Selective Amnesia

I have had enough. I can't take it anymore. What is wrong with these people in Washington? Does someone sneak into their heads and steal their brains as soon as they get into town? That Obama should nominate John Kerry as Secretary of State makes perfect sense; they are bedfellows. But why would the Senate republicans nearly unanimously confirm him?

Last week the Senate confirmed John Kerry as President Obama's new Secretary of State. John McCain even supported him, of all people. Three lone Republicans voted against confirmation for what I believe are all the right reasons. John Cornyn of Texas (huah TX) summed it up best: Kerry's "long history of liberal positions are [sic] simply not consistent with a majority of Texans." Cornyn may have grammar problems, but he's got the important stuff right.

This is the same John Kerry who dissembled about his service in Vietnam when he was running for President in 2004. The whole truth may never be known, but there is enough smoke in the air to suspect fire. Tom Fitton of Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, reported after the election that, “It’s clear that both the uniformed and civilian leadership of the U.S. Navy view the Kerry matter as a political 'hot potato.' The leadership of the Navy has failed to ensure its awards process was not corrupted. This is shameful.”

One may ask why Kerry's 45 year old service record is material to his nomination as Secretary of State. If there were only questions about the record, the mystery might be written off or blamed on any number of innocent parties. But Kerry made a point of speaking proudly of his record, when in fact he became a Vietnam War protester after he came home. Kerry also had trouble keeping his facts straight regarding this part of his past. On several occasions he told different versions of his activities at one particular protest. According to an ABC News story, in 1971 he proudly claimed to have thrown his Vietnam medals over the fence at the White House in protest. In later interviews he variously said they weren't really his or that he only threw the ribbons but not the medals. It matters little. He took an active role in protests against the war.

This part of Kerry's history is no problem for anyone who is anti-war. The problem is that he told different stories to different people. He wanted some crowds to see him as a proud former naval officer and others to see him as a war protester. He cannot have it both ways. If he had simply said that he changed his mind about the war after he got back and became active in the anti-war movement, that would be fine (for his anti-war buddies.) One might even admire his honesty.

But John Kerry is not and has not been an honest man. William Levinson of American Thinker reminds readers that Kerry is the man who admitted to the Senate Foreign Relations Commission and the media that he had committed heinous war crimes. Kerry told Meet the Press, "There are all kinds of atrocities, and I would have to say that yes, I committed the same kinds of atrocities as thousands of other soldiers have committed." He clarified what he meant by atrocities with his (should be infamous) quote, "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."

I am a Vietnam War non-draftee. I spent my time in the draft lottery but was not called up. I would have gone had I been called, but I did not volunteer because I disapproved of the political idiocy that dictated the prosecution of the war. If a country is going to spend the blood of its brave men and women in battle, it should be spent in the best effort to win: defeat the enemy, crush the opposition, eliminate the threat. Playing nice and making war are incompatible and unconscionable. I have many good friends who did fight in Vietnam, and they are some of the most honorable people on earth. They deserve our undying gratitude and complete respect. John Kerry is not one of those people. He should never have been elected to the Senate, let alone Secretary of State.