 |  |
 
October 2012
August 2012 July 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 November 2004 October 2004 September 2004 August 2004 July 2004 June 2004 May 2004 April 2004 March 2004 February 2004 January 2004 December 2003 November 2003 October 2003 September 2003 August 2003 July 2003 June 2003 May 2003 April 2003 March 2003 February 2003 January 2003
     |
 Greetings! You are reading an article from The Mudville Gazette. To reach the front page, with all the latest news and views, click the logo above or "main" below. Thanks for stopping by! February 19, 2004 ReduxBy GreyhawkI've asked several subjective questions regarding the past, present, and future John Kerry on this Blog this week. Although over ten thousand visitors have read them, as yet none have been answered with valid support points for Kerry. Another chance: I've tried to consolidate some of those questions here. I recognize that I'm coming from an anti-Kerry side, but I'd legitimately like to see these answered. To make it easier though, I'll also allow for folks to simply explain why they aren't important. Any issues with Bush can be addressed in comments elsewhere on this blog. This is about Kerry. Likewise, I'd rather there be no "Kerry bashing" - just honest attempts to answer these questions on his behalf. Questions: 1) Kerry abandoned his command after 4 months in time of war. He did so under the rules that were in place at the time, so he broke no laws, only faith with those who depended on him. This is unexpected behavior from those in command. Can anyone defend this action in a leader? Would he do the same today? 2) Kerry was defeated in his first run for office. Was his subsequent abrupt change from "Kennedy style patriot" to virulent anti-war activist a shallow move, calculated to appeal to more voters? If not, what life-changing experience did he have that led to this conversion? 3) Did he actually believe the atrocity stories told by the false veterans in Jane Fonda's Winter Soldier group? Or did they fit his world view, so he didn't look too closely into them before repeating them before congress? Or is he just gullible? 4) Is the "flip-flop" issue 30 years old or is it ingrained into his personality? He's also flipped on Iraq, having been forced to recant his vote and dance to Dean's tune when Dean's was the message perceived to be desired by the Democratic Primary voters. Was he tricked into supporting the President originally, or was he tricked into supporting Dean? Or were his motives purely political, and we are left struggling to determine what Kerry's real position is. (His self-defense statements would seem to imply that he feels betrayed by Bush in that the President "had no plan". In other words - "tricked by Bush") 5) Has Kerry finally made up his mind that no one will fool him again? 6) What is the Kerry platform? (Both he and Miss America want "world peace", as do I.) 7) Is he the most extreme left candidate ever to be seriously considered for President of the United States of America? If not, who was? 8) The media wants to convince America that John Kerry represents a generation of Vietnam Veterans. Does he? Or does he represent a generation of draft dodgers who have found a veteran they can respect? I believe that the military-related arguments above will be tabled under the weight of truth spoken by several generations of veterans all around this country. This may happen before Kerry secures the Democratic nomination. I also believe the media coverage will focus on the small minority of those who support Kerry, or at least attempt to portray some sort of one-to-one "deeply divided" ratio. Again, the truth will be available in VFW halls and military clubs around America. Will America get the message? These are subjective questions, but the answers matter, as we are discussing whether or not this man should have our support in his quest to be the most powerful man in the world. And by the way, would Kerry abdicate that power to another group? Comments are open. 112402 Posted by Greyhawk / February 19, 2004 8:04 PM | Permalink 7 Comments |
November 26, 2010America@war [Greyhawk]
I think anyone who's ever pondered the "comment" option - once only available on blogs and bulletin boards, now ubiquitous on almost any web site - will appreciate this:
The so-called faculty of writing is not so much a faculty of writing as it is a faculty of thinking. When a man says, "I have an idea but I can't express it"; that man hasn't an idea but merely a vague feeling. If a man has a feeling of that kind, and will sit down for a half an hour and persistently try to put into writing what he feels, the probabilities are at least 90 percent that he will either be able to record it, or else realize that he has no idea at all. In either case, he will do himself a benefit. That's wisdom from the past, captured for posterity at the US Naval Institute, shared via the web on the institute's 137th anniversary. From their about page:
"The Naval Institute has three core activities," among them, History and Preservation: The Naval Institute also has recently introduced Americans at War, a living history of Americans at war in their own words and from their own experiences. These 90-second vignettes convey powerful stories of inspiration, pride, and patriotism. Take a look at the collection, and you'll see it's not limited to accounts from those who served on ships at sea, members of the other branches are well-represented. I'm fortunate to have met USNI's Mary Ripley, she's responsible for the institute's oral history program (and she's the daughter of the late John Ripley, whose story is told here). She also deserves much credit for their blog. ("We're not the Navy nor any government agency. Blog and comment freely.") We met at a milblog conference - Mary knew (and I would come to realize) that milbloggers are the 21st-century version of exactly what the US Naval Institute is all about. Once that light bulb came on in my head, I mentioned a vague idea for a project to her - milblogs as the 21st century oral history that they are. "Put that in writing," she said (of course - see first paragraph above!) - and here's part of the result. Shortly after the first tent was pitched by the American military in Iraq a wire was connected to a computer therein, and the internet was available to a generation of Americans at war - many of whom had grown up online. From that point on, at any given moment, somewhere in Iraq a Soldier, Sailor, Airman or Marine was at a keyboard sharing the events of his or her day with the folks back home. While most would simply fire off an email, others took advantage of the (then) relatively new online blogging platforms to post their thoughts and experiences for the entire world to see. The milblog was born - and from that moment to this stories detailing everything from the most mundane aspects of camp life to intense combat action (often described within hours of the event) have been available on the web... And et cetera - but since you're reading this on a milblog, you probably knew that. And you know that milblogs aren't just blogs written by troops at war, that many friends, family members, and supporters likewise documented their story of America at war online in near-real time, as those stories developed. The diversity in membership of that group is broad, the one thing we all have in common is the impulse to make sense of the seemingly senseless, and communicate the tale - for each of us that impulse was strong enough to overcome whatever barriers prevent the vast majority of people from doing the same. Everyone at some point has some vague idea they believe should be shared - we were the people who, from some combination of internal and external urging, found and spent those many half hours persistently trying to write it down. But where will all that be in another 137 years? Or five or ten, for that matter. That's something I've asked myself since at least 2004 - when I wrote this:
Membership in the ghost battalion has grown in the years since, and an ever growing majority of those abandoned-but-still-standing sites are vanishing. Have you checked out Lt Smash's site lately? How about Sgt Hook's? If you're a long-time milblog reader you know the first widely-read milblog from Operation Iraq Freedom and the first widely-read milblog from Afghanistan are both gone from the web. If you're a relative newcomer to this world you may never even have heard of them - or the dozens upon dozens of others who carried forth the standard they set down. If you have a vague notion that something should be done about that, (a notion I've heard expressed more than once...) then you and I and the good folks at the US Naval Institute are in agreement. Preserving the history documented by the milbloggers is just one of the goals of the milblog project, the once-vague idea that we're now making real. And it's a big idea, if I say so myself - too big to explain in one simple blog post, so stand by for more. Likewise, it's too big a task to be accomplished by just one person. So if you're a milblogger (and exactly what is a milblogger? is a topic for much further discussion on its own) I'm asking for your help. All I'll really need is just a little bit (maybe just one or two of those half hours...) of your time, and your willingness to tell the tale. We've already made history, it's time to save it. (More to follow...) Posted 4:02 PM | Permalink |
Comments (0) |
|
The Mudville Gazette is the on-line voice of an American warrior and his wife who stands by him. They prefer to see peaceful change render force of arms unnecessary. Until that day they stand fast with those who struggle for freedom, strike for reason, and pray for a better tomorrow.
 
 
 Furthermore, I will occasionally use satire or parody herein. The bottom line: it's my house. I like having visitors to my house. I hope you are entertained. I fight for your right to free speech, and am thrilled when you exercise said rights here. Comments and e-mails are welcome, but all such communication is to be assumed to be 1)the original work of any who initiate said communication and 2)the property of the Mudville Gazette, with free use granted thereto for publication in electronic or written form. If you do NOT wish to have your message posted, write "CONFIDENTIAL" in the subject line of your email. Original content copyright © 2003 - 2011 by Greyhawk. Fair, not-for-profit use of said material by others is encouraged, as long as acknowledgement and credit is given, to include the url of the original source post. Other arrangements can be made as needed. Contact: greyhawk at mudvillegazette dot com  Tending Distant Far from hearth and home, watching What tales we'll tell When things grim Some distant sunset, vision fading Saluting fallen friends whose names - Greyhawk, Baghdad, December 2004 |
I would love to be able to answer any of these. Just to make sense of them. Why? Because so many American's are following this man, listening to his words and believing him. That frightens me. A Lot. Everything item that you have listed, every question you raise is very important. I will be watching right along with you for the answers.
There is a problem with asking for Kerry supporters to answer those good questions. the problem is that there simply are not very many Kerry supporters.
All of the exit polling I've seen indicate that few of the people voting for him in these primaries support John Effin' Kerry. They have all simply convinced themselves that Kerry is the candidate most likely to beat Bush.
There is damned little love for Kerry or his platform, whatever it is today, simply Bush hatred. I doubt that that will be enough to carry the general election.
The only candidate that can actually beat Bush is George W. Bush. My opinion, your milage may vary.
I too have thought about the Senator's military record and some of the assignments and time lines.
1. Since he wasn't in ROTC, he obviously enlisted for officer training (The Globe timeline confirmes this - plus an obvious delayed entry program since he enlisted in Feb and was not ordered to AD until Oct.) Did he ever undergo normal Navy basic enlisted training? Was the Navy program like the Army OCS program? How is that he was ordered to AD in Oct and commissioned in Dec? Hell, at least the Army OCS commissioning programs took 3 months (ie. "90 days wonders") and then branch specific basic course for another 6 months. Where was this commissioning school held and how did he do?
2. The Globe says that he spent the first year in training. Fair enough, but what training and where? What was his original speciality (I recall that his first tour on the Frigate was in the "electrical" department) and how and why did he "change" his speciality to be a swift boat commander or was the Navy so desperate that they took anyone? I would think that a high profile operation like the swift boats would be a plum assignment and only "steely-eyed warriors" would get picked for this? Is this true? If true, what did Kerry do to warrant such an assignment?
3. Why did he change boats after only 1 month on his first boat? Was this a "check ride" to ensure that he had the stuff before being assigned his own boat? Was there a problem with his performance on this first boat (I wouldn't think so if they give him another, but it has always weighted on my mind.) Through my years in the Army I have never seen an officer get a one month "check ride" with one platoon before being assigned to another platoon. Usually they threw your ass into the swamp and let the platoon sergeant save your butt from the gators.
4. Since the normal military committment is for a total of 8 years (2 active and 6 in the ready/standby reserve, 3 active and 5 ready/standby reserve, 6 active reserve and 2 ready reserve.) So how did his original hitch end after 4 years active without a transfer to the Navy reserve (break from '70 to '72 according to the Globe and CNN articles.) Also, what's with the Navy Reserve stuff from '72 to '78? Where was he assigned? What was his military grade? What did he do? You Navy guys will have to figure this one out - I could figure out Army service, but am lost on how the Navy works. What was his final military grade?
5. Exactly what was his assignment from the time he beat-feet from Nam until the time that he was released from AD to campaign for Congress. I've seen a couple of references to the fact that he was assigned as Aide (or something akin to that) to some Admiral in Mass or Rhode Island somewhere? Exactly how early of an early out did he get?
Sorry for running on like that but I've just been wondering about these things.
No apology needed Roger. There are lots of "questions raised" by Kerry's service. And I think they hope everyone will be "tired of all those questions" now that they aren't about Bush. It's mudslinging, don't you know?
Let me say I am 40 yrs old and that I have not served in the armed forces. The only military background would be as a resource analyst at Edwards AFB in CA. As such, I can't comment on the timeline(s) questions. It is what it appears to be with John Kerry. Hoping to ride a wave of political change, he changes his position(s) on any topic. Thus, given who he is, if this "change" (Vietnam, Iraq 91 & 03, No Child Left Behind, the Patriot Act, or the death penalty) somehow comes to fruition while he "rides" this wave, he can then say he led it. How his medals were awarded I am not qualified to comment on. Thank you.
Mark
Excellent questions. I only could dream that Tim Russert would put them to Kerry when he appears on Meet The Press next.
It really scalds me that the sub-human Terry McAuliffe actually had the nerve to say that the White House started the contoversy over the President's National Guard Service by releasing the very records that the press and other partisans were demanding. What a hoot !
Kerry's 3 band-aid Purple Hearts remind me of that 1944 Stars & Stripes cartoon, by Bill Mauldin (" Willie & Joe ") where the GI is standing in front of the medic's table, which is stacked high with medals and says
" Just give me the aspirin , I already got a Purple Heart ".
On your question #8, my own take on it is "no".
You were saying that the truth would come out in the VFW halls and military clubs around the country and you are correct. I'm not sure about the VFW, but the American Legion has stated their extreme distaste for John F. Kerry. As a member of the US Navy Reserve, I've not heard anyone having anything positive to say about him.
I also have friends that belong to Vietnam Vet M/C clubs..and none of my buddies intend to vote for this guy.
I find it quite telling that during major events like "Rolling Thunder" that Kerry, as a Vietnam Vet and motorcylist, never shows up. Maybe he *knew* the type of reception he would get considering that the Vets and the Vietnamese community who participate in Rolling Thunder remember his efforts in obstructing the POW/MIA issues with North Vietnam.
Ride for Freedom XVII- May 30th, Washington, D.C.