[kellynla]

We finally learn who the doctor was who attended to Ketchup's first "wound" in which he "mysteriously" was awarded his first Purple Heart.

[Pikamax]

this in the LA times??? shocked..

[an amused spectator]

"oops" bump ;-)

[Constitution Day]

[Arrowhead1952]

Another kerry purple heart ping.

[Zeppo]

Yes, this is apparently a follow-up to this National Review article by Byron York.

A quick search on Google News using the search term "louis letson" shows about a half dozen other press citings, including the Seattle Times and Chicago Tribune.

[68-69TonkinGulfYachtClub]

[Ohioan from Florida]

Is it possible to copy and paste the whole article? It won't let me access it unless I'm registered, which I don't want to be for a variety of reasons. If it's not against FR rules, could someone provide a link that doesn't require me to register with them? Thanks if you can.

[R. Scott]

Then why was he awarded the PH?

[dead]

Kerry did not respond directly, but campaign officials angrily dismissed…

The beauty of all this is that Kerry campaign officials spend their entire day angrily dismissing things.

[ClearCase_guy]

Kerry is preparing a public statement on this Doctor's allegation. It begins: "That George Bush, a known draft-dodger would actually accuse Senator Kerry, a war hero, of cowardice is just another example of right-wing smear tactics. This doctor is obviously a lying Republicans ..."

[Kenton]

Oh my! This wound IS serious after all!

It may let all the hot air out of the "presumptive" candidate!

[Thud]

ping

[John Jorsett]

Probably shell fragments from breakfast.

[GaltMeister]

Makes you wonder if Poodle Boy forged the paperwork for his medal.

[GailA]

Can you post the best paragraph(s) so those of us who can't access the lat can be informed? I've tried several times to register and it screws up each time. Hmmm maybe it doesn't like my yahoo email addy?

[Wild Irish Rogue]

I still can't get over the dimensions of the fragment that was in Kerry's arm.
Well, "in " isn't exactly accurate-it was probably sitting on top of his skin.
Superficial splinters are in deeper.
Kerry was probably frantic that a stiff breeze might blow it off his arm,before he got to the tent.
No wonder the doc remembered Senator GoldBrick.

1/2 inch x 1/8 inch, under the skin by 1/4 inch.

To fully appreciate how tiny this is, everyone should get a ruler and map it out on paper. You'll need a magnifying glass.

You really have to question Kerry's mental status.Then and now.
Kerry was disturbed a/o cowardly to demand a Purple Heart for a phantom injury.
But, to continue to promote the myth that he received a war time Purple Heart for an injury that was self inflicted and microscopic, shows that Kerry may be even more disturbed than previously thought.

[LiteKeeper]

read later

[js1138]

Shameless musical interlude:


I am the very model of a presidential candidate,
From character to senator I know what to assassinate.
I lobby for the victims of injustice and adversity,
And care for those unfortunates who lack my great diversity.
I've slept with movie starlets and I've yachted with the Kennedys,
I've copied their initials and I've shared in their amenities.
And in the field of foreign wars my service is distinguished,
Or will be just as soon as all the rumors are extinguished.

Or will be just as soon as all the rumors are extinguished.
Or will be just as soon as all the rumors are extinguished.
Or will be just as soon as all the rumors are extinguished.


I'm boarding schooled and prepped and preened in snowy neutral Switzerland,
my haircuts and my super facials put me out at least a grand.
My visage in the mirror never ceases me to fascinate;
I am the very model of a presidential candidate.

In short his mirror visage never ceases him to fascinate;
He is the very model of a presidential candidate.


I married very well, indeed I did, and married nearly twice,
The first for money and for practice, though the kids they say are nice.
My first wife was unwillingly annulled, yet she remains a friend,
My second wife is richer still, and she is quite a major brand.
My intellectual positionings, like marriages, are pairs;
I'm married to ideas, I think, when they belong to billionaires;
So left and right and wrong are nuanced and I have my haws and hems;
And I will never rush to judgment like Prince Hamlet on the Thames.

And I will never rush to judgment like Prince Hamlet on the Thames.
And I will never rush to judgment like Prince Hamlet on the Thames.
And I will never rush to judgment like Prince Hamlet on the Thames.


I am the very model of a presidential candidate,
In matters war and peaceful I will always spin and vacillate.
When I become the president at last, we surely will have peace,
Unless some vast right wing conspiracy in Haiti or in Greece,
Attacks with indefensible assault the People's Insurrection,
Or somewhere ignorant and shameless fools demand a fair election.
Then I will castigate and reprimand severely the aggressor,
Unless perhaps I delegate the task to the U.N. or my successor.

Unless perhaps I delegate the task to the U.N. or my successor.
Unless perhaps I delegate the task to the U.N. or my successor.
Unless perhaps I delegate the task to the U.N. or my successor.

[There's millions of'em]

I find the account as it is now revealed to be completely believable.

IIRC, the "action" that led to PH#1 took place while Jf'n was quite new in country. Probably undergoing a standard "training regimen" prior to joining his actual combat unit.

If he fired an M79 into the nearby shoreline as has been reported, this would be a typical mistake of an FNG. The shrapnel from that 40mm round could easily have hit him and the others. So, it was technically a self inflicted wound.

In the absence of any enemy fire the only other explanation I can come up with is that he might have cut himself intentionally and forced the piece of found shrapnel into the wound.

[Robert A Cook PE]

Bump.