Watch the video--during which Kerry said nothing about the President--and see if you buy the leftie spin that he was making a (very lame) joke about the President and not, as seems exceedingly likely from the video, about the intelligence level of our service members.
He respects servicemembers? This is the same guy who threw someone else's medals over the White House fence, maligned our soldiers in Vietnam with patently untrue statements, and then stated that Americans in Iraq are terrorizing women and children by bursting into their homes at night? Sorry, F-bomb, I'm not buying it. And these folks aren't, either.
By the way, some stats about the quality of our military members can be found here.
Update, 11/1/06: Apparently, a Democrat congressional candidate in Iowa is sufficiently offended, or at least thinks he can score points by acting offended, that he canceled a campaign appearance with Kerry.
Update #2, 11/1/06: Now Kerry, ostensibly to keep himself from becoming a distraction, has withdrawn from all campaign appearances for this election cycle. His non-apologies (primarily on the Imus show) are pathetic; had he said something like what he's posted on his web site, he might have gotten through this with only a couple cuts and bruises.
BTW, here's the opinion of some of our military personnel. Odd, though, that the weapon in the background appears to be a Soviet-built ZSU-23-4 anti-aircraft gun....
http://atlasshrugs2000.typepad.com/atlas_shrugs/images/troops_kerry_1.jpg
Update #3, 11/4/06: This picture was taken at West Point during last night's pasting of the Army football team by the Air Force football team.
What's really sad is Kerry's non-apology for this whole fiasco. Basically saying that anybody who took his comments to mean that he was demeaning service members is a Rovian rethuglican tool and ought to stop being so mean to him. He truly is the gift that keeps on giving.
ReplyDeleteYou failed to mention his three purple hearts in Vietnam, as well.
ReplyDeleteYou mean the ones he kept so he could throw someone else's over the fence at the White House? Sorry, I'm not going to buy that you have any respect for the military just because you want to support ole Horseface.
ReplyDeleteAs if him throwing them over the fence or whatever changes what he did to deserve them? o.O
ReplyDeleteYou apparently value those medals more than he did--perhaps because there are some unanswered questions about how he supposedly earned them.
ReplyDeleteThis isn't the 2004 election--you can believe Kerry's a war hero if you want, I think he's a waste of human flesh.
www.blogd.com covers this well. Read it when you get an opportunity. Read some of his other stuff too. It's probably the most well written blog I have ever read. It really describes the "Liberal" viewpoint well. He'd be a good guy for you to argue with.
ReplyDeleteIf he didn't actually deserve them, it only shows all the more corruption.
ReplyDeleteAnon
ReplyDeleteLet’s discuss Mr. Kerry’s Purple Hearts. Now, first let’s go over another Senator named Bob Dole. Senator Dole was injured in Italy in 1944 and took years to partially recover from this injury. To this day he has to hold something in his right hand to keep his arm under control. For this, he received one, count one Purple Heart.
During the last election, Senator Dole was on Larry King and asked a question that puts Mr. Kerry’s medals in perspective. “Three Purple Hearts and never bleed as far as I can see?”
Again, this is a man who can question anyone on guts. So I feel safe questioning Mr. Kerry’s awards.
Kerry is a sanctimonious self-serving prig. He used his dubious Yale degree (average 77) to hoist himself to Officer training. From there he manufactured his own military history. Talk about creative writing! What's sad is at this point, he believes all that stuff. What a buffoon. Then he goes all superior over folks who choose the military making the inference that they are too slow for the likes of Harvard and Yale. Talk about preaching to the choir. I'd like to see him try that joke as Westpoint.
ReplyDeleteHe apologized. You can all stop trying to take the focus off of our current pathetic administration.
ReplyDeleteIs it so hard to believe, anonymous, what I wrote? That I genuinely, honestly believe he meant what he said, and that I'm offended by it? That his history of denigrating our servicemembers contributes to my belief that he meant what he said?
ReplyDeleteAnd outside of approving of this war, do you see me writing post after post defending "our current pathetic administration", as you so delicately put it? Since you can't, on what basis do you think I'm defending the current administration by attacking an idiot? Maybe, just maybe, I'm attacking an idiot because he's an idiot.
You libs can't reason. You function only on emotion.
And had you read the entire post, including Update #2, you'd see that I acknowledged his web site apology.
ReplyDeleteI replied before you posted that second update. And I'm a republican, not a democrat.
ReplyDeleteDon't think so, as I posted comments before and after that update and yours wasn't there.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I don't see where I called you a Democrat. Actually, I called you a lib.
Now, can you justify your comment that I've written this post for reasons other than what I've claimed? Or are you just spouting off yet again?
That banner that was posted is awesome. By the way Anonymous if you had any Kahoona's you would put your name down because anyone can say anything from behind a curtain, but to say it to someones face is different.
ReplyDelete“He apologized.”
ReplyDeleteNo, he didn’t. His exact quote from his web site is
November 1, 2006
Statement of Senator John Kerry
As a combat veteran, I want to make it clear to anyone in uniform and to their loved ones: my poorly stated joke at a rally was not about, and never intended to refer to any troop.
I sincerely regret that my words were misinterpreted to wrongly imply anything negative about those in uniform, and I personally apologize to any service member, family member, or American who was offended.
It is clear the Republican Party would rather talk about anything but their failed security policy. I don’t want my verbal slip to be a diversion from the real issues. I will continue to fight for a change of course to provide real security for our country, and a winning strategy for our troops.
One comment. Why did he put this on his web site and not just come out and read it? I mean he was high strung when he said
“Let me make it crystal clear, as crystal clear as I know how,” Kerry said. “I apologize to no one for my criticism of the President and his broken policy. If anyone owes our troops in the fields an apology, it is the president and his failed team.”
I would believe this web site entry was written by some staff puke, but I digress.
From the first paragraph, the reference to “was not about, and never intended to refer to any troop.” is a bold faced lie. I can believe his written words or my lying ears,
“You know, education, if you make the most of it, if you study hard and you do your homework, and you make an effort to be smart, uh, you, you can do well. If you don’t, you get stuck in Iraq.”
In other words you can’t want to do well if you want to be in the service. Full disclosure, Darren and I met when we were assigned to 1st Battalion, 3rd Air Defense Artillery at Ft Carson CO. He’s West Point 87, I went through ROTC. But this shows Kerry’s NE liberal attitude. If you wear a uniform, your from the lower, poorer classes and would only join because this evil country won’t afford any opportunities for you.
BTY, here is a quote from the Associated Press from a candidate for Congress named Kerry
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20061102/D8L4QH580.html
“In 1972, as he ran for the House, he was less apologetic in his comments about the merits of a volunteer army. He declared in the questionnaire that he opposed the draft but considered a volunteer army "a greater anathema."
"I am convinced a volunteer army would be an army of the poor and the black and the brown," Kerry wrote. "We must not repeat the travesty of the inequities present during Vietnam. I also fear having a professional army that views the perpetuation of war crimes as simply 'doing its job.'
"Equally as important, a volunteer army with our present constitutional crisis takes accountability away from the president and put the people further from control over military activities," he wrote.”
Anyone with half a brain has called the all volunteer service one of the great successes of this country over the last 30 years. God knows it’s worked better than the “War on Poverty”. And as a Major in the Army Reserve (and having over 7 years active service, including a recent 9 month rotation in Kuwait) I have said this over and over. I would rather have 5 guys with me who want to be there, for whatever reason (e.g. want to serve my country, want a good start in life, want money for college, this is my career, etc) than 10 guys there because they want to get their requirement over with.
From the second paragraph, “I sincerely regret that my words were misinterpreted to wrongly imply anything negative about those in uniform…” I get it. ‘I'm too stupid to see he wasn’t talking about me…what was I thinking.” His attitude is we misinterpreted his wise advice, not that his was an insult to our servicemembers and their families.
“You can all stop trying to take the focus off of our current pathetic administration.”
Ok Anon, we’ll go back to the problems of our current administration…like you wanted. What was it you on the left were screaming…oh yes, Mark Foley. I can handle that…as long as we have fair game. So I demand equal treatment:
1. The Cape Cod Orca, AKA Ted Kennedy resigns for causing the death of a woman in his vehicle. As one of my NRA stickers says, “Ted Kennedy’s car has killed more people than my guns.”
2. Congressman William Jefferson, Democrat LA, resigns pending his indictment because he had 90K+ in his freezer. The money came from an undercover FBI agent.
3. Barney Frank gets censured and removed by the congress for letting a prostitute ring run out of his house. Hey, if Barney was straight and a Republican, people like you would be screaming for his head.
MikeAT, next time read your own quotes.
ReplyDelete"I personally apologize to any service member, family member, or American who was offended. "
“He apologized.”
ReplyDeleteNo, he didn’t. His exact quote from his web site is...
"...I personally apologize to any service member, family member, or American who was offended..."
Isn't that apologizing?
Did you ever hurt someone's feelings when you were young, and your parents told you to apologize, and you offered to write a note instead? I do, and my parents wouldn't let me write the note.
ReplyDeleteSaying it is what shows the humility, not writing the note--and not posting it on your web site.
Not everything can be your way, I'm afraid. It's better than Bush has done, you know, with the killing of Americans, and all.
ReplyDeleteKerry botched what he was supposed to say. He was supposed to say that if you're stupid and lazy, you'll end up getting us stuck in Iraq, referring to President Bush. I can't believe that no one has acknowledged this. Liberals don't take Bushisms seriously. Why did you guys take this one seriously?
ReplyDeleteAnon and Chris
ReplyDeleteIf he was man enough to scream with his “genuine” outrage “I apologize to no one for my criticism of the President and his broken policy” to a room full of TV cameras, I think he can be man enough to say “I personally apologize to any service member, family member, or American who was offended." himself to a larger room of TV cameras.
As I said, I believe this was written by some staff puke to cover his ass till the elections.
Darren wrote it well. You screw up, you don't send a letter...you look the offended party in the face.
BTY, the latest spin is it was a blown joke and it was out of context. Please, can one of you two put this into context...or make it funny some how? That should be worth an A in a creative writing class!
No, it is not an apology. Nothing was misinterpreted.
ReplyDelete"I'm sorry if you're too stupid to know that I didn't mean what I said," is not an apology, even if you call it one.
This should have come as a surprise to nobody. Kerry has been spitting on the military since 1971.