I agree, I am also somewhat confused about how the libs, who are so anti-military, could embrace this the way they are.
I don't think they embrace it at all, it just gives them cover in their search for power and what they thought was a stark contract to Bush's military record. Kerry spent more time betraying and dishonoring his country and the military than he did in Viet Nam which probably helps the libs square his service.
To your original point, I have thought that liberals simply use the government to work out their own personal guilt or to right their karma. Their personal generosity and character rarely seems to match what they seek to take from or require of others.
Isn't that the truth! I feel like up is down and down is up! Imagine how I felt when Kerry said "Help is on the way."
I feel like we're fighting the Vietnam War all over again, only this time we are getting the facts.