Photograph of John Kerry meeting with Comrade Do Muoi, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam. Photo is displayed in the War Remnants Museum (formerly the "War Crimes Museum") in Saigon.
Posted on 08/28/2004 2:54:08 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
Vietnam veterans are honored all over the country these days. However, that wasn't the way it was when the war was being waged or even after it ended. There were no welcome home parades. Vietnam vets suffered public scorn in ways that have no parallel anywhere in American history.
What happened 35 years ago has dimmed in memory, but as veterans remember, John Kerry's standing among them is slipping every day. Veterans are a respectful group, yet some turn their backs whenever John Kerry addresses them.
The record shows that Kerry served in Vietnam four months. During that time, he served honorably and was awarded three Purple Hearts, a Bronze Star and a Silver Star. At the time, three Purple Hearts won a ticket out of Vietnam, which is what happened. Some veterans have even come forward to honor him as a hero. So, then why are a growing number of veterans upset? Forget about the 250 Swift Boat Veterans for Truth and even the inconsistencies in Kerry's own diary.
What many veterans remain hopping mad about are the 41 pages of John Kerry's testimony before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations on the morning of April 22, 1971. Here are some excerpts that still burn in the minds of many veterans:
John Kerry said, "I would like to talk, representing all those veterans, and say that several months ago in Detroit, we had an investigation at which over 150 honorably discharged and many very highly decorated veterans testified to war crimes committed in Southeast Asia, not isolated incidents but crimes committed on a day-to-day basis with the full awareness of officers at all levels of command."
"... They relived the absolute horror of what this country made them do. They told stories at times they had personally raped, cut off ears, cut off heads, taped wires from portable telephones to human genitals and turned up the power, cut off limbs, blown up bodies, randomly shot at civilians, razed villages in fashion reminiscent of Genghis Khan, shot cattle and dogs for fun, poisoned food stocks, and generally ravaged the countryside of South Vietnam in addition to the normal ravage of war, and the normal and very particular ravaging which is done by the applied bombing of this country."
Aware of the political power of the anti-war movement, Chairman William Fulbright complimented young John Kerry for doing a "remarkable job."
The North Vietnamese thought so too. They erected a statue of John Kerry which still stands. That "remarkable job" also played a key role in the unflattering image of Vietnam veterans which took years to change.
Former Republican Sen. Bob Dole recently suggested that John Kerry should apologize for that defamatory congressional testimony. Dole also called upon Kerry to release his Vietnam service records; however, he has refused to do so.
Veterans find it hard to distinguish the John Kerry who now says, "I want to be president because I am a Vietnam veteran" from the John Kerry who once made blanket statements accusing his fellow soldiers of horrendous atrocities.
Veterans don't need a surrogate group to remind them of their past issues with John Kerry. They might, on the other hand, welcome an apology for the general defamation they experienced from a very young John Kerry embroiled in a passionate cause.
In the final analysis, the future is more important that the past. Thirty-five years ago is a long time, but there are still veterans who bristle at the thought of John Kerry as president and commander-in-chief. A sincere apology would go a long way in calming the concerns of veterans who may well remember all of that when they vote on election day.
( (Frank R. Mazzaglia served with Army Intelligence in the Far East. He can be reached at fmazzaglia@aol.com.) )
How does one apologize for treason, which is what Kerry committed?
If for a second Kerry thought this would win the election for him, he would do it.
He wouldn't mean it, but he would do it.
Why does that sentiment always apply when you are talking about dems? To answer my own question: I guess because they have no honor.
In John Kerry's universe John Kerry is all that matters.I see no possibility that John Kerry will appologize to anyone but Teresa for anything.
I guess it's because they don't believe in right and wrong - unless they're talking about Republicans. They don't have to abide by any moral guidelines because they don't demand it of themselves.
Well, she has him on a short financial leash.
One picture sent around to our mailing lists will be worth a thousand words.
Leni
Kerry served in Vietnam, but not honorably. He showed cowardice, abandoning his men under what he thought was enemy fire, then lying about that incident to cover his behind. He lied like a rug, over and over, weasled and slimed. It was his negligence in not watching the radar that led to the killing of two Vietnamese civilians, and then another lie to cover it up and hand himself a medal. No wonder he bragged about tossing medals away. They never meant anything to him as he hadn't really earned them.
And if TerAYsa loses all her money, she can kiss any apologies goodbye, in fact she won't get the chance since Botoxboy will be long gone...on the hunt for another stupid, rich widow.
Then he contrasted that reception to the one he got when he returned home from Vietnam. There was an unmistakable bitterness in his voice when he said: "They spat on us. They called us baby killers ..."
Well said.
But then he dug them out of the trash, and shined them up so he could use them again and again and again.
A real three ring circus and sideshow.
The North Vietnamese erected a "statue" of John Kerry?
Hannity read a heartbreaking letter on his show yesterday from a returning vet who experienced the same thing.
He got off a bus (somewhere in Calif) and protesters met the returning service men by throwing feces, urine, etc on them. They had no place to clean up and he had to do the best he could before catching his flight home. He said his uniform was dirty and smelled and he received hate filled looks from the passengers as he walked down the aisle back to his seat.
These men deserve our heartfelt thanks for what they did during their service and our sincere expressions of regret for what they have had to endure from the John Kerrys of this country.
Easy enough to believe.
Possibly he was thinking of Kerry's picture in the museum and misspoke?
One statue could be worth a million words.
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