From the Kerry Blog site:
A Marine Speaks Out
Conservative columnist Mona Charen had faint praise for John Kerry's service in Vietnam in a recent column, grudgingly admitting that he "earned a number of medals and citations when many of his contemporaries were fleeing to Canada..." John's supporters in the veterans' community have always been very sensitive to anyone who shortchanges or denegrates those who served in Vietnam, and former Marine and Vietnam veteran Robert Tuke sent us this passionate reply to Charen:
To the Editor:
I support Sen. John Kerry for President. Therefore, I was disappointed to see the Opinion by Mona Charen recently published in The Tennessean. My disappointment turned to dismay and then to disgust as I read her disjointed condemnation of Sen. Kerry's position on the Iraq war and her disparagement of his Vietnam service.
I too am a Vietnam veteran, a Marine, and for Mona Charen to dismiss Kerry's service with a terse acknowledgment that he "earned a number of medals and citations when many of his contemporaries were fleeing to Canada" is an insult to him and to every combat veteran.
His "number of medals" includes a Silver Star, a Bronze Star and three Purple Hearts. The first two are among our nation's highest decorations for valor, and the Purple Heart is earned only by being wounded in combat. Kerry earned his decorations by serving two tours of duty in heavy combat, on one occasion courageously leading an assault upon a superior enemy force that had ambushed his swift boat. I have no doubt he saved his crew by doing so. Perhaps if Mona had ever been in an ambush or had ever spoken to anyone who has, she might not have been so flippant about Kerry’s service. Perhaps she also might not be so quick to support a president who avoided service rather than having the courage to volunteer for it.
Even more disturbing is her suggestion that one cannot be proud of one's service in Vietnam unless one believes the war itself had unassailable merit. Almost every combat veteran I know is proud of his or her service. How one feels about the war is an entirely different matter.
Perhaps Mona could have asked a veteran how it felt to come home from a difficult and dangerous experience only to learn that our own government had information, later published in the Pentagon Papers, which indicated that our goals and our strategy were both perhaps fatally flawed from the beginning. Sound familiar? It was that disappointment, indeed betrayal, which caused many veterans to join the VVAW, including John Kerry.
Most of us, however, did nothing, except to withdraw from the debate and sometimes, tragically,l from society.
Most of us only began to "come home" when the
Vietnam Veterans' Memorial was dedicated in Washington, DC. Even then, one could not escape a sense of betrayal, as Interior Secretary James Watt opposed the Memorial because he did not favor its design. I wonder if Mona knows that the Memorial was conceived, designed, built and paid for under the direction of the Vietnam Veterans of America, which John Kerry helped found. Not one penny of U.S. Government money went into it.
I am pleased that our Iraq war veterans are being
treated better by the public than were Vietnam veterans upon our return, but the Bush administration and the Congress continued to betray all veterans in their underfunding of veterans' health needs, retirements, and disability entitlements. That is an issue Sen. Kerry has made central in his campaign, as he articulated in his speech to the Veterans of Foreign Wars a couple of weeks ago. Mona Charen is totally wrong about John Kerry and his views on war. Worse, she has insulted the very people who fight these wars in her attack on Sen. Kerry. She should be ashamed.
Semper Fidelis,
Robert D. Tuke
rtuke@tntlaw.net
"I am pleased that our Iraq war veterans are being
treated better by the public than were Vietnam veterans upon our return, but the Bush administration and the Congress continued to betray all veterans in their underfunding of veterans' health needs, retirements, and disability entitlements. That is an issue Sen. Kerry has made central in his campaign, as he articulated in his speech to the Veterans of Foreign Wars a couple of weeks ago. Mona Charen is totally wrong about John Kerry and his views on war. Worse, she has insulted the very people who fight these wars in her attack on Sen. Kerry. She should be ashamed."
No, Mr. Tuke. JFingK insulted the Troops like none before or after him ever have or will.
(been looking for the email address, thanks)
From Internat1onal Adopt10n Att0rneys website
ROBERT D. TUKE
Robert D. Tuke is a member of the law firm of Trauger, Ney & Tuke in Nashville, Tennessee. As a special part of his practice, Mr. Tuke devotes significant time and energy to adoption law. In addition to having represented hundreds of parents in their adoptions, Mr. Tuke served on the Tennessee General Assembly's Adoption Law Study Commission for three years and helped draft the complete revision of Tennessee's adoption code, enacted in 1996. Mr. Tuke serves on the Board of Trustees of the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys and is its President, serving from April, 2002-April 2003. He also serves on the Board of Directors of Nashville's Family and Children's Service, the Board of Advocates of Miriam's Promise adoption agency, and as Middle and West Tennessee Counsel for Holston Home for Children. He authored the Adoption chapter in West’s Tennessee Practice (West Pub. 2nd Ed. 2002).
Mr. Tuke was born in Rochester, New York, on December 5, 1947. He received his education from the University of Virginia (B.A., with distinction, 1969) and Vanderbilt University (J.D., Order of the Coif, 1976), where he was Editor-in-Chief of the Vanderbilt Law Review, and a Patrick Wilson Merit Scholar. Mr. Tuke was admitted to the Tennessee Bar in 1976 and is a member of the Nashville, Tennessee and American Bar Associations, and a Fellow of the Nashville Bar Foundation. Mr. Tuke is an Adjunct Professor at Vanderbilt University School of Law, a faculty member of the Practicing Law Institute and General Counsel for Meharry Medical College. He is listed in Best Lawyers in America (Woodward-White, 1995-2002) and Who's Who in American Law and Who's Who in America (Marquis, 1994-2002).
Mr. Tuke is married to Susan Cummins Tuke, and they have two adopted children, both in college. In addition to the positions mentioned above, he is a member of the Metropolitan Nashville CATV Committee, the Board of Directors of the Nashville Branch of the National Conference for Community and Justice, the Board of Directors of the University of Virginia Rowing Association, and the Keyman of the Laymen of St. George's Episcopal Church. Mr. Tuke served as an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps 1969-1973, including a tour in Vietnam, where he was awarded the Cross of Gallantry in combat.