[Zerodown]

JF'nK was in Vietnam. He was in action, if not exactly combat. That simple set of facts alone would have stood him in good stead with the majority of Americans. He was there. However, while he was there he lied, connived, and cheated his way around the system.

I believe he would like us to focus on what he did while in VietNam, no matter how sleazy and dishonest it was, precisely because it is murky, and now very hard to document, especially with him hiding the documents. Our stress should be on what he did afterwards, which is what he would really like to hide.

Also, the question of his discharge, which would settle this once and for all, is never going to be answered. The question for us is, "Can we get him out of the race for the Senate in 08, or failing that, beat him in a fair fight at the polls?"

[colorado tanker]

Well, he could sure put a lot of this to rest by signing the 180 and letting someone other than the Boston Globe see what's in his file. The fact he won't sure speaks volumes - he's hiding something.

My own experience, in a peacetime Army, was that I made quite a bond with my fellow junior officers. I'd never go public with any dirt on them, even if one were a liberal running for President. The fact that around 100 vets, including virtually all his fellow junior officers and chain of command, were willing to go public that Effing was lying and/or dishonest about his service is unprecedented and tells me there was something very, very wrong with how young Lt. Kerry conducted himself. They never would have taken this extraordinary step, otherwise.