Veterans rally for Bush

Retired U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter pilot Michael Durant said the real tragedy of the war in Somalia was not the death of soldiers who fought beside him. It was the indecisive leadership of the Clinton administration, he said.

"In 1993, we showed a band of thugs that they could undermine the will of the American people," he said. "Our withdrawal from Somalia was a mistake," Durant continued.

Speaking at a veterans rally for President George W. Bush in Bensalem Saturday, Durant was joined by fellow veterans, as well as 200 Bush supporters.

Each speaker charged that the election of Sen. John Kerry to the presidency would fatally undermine the troops.

Durant called Kerry a "traitor" who had "broken ranks" with fellow soldiers by criticizing Bush's decision to invade Iraq. "That is absolutely unacceptable behavior when it comes from someone who has worn the uniform," he continued.

Durant's capture by Somalia guerilla fighters inspired the book and film "Black Hawk Down."

The inspiration behind yet another film, retired Air Force Capt. Scott O'Grady, also spoke.

O'Grady spoke of the six days he spent in Bosnia after his F-16 was shot down during a mission to enforce NATO no-fly zones.

O'Grady said he supported Bush for his commitment to national security and because, he said, the president shared his values.

"George Bush told me personally that before he goes to bed and when he wakes up, his primary concern is our national security," O'Grady said.

"We haven't had a terrorist attack since 9-11 and there is one reason for that - our strong commander in chief," O'Grady said.

Bush campaign workers encouraged veterans to sign postcards that would be sent to other retired military personnel, urging them to vote Republican. Cell phones were made available to anyone who might call and tell someone to vote for Bush.

"During this time of crisis we need strong leadership," said Vietnam veteran Tony Albano, who organized the event in Bensalem Central Park.

A poll by the University of Pennsylvania and released earlier this month suggests that 69 percent of active military personnel have a favorable view of Bush. The survey found that 29 percent liked Kerry.

Nine Bensalem police officers patrolled the park to provide security. Police also led a caravan of Bush supporters in an escort to the park.

Beyond the yellow police tape that surrounded the affair, Vietnam veteran Bill Perry stood with a large white sign.

"We have the greatest military in recorded history," Perry's sign read. "Why can't we take care of our disabled vets? Republicans have owned the U.S. Senate for nine out of the last 10 years. R's own the Supreme Court and the President. Yet the vets have zip."

Perry would not say whom he would vote for next week. But the Republican crowd did clearly not welcome his sign. They formed a human barrier blocking him from the view of media.

Wow. I didn't know "Behind Enemy Lines" had a basis in reality. There must be a book out there about O'Grady's experience. Was that French-sounding admiral that appeared to be in cahoots with the enemy patriotic spin or did he really act that way? What was his actual nationality (the real guy, not the actor)?

There is an important lesson concerning multi-national forces in Mark Bowden's "Black Hawk Down." read about the rescue force and the delays while international chains of command dithered, foreign forces had no motivation to save American troops, had third-world equipment, left American troops behind forcing them to walk out behind the rescue force. The rescue force was wearing the blue helmet, were they not?

I was at the rally yesterday. Mr. Perry's "Sign" was a sheet with several paragraphs of writing scrawled on it in magic marker.

The Bucks County Courier Times love to quote Bill Perry. They're my paper, so I have researched Mr. Perry before and posted about him on my page. If you remember the altercation at the cancelled "Stolen Honor" show, he's the guy that wound up with the other guy's hand around his throat in the news coverage (The choker of Mr Perry (Dan Sweeney) was there, too - sitting quite near where Mr. Perry was standing. He's on our side)

Anyway - here's more about Mr Perry.

During one heated exchange, Korean War veteran Dan Sweeney of Philadelphia grabbed Bill Perry, a member of Vietnam Veterans Against the War, by the neck. Asked why, he said, "because I felt like it, that's why."
"Kerry can't handle the words that he said himself. Otherwise this film would be shown tonight," Sweeney said. "They don't want anybody to see what he said."
Perry, who said he was one of 120 soldiers who testified during the 1971 "Winter Soldier Investigation" of atrocities they witnessed in Vietnam, called the film no good.
At one point, he and Dalbey stood nose-to-nose arguing its merits.
"The movie's a sack of lies," Perry said. "I was in Vietnam. I witnessed these things."
"How can you comment about what you haven't seen," Dalbey shouted, referring to the 42-minute film. "Get him here to debate this. Get Kerry here."

A little look into the background of Mr. Perry reveals that he had the following to say about the United States during the Winter Soldier "investigation":

People say we must stop the war. I feel it's so much more than this. The whole rich man's game has always been fear. They've always been very much into impressing us. Now here's the Empire State Building. Be impressed. Now here is the C-5A or some fantastic jet bomber. Be impressed. You know, be afraid of it. Here is a club. I'll bust your head if you don't stay in line. Be impressed. Be afraid.

Here's what Mr. Perry had to say about Vietnam under communist rule:

The whole life style of the Vietnamese people, their whole cultural and social way of life, is nothing but love. It's a kind of love we really lack in this country and a kind of love that we have to build. A kind of opening of ourselves, an honesty ourselves and a love for each other where you know there will be no reason to hurt anyone except perhaps to protect our love. You know, the kind of love which is called primitive or savage.

By the way, their editorial and commentary pages do not appear on line, but the BCCT also endorsed sKerry for President this morning.

A while back, they picked a panel of "undecided voters" to track the decision making process. Every once in a while, you'd see a Bush-bashing (or Dan Rather supporting) letter to the editor from one of these "undecideds" pass through the cracks and onto the letters page. From their initial article, it was clear that these "undecideds" were not undecideds at all.

Anyway, yesterday, their panel of so-called "undecided voters" (they're really undecided Bush haters) all suddenly decided they're not voting for President Bush. All but one are voting for Flippy John. The other will write in "none of the above" (yeah, right).

The BCCT is liberal garbage, and they won't be getting any more of my money.

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