Viet Vet Urges Kerry To Come Clean

www.jenmartinez.com ^ | Sunday, May 25, 2003 | Larry J. O'Daniel #

[SAMWolf]

Vietnam Veteran Larry J. O'Daniel has today challenged former fellow officer and veteran, John Forbes Kerry to come clean with charges Kerry has made in the past. O'Daniel, a decorated combat veteran from Vietnam and Phoenix says that the issue is one that the Senator himself has brought on.

Senator John Forbes Kerry is attempting to be our generation's Vietnam War hero, much the same way his avowed idol, John F. Kennedy was of that generation. Kerry falls short in many ways. I do not deny his heroism under fire. His Silver Star, Bronze Star, and Purple Hearts all attest to that. Attempting to ride into the White House on those medals alone is not enough. As a former officer who served as a combat advisor and participant in a Special Operations program, I know a little bit about integrity, courage, and character. Kerry lacks what it takes to be Commander in Chief.

Kerry would be an extreme embarrassment to his party if nominated for President. On the surface, he seems to be the exact type of rival needed to run against a popular President with a military background, albeit not in combat. A popular President who proved his courage jockeying supersonic aircraft. On the surface, Kerry would seem to be able to cut into the military vote that has become increasingly one party over the past 30 years.

This senator is JFK from Massachusetts, a coincidence that he has played upon for years. Like the first JFK, he is a heroic Naval Officer. However, he has a record which speaks volumes about his current abilities and views. Kerry will both exploit his war record and run from it. His checkerboard past explains his actions today. He has been critical of the way the current war on terrorism has been waged. Inevitably, his criticism is always preceded by media notices of Kerry, decorated Vietnam war veteran. However, thirty two years ago, Kerry charged decorated war veterans with unspeakable crimes. Those charges were never proven accurate.

Before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in April 1971, Kerry asserted he represented veterans, honorably discharged and very highly decorated, who participated in war crimes. These crimes were not isolated incidents, he charged, but crimes committed on a day - to - day basis with the full awareness of officers at all levels of command. Crimes that this country made them do.

These veterans personally raped women, cut off ears, cut off heads, taped wires from portable telephones to human genitals and turned on the power. They cut off limbs; blew up bodies; randomly shot at civilians; razed villages like Ghenghis Khan; shot livestock for fun; poisoned food; and ravaged the Vietnamese countryside. From his personal experience, Kerry asserted that the Vietnamese only wanted to work in rice paddies without our helicopters strafing and napalming them and their villages. Our men died while our allies refused to help and fight. Kerry said we rationalized destroying villages in order to save them; accepted a My Lai; enforced free fire zones by shooting anything that moves. Our GIs falsified body counts while leaders glorified body counts. In a well orchestrated political move, he asked, how do you ask a man to be the last man to die for a mistake? The well scrubbed veteran began his career that day.

A problem arises. Kerry's testimony was largely untrue. These charges were investigated then and since. My challenge as we honor veterans of that war and others - Prove them or apologize.

Kerry's widely covered charges largely paralleled that of another highly decorated veteran, LTC Anthony Herbert. Some of the unsubstantiated and uncorroborated accusations of Kerry were almost identical to specific charges leveled by Herbert. Both charged war crimes were ignored, uninvestigated, part of the routine.

[Fitzcarraldo]

amazing how these candidates are all self-destructing

[snippy_about_it]

Let's call a spade a spade. He was in it all for his politcal future. No matter what he did in Vietnam it's what he did by getting out early and what he did when he came back that is atrocious. He's a self promoting lying little weasel. He should be ashamed of himself, he's a traitor as far as I'm concerned based on his testimony before congress about our troops. /rant

[deport]

Kerry..... if he knew any of these things he keeps saying regarding actions taken by our military against the civilian population then he was obligated to take actions to report and stop it......

His testimony and talk is going to dig him a deep hole if this continues......

[leprechaun9]

If John Freakin' Kerry witnessed any of the atrocities that he claimed were every day occurances AND DID NOT REPORT THEM AT THE TIME HE WITNESSED THEM, then he should be charged with NONFEASANCE and let the court decide if his inaction was MALFEASANCE or MISFEASANCE!

[Lancey Howard]

I think Kerry was shot in the rear-end while running away from a firefight. A full investigation is needed. And then another, and then another, and then another. It is time for that scumbag coward Kerry to come clean.

[Boot Hill]

Bump

[PhiKapMom]

Thanks for posting this information!

Backhoe -- Here is another one!

[PhiKapMom]

Isn't this unbelieveable -- my inbox has been filled today with anti-Kerry articles. Someone is doing a data dump on Kerry but the broadcast media is still all gaga over Kerry!

[Terry Mross]

Agree but unfortunately it will never happen. Can't we all just get along? Let's move on. Nothing to see here.

[There's millions of'em]

John Kerry: A Decorated Viet Nam War Criminal.

It must be true, he said so in his own testinony.

[deport]

Someone is doing a data dump on Kerry but the broadcast media is still all gaga over Kerry!

---

Do you reckon Candidate #2 is doing it.... He said the other day that less than 25% of the primay delegates have been chosen. So he's thinking he still has a strong chance or that's how I read him.

[cajun-jack]

I had several uncles in WWII and some of them were very seriously injured. They would never talk about "the war" even when 2 or more of them were together. I could never understand that then because i viewed them as heroes and wanted to hear their stories.

After doing my time in Nam aug 70 -aug 71 w/101st airborne, phu bai...and coming back home (thankfully in one piece) I could understand it.

I have lots of friends that were there and when we are together, whether at a bbq or fish fry or just visiting, Nam is very seldom if ever mentioned. I am not a "war hero", nor do i profess to be...I was a REMF and damn glad of it...some of my friends were not so lucky and left some body parts over there.

point is, if you were there, you don't need to talk about it...unit number and location is enough to establish validity and then a warm handshake and a cold beer and then the topic moves to something important.

[PleaseNoMore]

That is the sanest suggestion I have heard throughout this whole flap. I agree.

[JamesA]

All this crap gives me a big bad headache. I did 3 tours in Vietnam, didn't like it at all. I would have loved to got back to the world but.....My parents weren't connected! Never ever would I have demonstrated against the war while my buddies were still in country. I cannot say what is fact or fiction with this Mr. Kerry but my gut tells me he is another fat cat politician who will do or say anything to get in office. I hope Mr. Bush gets his machinery moving and sets his records straight. Oooh my head.

[hershey]

Nine dwarves was too many to last, alas. Heard Rush this afternoon, discussing the media's gushing over Kerry and the Clintons' use of surrogates to chop Dean off at the ankles. We're in for a long, hot summer.

[zygoat]

"John Kerry: A Decorated Viet Nam War Criminal".
It must be true, he said so in his own testinony

Isn't it convenient that he recommended himself for the decorations. I am beginning to believe that his entire version of his "heroic" action is a lie.

[PhiKapMom]

Remember #2 candidate is staying above the fray -- yeah right.

Think Kerry has too much "mo" right now and being backed by the liberal broadcast media is helping him.

Something is going on though with AP and Reuters -- print media is digging like crazy on Kerry. I am like in shock at the articles coming out by these two news organizations.

[Victoria Delsoul]

These crimes were not isolated incidents, he (Kerry) charged, but crimes committed on a day - to - day basis with the full awareness of officers at all levels of command. Crimes that this country made them do.

These veterans personally raped women, cut off ears, cut off heads, taped wires from portable telephones to human genitals and turned on the power. They cut off limbs; blew up bodies; randomly shot at civilians; razed villages like Ghenghis Khan; shot livestock for fun; poisoned food; and ravaged the Vietnamese countryside. From his personal experience, Kerry asserted that the Vietnamese only wanted to work in rice paddies without our helicopters strafing and napalming them and their villages. Our men died while our allies refused to help and fight. Kerry said we rationalized destroying villages in order to save them; accepted a My Lai; enforced free fire zones by shooting anything that moves. Our GIs falsified body counts while leaders glorified body counts. In a well orchestrated political move, he asked, how do you ask a man to be the last man to die for a mistake? The well scrubbed veteran began his career that day.

A problem arises. Kerry's testimony was largely untrue. These charges were investigated then and since. My challenge as we honor veterans of that war and others - Prove them or apologize.

Exactly! Bring it on, Hanoi John! Let's have it. As the article indicates, "Some of the unsubstantiated and uncorroborated accusations of Kerry were almost identical to specific charges leveled by Herbert. Both charged war crimes were ignored, uninvestigated, part of the routine."

This time we shouldn't ignore it.

[SAMWolf]

Seems to me he also lied under oath to Congress during these hearings. Think he'll ever be held accountable?

[Darnright]

Bump