Reese

Are you really going to compare Bob Dole's injuries with John Kerry's and call both of their Purple Hearts "well deserved"? Bob Dole was machine gunned by the Germans in World War II, a wound that left him with one arm totally useless. John Kerry received a small sliver of shrapnel in his forearm from being too close to the grenade that "he" fired from a grenade launcher...an injury that was treated with a bandaid. Comparing the two isn't even an "apples and oranges" type thing...it's more like a "blueberry and watermelon" type thing.

and Dante knows Bob Dole never questioned Kerry's combat record,

Stop hiding behind the shriveled up arm of Bob Dole

 

[DougReese]

With all due respect, Jukes? The fact that John Kerry got "decorated" and then transferred Stateside for the injuries that he incurred was a joke. How you can refer to him as a "proven performer" mystifies me. He used the system back then to claim 3 very minor injuries in a six month period as "Purple Heart" wounds and get the heck out of Vietnam. Then he went back to the US and made up stuff about the people he served with committing attrocities...using his Winter Soldier testimony as his ticket into politics. I have the ultimate respect for those that served their "country" in Vietnam but John Kerry was never about that. He went to Vietnam to serve "himself". He went to Vietnam toting a movie camera to capture his military career on film. Who does that? The fact that John Kerry is our Secretary of State disgusts me, quite frankly.

He bought that camera, in Vietnam, at the PX, as did thousands of others over there. Which is to say, it was not at all unusual.

Neither are Purple Hearts for minor wounds unusual . . . . Bob Dole's 1st PH was also for a minor wound, but well deserved, as were Kerry's.

Doug Reese

Are you really going to compare Bob Dole's injuries with John Kerry's and call both of their Purple Hearts "well deserved"? Bob Dole was machine gunned by the Germans in World War II, a wound that left him with one arm totally useless. John Kerry received a small sliver of shrapnel in his forearm from being too close to the grenade that "he" fired from a grenade launcher...an injury that was treated with a bandaid. Comparing the two isn't even an "apples and oranges" type thing...it's more like a "blueberry and watermelon" type thing.

I was referring to Bob Dole's FIRST Purple Heart, which was minor . . . and self-inflicted.

Please do your homework before sticking your foot in your mouth.

Doug Reese

 

[Oldstyle]

He bought that camera, in Vietnam, at the PX, as did thousands of others over there. Which is to say, it was not at all unusual.

Neither are Purple Hearts for minor wounds unusual . . . . Bob Dole's 1st PH was also for a minor wound, but well deserved, as were Kerry's.

Doug Reese

Are you really going to compare Bob Dole's injuries with John Kerry's and call both of their Purple Hearts "well deserved"? Bob Dole was machine gunned by the Germans in World War II, a wound that left him with one arm totally useless. John Kerry received a small sliver of shrapnel in his forearm from being too close to the grenade that "he" fired from a grenade launcher...an injury that was treated with a bandaid. Comparing the two isn't even an "apples and oranges" type thing...it's more like a "blueberry and watermelon" type thing.

I was referring to Bob Dole's FIRST Purple Heart, which was minor . . . and self-inflicted.

Please do your homework before sticking your foot in your mouth.

Doug Reese

And which of John Kerry's 3 Purple Heart wounds would you like to contrast with the injury that Dole suffered for his 2nd Purple Heart? You know the one that was so bad that Dole barely survived and then spent years in hospitals having 9 operations done? Bob Dole "deserves" the Purple Heart he won for that injury. The injuries that John Kerry received were so minor that he doesn't dare release his military health records. If he ever did it would be obvious how he'd worked the system to get that "3 Purple Hearts and you're going Stateside" thing. John Kerry's war hero status is built upon the medals he received and the stories he made up about what happened over there. The lies that he told during his Winter Soldier testimony not only built himself up...but tore down the reputations of men who served honorably in Vietnam. I find John Kerry to be self-serving.