Most of you seem more interested in labeling O'Reilly (is he conservative? No! Then he's a jerk-off! Yes! Then it's okay, he is still on our side, he must just be forced to actually think about these issues in more than black and white. Ugh) than in discussing what he's said, or considering whether or not he's being genuine in trying to think this issue through. I agree with him: blind partisanship is a flaw which weakens the credibility of a person. It makes us look like a thoughtless, knee-jerk sheep.
One doesn't need to be obsessed with the conservative/liberal split to make a moral judgement about Kerry, nor should that split be the driving force in the judgement you make -- I mean, you shouldn't say Kerry is liberal, therefore I hate him, rather, Kerry did XYZ, therefore I hate him.
There is a difference. That difference allows someone like O'Reilly to be IN GENERAL aligned with a body of thought known as Political Conservatism, but still stay objective -- which is his job as a reporter, I might add. Many of you complain that the media is too liberal, and it is. But would you have it be "conservative"? Not me. I want it to be what it should: truthful -- which would give no one a false advantage, and would force Americans to think for themselves. That may not be possible, since most people make their decisions on tag lines and sound bytes. For example, I doubt most people watched/will watch the conventions. They will watch the SPINNERS, who ALL lie, no matter what side they purportedly support.
I don't like Kerry. I consider myself conservative. I'm sick of Hollywood and the news media (which is essentially just an entertainment biz, i.e. part of Hollywood) telling the story THEIR way. But I admire and respect O'Reilly for THOUGHTFULLY reflecting on the issue at hand, obviously aware of some of the gray areas.
Blind partisanship doesn't make one loyal, it makes one blind. And if I'm going to hate Kerry it's going to be because I thought about what he stands for (in his own words and deeds) and not because he's called a Liberal by the GOP.
As for the content of this missive, it's really not so shocking that Kerry is trying to push his military record. It's their strategy. We get it. The Bush camp have their own strategies, which play up aspects of his life in order to make him stand apart from Kerry. So the F what. That has nothing to do with right now. I think Bush is the leader we need, and BOTH of these guys are polishing up questionable military records. Let's look at the issues at hand. Politicians aren't honest anyway (don't fool yourselves), so this is not a proof of integrity.
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Err Uhm Uhh...your actions are what determines whether or not you are a Liberal. It's not genetic. Therefore I can indeed say that because Kerry is a Liberal, I hate him.
He took after the Swift Boat Vets without knowing anything about Kerry except for what Kerry himself said, and slammed the vets as partisan hacks.
He had absolutely no right to shut them down because HE disapproved of what they had to say about his guy. That wasn't "objective", it was slash and burn partisan ignorance.
I could "tolerate" O'Reilly before that, but then he slammed the decorated veterans for no reason. He has no idea who's lying, and should have kept his big mouth shut until he knew more about it. He hurt a lot of good men for his own gain. In my opinion, he really sucks. I lost what little respect I did have for him that day.