From The Washington Post:
"Still, the Schlesinger report, which examined problems throughout the system of U.S.-run prisons in Iraq and, Afghanistan and at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, said that about one-third of the substantiated cases of prisoner abuse took place during interrogations. It also disclosed a sharp rise in the number of cases of alleged abuse -- up to 300, 66 of which have been confirmed so far. Yesterday's findings by Lt. Gen. Anthony R. Jones and Maj. Gen. George R. Fay also helped to substantiate a major pillar of the defense offered by the military guards already facing charges. They have asserted that their actions came at the direction of military intelligence personnel.Although self-serving, these claims do have some basis in fact,' Fay said in his portion of the report."
Thursday, August 26, 2004
"Swift Boat Veterans Have Cheapened All Our Service"
Writes August Keso:
"The Swift Boat people have cheapened all our service. What our Commanding Officers and branch of service thought of our performance twenty, thirty, forty and fifty years ago means nothing today. If Kerry’s military records cannot be trusted, neither can mine, nor can yours! Thanks, to the Swift Boat people our honorable service has been denigrated – and when the folks get back from Iraq and Afghanistan, what will their service be worth? They had all better hope that they don’t offend anybody while serving because if they do, nothing their official military records contain will amount to anything. "
"The Swift Boat people have cheapened all our service. What our Commanding Officers and branch of service thought of our performance twenty, thirty, forty and fifty years ago means nothing today. If Kerry’s military records cannot be trusted, neither can mine, nor can yours! Thanks, to the Swift Boat people our honorable service has been denigrated – and when the folks get back from Iraq and Afghanistan, what will their service be worth? They had all better hope that they don’t offend anybody while serving because if they do, nothing their official military records contain will amount to anything. "
Wednesday, August 25, 2004
France Celebrates 50th Anniversary of Liberation
From Yahoo News :
"Parisians turned out to see French and US military columns roll through their capital in an exuberant re-enactment of the day 60 years ago when Allied forces liberated the city from German occupation. 'Vive la France,' cried many of the onlookers lining the streets as the parades -- made up of World War II-era vehicles and extras in period dress and uniforms -- rumbled by to the sound of orchestras playing 1940s tunes. The scenes were colourful highlights of commemorations recalling August 25, 1944 when first French then US troops drove into Paris to take it from German forces who had been battling a week-long uprising by residents and Resistance fighters."
"Parisians turned out to see French and US military columns roll through their capital in an exuberant re-enactment of the day 60 years ago when Allied forces liberated the city from German occupation. 'Vive la France,' cried many of the onlookers lining the streets as the parades -- made up of World War II-era vehicles and extras in period dress and uniforms -- rumbled by to the sound of orchestras playing 1940s tunes. The scenes were colourful highlights of commemorations recalling August 25, 1944 when first French then US troops drove into Paris to take it from German forces who had been battling a week-long uprising by residents and Resistance fighters."
What's Happening At the Olympics (continued)?
From Yahoo News:
"ATHENS, Greece - A windsurfer whose first name means 'wave' in Hebrew gave Israel its first Olympic gold medal ever Wednesday, taking a plunge in the Saronic Gulf to celebrate. Gal Fridman sailed a remarkably consistent regatta, never finishing worse than eighth in the 11-race series. He placed second in Wednesday's decisive race. After Fridman crossed the finish line, he took a victory dip and then wrapped himself in an Israeli flag when he came out of the water."
"ATHENS, Greece - A windsurfer whose first name means 'wave' in Hebrew gave Israel its first Olympic gold medal ever Wednesday, taking a plunge in the Saronic Gulf to celebrate. Gal Fridman sailed a remarkably consistent regatta, never finishing worse than eighth in the 11-race series. He placed second in Wednesday's decisive race. After Fridman crossed the finish line, he took a victory dip and then wrapped himself in an Israeli flag when he came out of the water."
Gwen Ifill on the Abu Ghraib Torture Report
From The NewsHour:
"GWEN IFILL: Was there an overall view that there should be a tougher effort made to break these prisoners, to get to toughen the interrogation against them after Major Gen. Jeffrey Miller came to visit from Guantanamo and advised them on the tactics that had been used on al-Qaida prisoners there and Taliban prisoners there? And now a new memo has surfaced which I believe the wording was that military intelligence officers said the gloves are coming off, gentlemen, regarding these detainees. We want these individuals broken. Was that an atmosphere that was created that brought this about, as well?"
"GWEN IFILL: Was there an overall view that there should be a tougher effort made to break these prisoners, to get to toughen the interrogation against them after Major Gen. Jeffrey Miller came to visit from Guantanamo and advised them on the tactics that had been used on al-Qaida prisoners there and Taliban prisoners there? And now a new memo has surfaced which I believe the wording was that military intelligence officers said the gloves are coming off, gentlemen, regarding these detainees. We want these individuals broken. Was that an atmosphere that was created that brought this about, as well?"
The Five Pillars of Democracy: Towards an Islamic Reformation
From the RAND Review:
"What the roiling ideological ferment requires from the West is both a firm commitment to fundamental Western values and a sequence of flexible postures suited to different Islamic contexts, populations, and countries. This approach could help to develop civil, democratic Islam while giving the West the versatility to deal appropriately with different settings. The following outline describes what such a strategy might look like. It rests on 'five pillars of democracy' for the Islamic world. The pillars correspond to the postures that the West should take toward the four ideological groups and toward ordinary citizens in Muslim countries.
1. Support the modernists first, promoting their version of Islam by equipping them with a broad platform to articulate and to disseminate their views. It is tempting to choose the traditionalists as the primary agents for fostering democratic Islam, and this appears to be the course that the West is inclined to take. However, some very serious problems argue against taking such a course..."
"What the roiling ideological ferment requires from the West is both a firm commitment to fundamental Western values and a sequence of flexible postures suited to different Islamic contexts, populations, and countries. This approach could help to develop civil, democratic Islam while giving the West the versatility to deal appropriately with different settings. The following outline describes what such a strategy might look like. It rests on 'five pillars of democracy' for the Islamic world. The pillars correspond to the postures that the West should take toward the four ideological groups and toward ordinary citizens in Muslim countries.
1. Support the modernists first, promoting their version of Islam by equipping them with a broad platform to articulate and to disseminate their views. It is tempting to choose the traditionalists as the primary agents for fostering democratic Islam, and this appears to be the course that the West is inclined to take. However, some very serious problems argue against taking such a course..."
The "New Russians"
At the same dinner party in the item below, we heard about the "New Russians" from a Moscow family visiting the United States. Where once science, technology, education, culture were at the heart of Russian life, today it is business. We found this article online that explains, interestingly, some of today's business leaders are in fact scientists:
"In the idealistic '60s, they made up the nucleus of the dissident movement, which resisted the regime. The movement was launched by the mathematician Aleksandr Yesenin-Volpin, inaugurated with a scandal that involved 99 engineers and mathematicians, and was led largely by the physicist Andrei Sakharov. In the repressive '70s, when much of the intelligentsia sought refuge in nonpolitical activities, the tekhnari made two of them into full-fledged fads: mountain climbing and folk singing. The first Moscow concert of Vladimir Vysotsky, the folk-singing popular hero of the '70s, took place in the Culture Hall at the Kurchatov Institute of theoretical physics, the birthplace of the Russian A-bomb. In 1981, the same hall hosted Moscow's first rock concert.
Over a decade later, tekhnari lead the way in conquering the newest frontier: business. The man now reputed to be the country's richest, Sergey Mavrodi, is a computer scientist-cum-stock market shark; the country's second-largest bank, Tver Inkombank, was founded by physicists; and small- and medium-size businesses seem downright dominated by the tekhnari. No one has done a statistical breakdown of Russian entrepreneurs by profession, but Ivan Kivalidi, president of the Russian Business Roundtable, an association of entrepreneurs, confirms the impression that business is dominated by tekhnari."
"In the idealistic '60s, they made up the nucleus of the dissident movement, which resisted the regime. The movement was launched by the mathematician Aleksandr Yesenin-Volpin, inaugurated with a scandal that involved 99 engineers and mathematicians, and was led largely by the physicist Andrei Sakharov. In the repressive '70s, when much of the intelligentsia sought refuge in nonpolitical activities, the tekhnari made two of them into full-fledged fads: mountain climbing and folk singing. The first Moscow concert of Vladimir Vysotsky, the folk-singing popular hero of the '70s, took place in the Culture Hall at the Kurchatov Institute of theoretical physics, the birthplace of the Russian A-bomb. In 1981, the same hall hosted Moscow's first rock concert.
Over a decade later, tekhnari lead the way in conquering the newest frontier: business. The man now reputed to be the country's richest, Sergey Mavrodi, is a computer scientist-cum-stock market shark; the country's second-largest bank, Tver Inkombank, was founded by physicists; and small- and medium-size businesses seem downright dominated by the tekhnari. No one has done a statistical breakdown of Russian entrepreneurs by profession, but Ivan Kivalidi, president of the Russian Business Roundtable, an association of entrepreneurs, confirms the impression that business is dominated by tekhnari."
Daniel Barenboim's Quest
Last night we were at a dinner party, and a Palestinian Israeli pianist told us about her admiration for Daniel Barenboim, teaching music to encourage Arab-Israeli peace. At a recent ceremony at the Israeli Knesset, Barenboim explained his project:
"I have always believed that there is no military solution to the Jewish Arab conflict, neither from a moral nor a strategic one and since a solution is therefore inevitable I ask myself : Why wait? It is for this very reason that I founded with my late friend Edward Said a workshop for young musicians from all the countries of the Middle East - Jews and Arabs.
"Despite the fact that, as an art, music cannot compromise its principles, and politics, on the other hand, is the art of compromise, when politics transcends the limits of the present existence and ascents to the higher sphere of the possible, it can be joined there by music. Music is the art of the imaginary par excellence, an art free of all limits imposed by words, an art that touches the depth of human existence, and art of sounds that crosses all borders. As such music can take the feelings and imagination of Israelis and Palestinians to new unimaginable spheres."
"I have always believed that there is no military solution to the Jewish Arab conflict, neither from a moral nor a strategic one and since a solution is therefore inevitable I ask myself : Why wait? It is for this very reason that I founded with my late friend Edward Said a workshop for young musicians from all the countries of the Middle East - Jews and Arabs.
"Despite the fact that, as an art, music cannot compromise its principles, and politics, on the other hand, is the art of compromise, when politics transcends the limits of the present existence and ascents to the higher sphere of the possible, it can be joined there by music. Music is the art of the imaginary par excellence, an art free of all limits imposed by words, an art that touches the depth of human existence, and art of sounds that crosses all borders. As such music can take the feelings and imagination of Israelis and Palestinians to new unimaginable spheres."
Were Russian Jets Terrorist Targets?
To soon to tell, but suspicions run high that yesterday's crashes may be related to the Chechen conflict, although the government is playing down that possibility. For more, see this AP story:
" Officials made conflicting statements about whether the signal from the other jet indicated a hijacking or another severe problem on the aircraft. The Interfax and ITAR-Tass news agencies later quoted an unnamed law enforcement source as saying that the signal was an SOS and that no other signals were sent. Oleg Yermolov, deputy director of the Interstate Aviation Committee, said that it is impossible to judge what is behind the signal, which merely indicates "a dangerous situation onboard" and can be triggered by the crew during a hijacking or a potentially catastrophic technical problem. Sibir airlines, however, seemed to hint at foul play, saying on its Web site that it "does not rule out the theory of a terrorist attack."
" Officials made conflicting statements about whether the signal from the other jet indicated a hijacking or another severe problem on the aircraft. The Interfax and ITAR-Tass news agencies later quoted an unnamed law enforcement source as saying that the signal was an SOS and that no other signals were sent. Oleg Yermolov, deputy director of the Interstate Aviation Committee, said that it is impossible to judge what is behind the signal, which merely indicates "a dangerous situation onboard" and can be triggered by the crew during a hijacking or a potentially catastrophic technical problem. Sibir airlines, however, seemed to hint at foul play, saying on its Web site that it "does not rule out the theory of a terrorist attack."
Tuesday, August 24, 2004
Top US Officials Responsible for Torture
According to this AP report:
"The Pentagon's most senior civilian and military officials share a portion of blame for creating conditions that led to the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal in Iraq, according to a new report. The report, by a commission appointed by Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, was presented to Rumsfeld Tuesday in advance of a Pentagon news conference to release the details. The commission was headed by James Schlesinger, a former secretary of defense. A person familiar with the report said it implicitly faulted Rumsfeld and Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, by finding that those responsible for the military prison system in Iraq were operating under confusing policies on allowable interrogation techniques. The person discussed some aspects of the report on condition of anonymity."
"The Pentagon's most senior civilian and military officials share a portion of blame for creating conditions that led to the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal in Iraq, according to a new report. The report, by a commission appointed by Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, was presented to Rumsfeld Tuesday in advance of a Pentagon news conference to release the details. The commission was headed by James Schlesinger, a former secretary of defense. A person familiar with the report said it implicitly faulted Rumsfeld and Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, by finding that those responsible for the military prison system in Iraq were operating under confusing policies on allowable interrogation techniques. The person discussed some aspects of the report on condition of anonymity."
Presidential Race Neck & Neck
According to Charlie Cook, here are the latest poll numbers:
Numbers: Bush Approval/Disapproval: Bush Kerry Nader Bush Lead: Bush Kerry Bush Lead (in percentage points)
Aug 3-4 Fox News/Opinion Dyn 43/48: 42 46 2 -4: 43 46 -3
Aug 9-11 CNN/USA Today/Gal 51/46: 46 45 5 1: 48 47 1
Aug 15-18 CBS News 46/45: 45 46 1 -1: 44 47 -3
Numbers: Bush Approval/Disapproval: Bush Kerry Nader Bush Lead: Bush Kerry Bush Lead (in percentage points)
Aug 3-4 Fox News/Opinion Dyn 43/48: 42 46 2 -4: 43 46 -3
Aug 9-11 CNN/USA Today/Gal 51/46: 46 45 5 1: 48 47 1
Aug 15-18 CBS News 46/45: 45 46 1 -1: 44 47 -3
What's Happening in Iraq?
Zeyad reports :
"In the south, Al-Mahdi and Sadr followers are wreaking havoc and seriously threatening to cripple Iraqi economy. After setting the Al-Halfaya oil field south of Ammara ablaze, they broke into SOC (South Oil Company) headquarters at Al-Asma'i in downtown Basrah. The whole second floor was set to fire after the building was looted. This is deeply troubling, especially when the SOC police station is less than 200 metres from the building and the British base is about 5 kilometres away. Al-Mahdi have threatened to kill SOC employees if they show up at work. The same in Ammara, where governmental employees have been prevented from going to work for days.
"A group of militiamen broke into the Ammara prison setting hundreds of prisoners free under the eyes and noses of Iraqi and British forces. A convoy of 70 trucks loaded with rice and flour sacks belonging to the Ministry of Trade heading to Baghdad from southern ports in Basrah have been held by Al-Mahdi in the city since Saturday. The minister pathetically called Sadr followers in an interview published in Azzaman to return the trucks. Makes you wonder who controls this country, Sadr or the Iraqi government. This country is in deep s*** if somebody doesn't put an end to this farce."
"In the south, Al-Mahdi and Sadr followers are wreaking havoc and seriously threatening to cripple Iraqi economy. After setting the Al-Halfaya oil field south of Ammara ablaze, they broke into SOC (South Oil Company) headquarters at Al-Asma'i in downtown Basrah. The whole second floor was set to fire after the building was looted. This is deeply troubling, especially when the SOC police station is less than 200 metres from the building and the British base is about 5 kilometres away. Al-Mahdi have threatened to kill SOC employees if they show up at work. The same in Ammara, where governmental employees have been prevented from going to work for days.
"A group of militiamen broke into the Ammara prison setting hundreds of prisoners free under the eyes and noses of Iraqi and British forces. A convoy of 70 trucks loaded with rice and flour sacks belonging to the Ministry of Trade heading to Baghdad from southern ports in Basrah have been held by Al-Mahdi in the city since Saturday. The minister pathetically called Sadr followers in an interview published in Azzaman to return the trucks. Makes you wonder who controls this country, Sadr or the Iraqi government. This country is in deep s*** if somebody doesn't put an end to this farce."
Why Johnny Can't Write: Harvard Business School
So says alumna Paula Throckmorton Zakaria who appears to be married to Newsweek International editor and Harvard alumnus Fareed Zakaria (see his endorsement of Kerry below):
"Part of the ordeal of a meritocracy is constantly having to prove yourself worthy, especially to gatekeepers who stand ready to exclude you from the Next Big Step Up. Any number of twentysomethings, for instance, may feel qualified to attend Harvard Business School, to learn all that its prestigious faculty has to teach about making a huge success of life. But only a very few will get in. What is the secret of their admissions success?
"Impressive test scores and grades help, of course. But something more is required, something self-promoting and yet modestly revealing, something beyond mere numbers--in short, a personal essay. Even the next Bill Gates might pause at this point in the application process and wonder: What if I am a colorless writer who just cannot make a story come alive? What if I don't really have that much to say?
"The answer to such questions is essentially: not a problem. The proof is "65 Successful Harvard Business School Application Essays," a collection pulled together by staff members of the Harbus, the school's daily newspaper. "Upon graduating from college," one essay begins, "everyone expected me to join my father's business because I had been working for him part-time since the age of twelve. However a year before graduation the firm started experiencing financial difficulties that could lead to bankruptcy."
"Balzac this is not. The word "dull" even comes to mind. As for the prose itself, it doesn't take an editor to replace "been working for him" with "worked" and "started experiencing financial difficulties" with "had financial difficulties."
"And yet, the system works. HBS probably did the right thing to admit the guy who wrote that essay and most of the others in the book. The business school isn't looking for stylish and amusing writers; it is looking for good businessmen."
"Part of the ordeal of a meritocracy is constantly having to prove yourself worthy, especially to gatekeepers who stand ready to exclude you from the Next Big Step Up. Any number of twentysomethings, for instance, may feel qualified to attend Harvard Business School, to learn all that its prestigious faculty has to teach about making a huge success of life. But only a very few will get in. What is the secret of their admissions success?
"Impressive test scores and grades help, of course. But something more is required, something self-promoting and yet modestly revealing, something beyond mere numbers--in short, a personal essay. Even the next Bill Gates might pause at this point in the application process and wonder: What if I am a colorless writer who just cannot make a story come alive? What if I don't really have that much to say?
"The answer to such questions is essentially: not a problem. The proof is "65 Successful Harvard Business School Application Essays," a collection pulled together by staff members of the Harbus, the school's daily newspaper. "Upon graduating from college," one essay begins, "everyone expected me to join my father's business because I had been working for him part-time since the age of twelve. However a year before graduation the firm started experiencing financial difficulties that could lead to bankruptcy."
"Balzac this is not. The word "dull" even comes to mind. As for the prose itself, it doesn't take an editor to replace "been working for him" with "worked" and "started experiencing financial difficulties" with "had financial difficulties."
"And yet, the system works. HBS probably did the right thing to admit the guy who wrote that essay and most of the others in the book. The business school isn't looking for stylish and amusing writers; it is looking for good businessmen."
What's Going On At The Olympics (continued)?
Reuters reports:
"An Uzbekistan woman shot putter and an Indian female weightlifter have become the first athletes to test positive in tests held since the Olympic Games (news - web sites) started, the IOC (news - web sites) said on Friday."
"An Uzbekistan woman shot putter and an Indian female weightlifter have become the first athletes to test positive in tests held since the Olympic Games (news - web sites) started, the IOC (news - web sites) said on Friday."
You Sure Do Talk Funny!
From Far Outliers, a map of American dialects:
"Like so many of the old Anglo-immigrant stock along the coasts from Cape Cod to Chesapeake Bay, I say ahnt and peeKAHN. I alternate between UMbrella when I'm not thinking about it and umBRELLA when I stop to think. And, although I pronounce poem in two syllables, my reduced vowel ('barred i') always elicits correction from my daughter. What these dialect survey results show is how mixed-up, scattered about, and network-based U.S. dialects really are. The old regions overlap all over the place."
"Like so many of the old Anglo-immigrant stock along the coasts from Cape Cod to Chesapeake Bay, I say ahnt and peeKAHN. I alternate between UMbrella when I'm not thinking about it and umBRELLA when I stop to think. And, although I pronounce poem in two syllables, my reduced vowel ('barred i') always elicits correction from my daughter. What these dialect survey results show is how mixed-up, scattered about, and network-based U.S. dialects really are. The old regions overlap all over the place."
Big Media in the Kerry Camp
So says Jeff Jacoby [link from Jim Romenesko]:
"With the exception of the Fox News Channel, the liberal tilt of the mainstream media - the major newspapers, the networks, National Public Radio, the news magazines - has long been a fact of American life. No one observing the coverage of this year's presidential campaign with both eyes open can have much doubt that the media establishment is pulling heavily for the Democratic ticket."
"With the exception of the Fox News Channel, the liberal tilt of the mainstream media - the major newspapers, the networks, National Public Radio, the news magazines - has long been a fact of American life. No one observing the coverage of this year's presidential campaign with both eyes open can have much doubt that the media establishment is pulling heavily for the Democratic ticket."
What's Going On At The Olympics (continued)?
From Channelnewsasia.com:
"It seems everyone involved is peeved at someone, feeling slighted or robbed, and not even gold medallists are above being caught in the fray of a sport where judging woes abound and even loyal ticket buyers have lost their patience. Competition came to a merciful end here Monday after spectators booed so loudly and so long that they halted the concluding horizontal bar event for almost 10 minutes, upset at low scores for 2000 Olympic winner Alexei Nemov."
"It seems everyone involved is peeved at someone, feeling slighted or robbed, and not even gold medallists are above being caught in the fray of a sport where judging woes abound and even loyal ticket buyers have lost their patience. Competition came to a merciful end here Monday after spectators booed so loudly and so long that they halted the concluding horizontal bar event for almost 10 minutes, upset at low scores for 2000 Olympic winner Alexei Nemov."
What's Going On At The Olympics?
From the Athens Olympic Games Blog:
"A member of the Greek judo team who fell from her third-floor apartment balcony following a quarrel with her boyfriend has died. Eleni Ioannou had been hospitalized in critical condition for more than for two weeks. The Red Cross hospital said Ioannou, 20, died Tuesday in the intensive care unit where she had been treated since Aug. 7 for multiple fractures to her head and body.
"Ioannou, a competitor in the 172-pound-plus class, fell from the balcony after an argument with her boyfriend, 24-year-old Giorgos Chrisostomides. Police questioned Chrisostomides and released him. Relatives and neighbors said he was inconsolable, and jumped from the same balcony two days later. He remains hospitalized in critical condition at Athens' Evangelismos hospital.'"
"A member of the Greek judo team who fell from her third-floor apartment balcony following a quarrel with her boyfriend has died. Eleni Ioannou had been hospitalized in critical condition for more than for two weeks. The Red Cross hospital said Ioannou, 20, died Tuesday in the intensive care unit where she had been treated since Aug. 7 for multiple fractures to her head and body.
"Ioannou, a competitor in the 172-pound-plus class, fell from the balcony after an argument with her boyfriend, 24-year-old Giorgos Chrisostomides. Police questioned Chrisostomides and released him. Relatives and neighbors said he was inconsolable, and jumped from the same balcony two days later. He remains hospitalized in critical condition at Athens' Evangelismos hospital.'"
Mark Steyn on Kerry's War Record
From The Telegraph:
"I've never quite understood the preferred formulation of big-time Democrats – that "of course" they support our troops even though they oppose this war. But in practice they "support our troop" – singular – just Lieut Kerry and the handful of Swiftees willing to appear in public with him. The rest can go to hell and any of 'em impertinent enough to question the Senator are just "sleazoids" wading through their own backed-up latrine. I wonder if the Kerry campaign and its media cheerleaders have really thought this one through.
"Nothing the "sleazoids" say about Kerry is as bad as what he said about them 33 years ago in his testimony to Congress, when he informed the world that his comrades – his "band of brothers" – had "personally raped, cut off ears, cut off heads" etc, throughout their time in Vietnam...
"...I said a couple of weeks back that John Kerry was too strange to be President, and a week or two earlier that he was too stuck-up to be President. Since I'm on an alliterative roll, let me add that he's too stupid to be President. What sort of idiot would make the centrepiece of his presidential campaign four months of proud service in a war he's best known for opposing?
"I wouldn't stand for Parliament on a family values platform because I know someone's bound to bring up the 123 gay porn movies I had a bit part in back in Amsterdam in the 1970s.
"How cocooned from reality do you have to be to think you can transform one of the most divisive periods in American history – in which you were largely responsible for much of the divisiveness – into a sappy, happy-clappy, soft-focus patriotic blur without anybody objecting? Most Vietnam veterans of my acquaintance loathe John Kerry, and, if he wasn't aware of that, he's too out of it to be President."
"I've never quite understood the preferred formulation of big-time Democrats – that "of course" they support our troops even though they oppose this war. But in practice they "support our troop" – singular – just Lieut Kerry and the handful of Swiftees willing to appear in public with him. The rest can go to hell and any of 'em impertinent enough to question the Senator are just "sleazoids" wading through their own backed-up latrine. I wonder if the Kerry campaign and its media cheerleaders have really thought this one through.
"Nothing the "sleazoids" say about Kerry is as bad as what he said about them 33 years ago in his testimony to Congress, when he informed the world that his comrades – his "band of brothers" – had "personally raped, cut off ears, cut off heads" etc, throughout their time in Vietnam...
"...I said a couple of weeks back that John Kerry was too strange to be President, and a week or two earlier that he was too stuck-up to be President. Since I'm on an alliterative roll, let me add that he's too stupid to be President. What sort of idiot would make the centrepiece of his presidential campaign four months of proud service in a war he's best known for opposing?
"I wouldn't stand for Parliament on a family values platform because I know someone's bound to bring up the 123 gay porn movies I had a bit part in back in Amsterdam in the 1970s.
"How cocooned from reality do you have to be to think you can transform one of the most divisive periods in American history – in which you were largely responsible for much of the divisiveness – into a sappy, happy-clappy, soft-focus patriotic blur without anybody objecting? Most Vietnam veterans of my acquaintance loathe John Kerry, and, if he wasn't aware of that, he's too out of it to be President."
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