I am sick to death of the Republican attack on Kerry again. In my opinion as an enlistee in World War II, Kerry was being both ironic and honest at the same time.
There are many educated and wealthy men and women who have enlisted for patriotic and principled reasons. At the same time, military service also appeals to people who, because of lack of privilege and education, find it as a hopeful way out of a life with no future, a way in which to achieve some pride in themselves through serving their country and others.
A recent article in the San Francisco Chronicle stated that new administration policy with regard to recruitment has lowered its requirements to include people with mental deficiencies, health problems, and trouble with the law and with drugs.
Bush’s spinmeisters, and of course, Bush himself have managed to turn things around so that Kerry’s remark is interpreted as an insult to the military, especially those serving in this terrible war. Bush also is positioning himself so that his successors will be saddled with his extreme pronouncements, such as that we will not leave Iraq without total victory for us and total defeat for the enemy, and that we will stay until the job of creating democracy and freedom in an area of the world where it has never existed and probably is not wanted or possible has been accomplished.
You notice that Bush still hasn’t called for a military draft, because that would mean calling up his base on the religious extremes, as well as those of great wealth. Have you also noticed how few from those groups have enlisted?
Bush, Cheney, and Tony Snow should be ashamed of themselves, and shamed by this country.
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9 comments:
You have made some good points, Lil'Bill. I am coming from a position of general negativity on Kerry. (Can't remember anything he ever said or did which was a pleasant surprise to me.) First he sticks his foot in his mouth, and then he apologizes, just when he could start making lemonade out of his lemon. He could have exploited this faux pas by raising the issues of the back-door draft (stop-loss) and the front-door draft (I'm-too-poor-to-go-to-college-so-I-guess-I'll-have-to-enlist-and-get-that-big-bonus). But no, JFK II is too concerned with damage control: he withdrew when he should have charged.
I had another comment in Electoral Politics, but I forget what I said.
I voted for the man in 2004, like there was choice, but despite running circles around the Shrub in the debates I was generally under whelmed by his campaign skills. I really wanted to believe in "JFK2" but never could shake the feeling that he sort of liked being Rove's whipping boy and was more hype than leader.
And if Bush did call for a draft in which rich college kids had to go to war this country would see a resurgence of the peace movement that would make the 60's look like a Sunday school picnic. Now I'm not saying that the 60's draft protesters were cowards but I am saying that I have very little respect for those young gungho armchair commandos I see a lot of since the Iraq war started. Please I have NO desire to copy Kerry and be misunderstood.
Hey, Vigilante! That question's a "No Brainer" IMHO. Repub or Dem, once the person realizes she/he made a "Booboo", for Heavens' Sake, fess up! Own it! Kerry could have saved himself and his party so much grief and anguish had he dared to "own" his mistake by saying something like: "Oops! I goofed! I meant to say...": and then proceeded to spell out what he meant to say. Instead, he gave Rove and "W" an huge gift, which they do NOT deserve, and which damaged Democratic hopes for this 2006 election. An election, may I remind you and other readers, which is yet to be won. Kerry did his party NO SERVICE by trying to "wing" it. Having said that, I do want to acknowledge the "Speaking Truth to Power" statements that he did make. But those were too few and too "nuanced" to be heard by most Americans. Sadly, the right-wing Spin artists "out-interrupt" and "out-shout" all voices of reason and thoughtfulness.
Emily and Beach, I think the StarSpangledHaggis calls it right: the John Kerry Comedy Tour of Critical Congressional Races
The only base she left uncovered was pointing out that wiring between JFK II's brain and mouth isn't robust enough to carry ('Kerry') the over-nuanced lines of his talking points writer(s).
The pitifully poor gubernatorial campaign waged by Phil Angelides (in the colorless tradition of Gray Davis) wasn't a good enough reason to drag this self-imploding loser from '04 into 2006.
I agree with all of you.Kerry does have foot-in-mouth disease. Which brings me to my favorite duo, Gore and Obama. After Tuesday we are going to have to go hot and heavy, especially for Gore, and we are going to have to persuade him (force him, if necessary) to run again. And this time, meaning next Tuesday and in 2008, we are going to have to raise hell if we don't win.
I think Kerry should leave the speaking to the silver-tongued and haired Clinton. However, I agree with Vigilante that there was a chance for him to turn this into an attack on the repugs. He should have apologized, perhaps, for not explaining more fully what he meant, THEN attacked by saying what is true...most poor sods in Iraq are there because they are poor and wanted an education and/or a way out of their smalltown existence. Not too many rich kids over there and there is a reason for that.
I also find it nauseating that the media and the repugs are so outraged over this when I remember bush making jokes about looking for WMD under his desk and declaring "Bring 'em on", or Heckuva job, Brownie. Those words displayed a callousness and cruelty beyond comprehension. Those words made a mockery of the thousands of deaths of people who died in Iraq for bush's lies and in New Orleans because of his total lack of compassion and understanding. He finally, sorta, apologized months later and the repugs were so proud of him and we were all supposed to forgive him. But Kerry says something that pales in comparison and suddenly he is a political pariah and oh dear, maybe he cost us the election again. BULL! I am SICK of the democrats apologizing. Take a page from the repugs and just attack. And Kerry, just sit this one out.
Jon Stewart brought up the Bush "joke" about missing WMD's on a replay last night. Just the short segment he showed turned my stomach as I watched the chimp smirk and laugh about the main reason he pushed us to war.
You are right Badger in that Bush shows an otherworldly lack of compassion to anyone not securely a part of his base or someone he might need. The year before Katrina Florida was pounded by hurricanes and Bush had FEMA johnny on the spot to aid in recovery and suppport of the people. Of course his brother was governor and the election was coming up with Florida an important battleground state.
A bunch of good comments. Welcome, Badger.
Does anyone really think "the troops" care more about a perceived insult from Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.), a decorated veteran who is not even running for office, than being shot at every day by an insurgency the incompetent Bush administration failed to anticipate in its negligent prewar planning?