Quick Heads Up: Did I Hear Right? Hackworth Called Cheney a Draft Dodger?

[Arthur Wildfire! March]

My ears might have deceived me. Did I hear correctly on the Sean Hannity Show? Did Hackworth call Cheney a draft dodger?

[jwalsh07]

Bush's DD-214 says "Honorably Discharged".

[cyncooper]

I hope you aren't under the impression that this subject hasn't been thoroughly discussed here at Free Republic.

[Hot Tabasco]

Hackworth has done more for this country than you could even fantasize about.

<Very few folks here are questioning his service record. What we are questioning here is his is self absorbed attraction to the media limelight.....

[Thud]

Check my No. 281. I agree with an early opinion that Hack is showing enough of the symptoms.

[OldFriend]

Hackworth hounded Admiral Bourda on a supposedly 'unearned' medal. After Bourda's death it was determined that one of the medals on Hackworth's web site was UNEARNED. He quickly pulled the medal from his website but from that moment on it was clear to me that he was the biggest hypocrite of all time. I liken his appearance on FNC to that of Whorealdo....self serving, attention getting, noisy and meaningless bravado.

[tallhappy]

Your shooting off your mouth.

How old were you when you signed up in 1965?

[jo6pac]

Cheney is serving now in perhaps the second most stressful position in the world with a quintuple bypass. That tells me he's got balls and the one kiddin' must be you.

It's not about balls, it's about telling the truth. His deeds do not match his words.

[OldFriend]

I think you are right on target. Ritter is getting lots of attention, getting invited to speak on college campus, and earning huge fees..........methinks Hack is jealous.

[k2blader]

Additionally, I'm not convinced Cheney "maneuvered" his way out of anything.

From March 14, 1963 to April 23, 1970, the III-A classification was broadened to include all men who were fathers. President Kennedy issued Executive Order 11098 on March 14, 1963, to expand entitlement to this paternity deferment. For a man to qualify for a III-A deferment as a "Kennedy father," there had to be a "bona fide family relationship in their home" between the father and child. The definition of a man's "child" in the regulations of the period included "a legitimate or illegitimate child from the date of its conception." Therefore, the III-A classification could be granted during his wife's (or significant other's) pregnancy. The III-A classification also remained available to men, married or single, whose induction would be a hardship to their dependents.

(Source: Selective Service System - Effects of Marriage and Fatherhood on Draft Eligibility: After WWII to Today)

At least admit your assumptions are based on emotion rather than logic.

[laconic]

The fact that Namath took a physical is meaningless; many heterosexual males "came out" to their doctors to earn a deferment. Moreover, many, many doctors were not averse to doing favors for their client families and "finding" some dread ailment to keep the poor dear out of service. Your football talk is non-germane to much of anything. I assume I'm supposed to be impressed by it; sorry, New Yorker, I'm not.

[jwalsh07]

It's not about balls, it's about telling the truth. His deeds do not match his words.

Can you provide the statments that you are questioning?

[Hot Tabasco]

I volunteered for service in 1965

Since you are placing such a high priority on patriots who actually enlisted and served in the military rather than cowardly citizens who did not enlist, I would like to ask you to substantiate your military outfit and term of service. There are enough military folks around here that will be able to discerne whether you are blowing hot air out of your ass or not......

I am still awaiting your reply.

[sneakypete]

said that not only did Cheney not serve in the military, but when he was asked about it publicly -- supposedly -- he replied something like, "I had better things to do with my time than serve in the military."

That's the story I read too,and I read it on a left-wing web site called "Free Republic".

[OldFriend]

Thanks for your comments regarding Cheney. My son served during X42 and during the Bosnia mission the only thing going for him was that Halliburton was the supplier of all military supplies. He knew that everything would be as ordered, on time, and of the HIGHEST quality. The man has more integrity than many of the so called 'military experts' on this thread.

[jo6pac]

Are you saying anyone who received deferments is a "draft dodger"?

I'm saying that a person who applies for and receives a bunch of deferments and then says he would gladly serve if called is not truthful.

[El Gato]

In fact, I give the rich guys lower grades--they wanted all the benefits of an affluent lifestyle, and then used those benefits to avoid their obligation. Pretty vile, IMHO.

That would not include Cheney. He may be rich now (he is!) but at 24 he was not, nor were his family. Nor were they politically connected, AFAIK.

The guys who avoided the draft by joining the guard, and whole lots of them were not particularly politically connected either, at least were risking the guard getting activiated, as some were. The Air Guard was then and is now, the first line of defense against air breathing threats, which was a serious thing in the mid 60s, more so than today. Of course, many guardsmen went to SEA voluntarily for shorter or longer periods, especially Air Guardsmen.

[habs4ever]

You still here? I thought we had been spared your presence and you had left FR.Such a shame.

[sneakypete]

Another term for it is chickenhawk.

No,it is NOT! A "chickenhawk" is a male child molestor who goes after pre-teen boys.

[leadhead]

Even if he hadnt had a deferment, his chance of getting drafted while in prime draft age was pretty miniscule. He was already 23 years old by the time of the Gulf of Tonkin incident. By TET when the build up was near max he was 26 years old. My recollection is that the draft boards rarely drafted men of that age.

This is an interesting thread (the ad hominums aside). I'm Cheney's age and was classified IA (Married)in the early 60's while also a university student.In '64 I received a notice to report for a physical and passed. My classification was revised (unrequested) to IIA, Occupational deferment. Concurrently, the situation in my draft board's area was that no one over 22 was being drafted.I did end up in 'Nam as a civilian for a time.

Am I a "dodger" or "lodger" or whatever (besides currently being a codger)?

My Dad, a WWII vet, thought at the time I was some kind of dodger. Three years later, after seeing how LBJ refused to fight a rightous war,he was glad for my tangential involvment.

A puzzlement.Still.