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To: unclewest who wrote (31314)	2/25/2004 12:06:58 PM
From: Sully-	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793690

From: Neocon Someone may find this interesting: Mark Lane's book on alleged atrocities in Vietnam, "Conversations with Americans", was panned by James Reston and Neil Sheehan, neither of whom were war boosters. Sheehan demonstrated that many of Lane's "eyewitnesses" either had not served in Vietnam, or had not been there in the roles claimed. When Senator Mark Hatfield inserted the Winter Soldier testimony into the Congressional Record, he had the commandant of the Marine Corps attempt an investigation. Those they spoke to largely refused cooperation, or, when cooperating, failed to provide details helpful to investigators. Also, some of the grisliest reports had come from men who were found to be imposters. As for other matters alleged of vets: 86% of those who died in Vietnam were white and 12.5% black, when blacks of the right age made up 13.1% of the population. 2/3rds if those who served in Vietnam were volunteers, and volunteers accounted for 77% of combat deaths. The suicide rate for vets is no higher than for non- veterans. The same is true for rates of drug abuse, homelessness, and incarceration. More vets showed signs of post- traumatic stress syndrom after WWII than the Vietnam War. A comprehensive survey from 1980 reported that 91% of those who had seen combat in Vietnam were "glad they had served their country"; 80% disagreed with the statement that the "US took advantage of me"; and nearly two out of three would go again, even knowing how the war would turn out. I got this information from an article in National Review. I have no idea if it can be accessed on- line, but I will check..........I checked, it is not yet available, as it is in this weeks issue, and there is a lag......... Message 19846866

To: unclewest who wrote (31314)	2/25/2004 1:18:26 PM
From: Sully-	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 793690

Kerry’s FBI File Gary Aldrich February 25, 2004 I experienced something akin to humiliation when the President of the United States ordered subordinates to release his dental records to the public. President Bush acted in hopes of ending the ridiculous argument surrounding his National Guard service. Nothing is sacred in today’s politics of personal destruction – invented and perfected by the Democrats. Not even the number of fillings in George Bush’s teeth. Thus, Senator John Kerry and his followers “opened the door.” It’s only fair that many will now choose to walk through that door. No competent attorney would ever open a line of inquiry in the courtroom unless he knew how the same issue would impact his own client. Democrats should not complain now if certain similar questions are asked of the good Senator. In the debate about which man has given more to his country, no evidence has been more emotionally persuasive than Senator Kerry’s own claims of war heroism. One basis for this assertion is that while serving in Vietnam, Kerry showed great courage in leaping off his boat to attack and kill a wounded North Vietnamese soldier. Evidence suggests the Vietnamese soldier had previously been wounded by a 50-caliber round. Veteran friends of mine tell me if a person is hit by a 50-caliber round, it is highly unlikely they could continue to be a threat, because of the hydro-shock associated with the impact of the round. I am assured this is true regardless of where the enemy was hit. I know from my own FBI training that certain high-powered rounds can destroy vital organs and blow away entire limbs – due to this same hydro-shock factor. Kerry’s claims that he saved his fellow soldier’s lives by taking the life of the wounded Vietnamese fighter now lie in reasonable doubt. Also, Kerry’s ardent fans clamor over the Purple Hearts he received for each of his several wounds. What is not widely known is that even a minor wound can qualify for a Purple Heart, and a combination of Purple Hearts can be the basis for reassignment to a safer post. Kerry did, in fact, take a safer post after accepting his war medals. Other veterans tell me they didn’t even put in for Purple Hearts, because they did not want to be transferred home unless they were seriously wounded. These veterans didn’t want to leave their buddies behind just to seek the safety of distance from the battle. In total, it appears Kerry was in-country less than five months. Yet some prisoners of war served more than seven years and had many serious wounds. Today, Senator Kerry likes the political attention his medals afford him. However, during one protest, Kerry was seen tossing his precious medals over the White House fence. Except now he says those were not actually his medals, but somebody else’s medals he discarded. Another version has him tossing over just the ribbons. Which is it? Anyone visiting his Senate office can see medals hung in a display case on the wall. Well, whose medals are in the display case? Are these Kerry’s, or did he or a member of his staff buy a few similar medals at a local pawn shop? Finally – in the biggest controversy of all – Senator John Kerry says he is a hero for standing up to power while protesting against the War in Vietnam. According to news reports, Kerry was protesting the war even as he served as a full-time member of the armed forces. Did Kerry take leave-time to attend these rallies, or was he AWOL from his post while he traveled around protesting the war? Did he only participate in peaceful war protests, or did he join the Hard-Left, anti-US, pro-Communistic cabal of Tom Hayden, Jane Fonda and other well-known Hard-Left, anti-US radicals? I don’t know the answers to these questions, but I do know where to find them. Every significant leader of any anti-war, anti-US protest from the 1960’s has a large file sitting in a file drawer over at the FBI Headquarters. The Bureau’s headquarters is located at 9th street and Pennsylvania Avenue in downtown Washington, D.C. To get a copy of the FBI file, which would clear up this entire thing, Senator Kerry merely has to file a form. But HE must be the one to do it. Nobody else can get a copy – only John F. Kerry. And, because it’s a U.S. Senator asking, I am sure the FBI would find and copy the file in a hurry. Then, like President Bush, Senator Kerry could release his FBI file to the media. All questions would be answered. We could put the matter behind us and, as the Democrats are fond to say, “move on to real issues.” Like what Kerry would do as president if we were attacked by terrorists. Senator Kerry can also get a copy of his service records from the US Navy using the same kind of form. These naval records would clear up a lot of good questions about his military service in Vietnam. Today I am announcing the formation of an exploratory committee to encourage and assist Senator John F. Kerry in the acquisition and distribution of these two files. In due course, we will send the appropriate forms to Senator Kerry to be filled out. Soon, following President Bush’s lead, Senator Kerry can reveal to the mainstream media the various documents establishing the truth about his conduct. Vietnam veterans and former FBI and intelligence bureau agents are invited to join our exploratory committee. These individuals have a real sense of the truth about Senator John F. Kerry, and the Vietnam veterans have a large stake in the argument. We’re calling our exploratory committee, “Americans for Truth About Kerry.” Gary Aldrich is president and founder of The Patrick Henry Center for Individual Liberty, a Townhall.com member group. ©2003 Gary W. Aldrich townhall.com

To: unclewest who wrote (31314)	2/25/2004 1:26:05 PM
From: Sully-	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 793690

John Kerry’s Radical Past Joel Mowbray February 25, 2004 After the media tore into President Bush’s 30-year-old National Guard record like a voracious pit bull into a bacon-scented postman, Democrats have been licking their chops in anticipation of highlighting John Kerry’s decorated service during the same time period. A new web site launching this week, however, should give Democrats more than a moment’s pause—and it’s likely just the opening salvo in exposing the truth about the outlandish actions of Kerry and his comrades as part of an anti-war group known as Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW). The new site, WinterSoldier.com , is named after the event that helped raise Kerry to prominence in 1971. The Winter Soldier Investigation, as it was called, was held in Detroit from January 31 to February 2—with financial backing from Jane Fonda, according to an historian cited on the web site—where over 100 veterans testified about the most horrendous war crimes imaginable happening every day. John Kerry was an instant celebrity, and the group behind the three-day conference, Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW), certainly served his political ambitions well. But if the wealth of information found at WinterSoldier.com gains any traction, Kerry’s past could come back to haunt him. VVAW was a media favorite: war veterans who were anti-war. Quite a sales pitch. But the more realistic characterization would have been Americans who were anti-American. (Literally, too: One of the documents at WinterSoldier.com is the minutes of a VVAW executive meeting where members decided to take down American flags from all VVAW offices.) Their goal was not just to sour Americans on the Vietnam war, but to make them hate America and American soldiers. Hence the Winter Soldier Investigation. The three-day circus featured tales of the most sadistic forms of torture, including genital mutilation and gang rape, and wanton mass murder of innocent civilians. Kerry and the others claimed that almost unprecedented war crimes were not simply rampant, but committed as a matter of U.S. policy. One of the most shocking quotes comes from Kerry himself, claiming that he had committed war crimes in Vietnam, then suggested he was merely following orders. Following orders, however, does not absolve someone of guilt for committing war crimes. Which begs the question: will Kerry be willing to discuss the details of the war crimes he claims to have committed? Some will excuse VVAW’s actions and hyperbolic rhetoric as the work of people understandably disillusioned by an embittering war experience. But there is evidence suggesting that many of the atrocities routinely touted by VVAW were, well, made up. An excerpt of historian Guenter Lewy’s book According to America posted on WinterSoldier.com discusses the results of a government investigation that attempted to corroborate the claims made at the VVAW event in Detroit. The investigators couldn’t. According to Lewy, the VVAW had told its members not to cooperate with the government inquiry—a probe that was initiated by Sen. Mark Hatfield of Oregon in order to verify gruesome claims made at the VVAW-sponsored event. The historian also notes that government inspectors found veterans whose names had been used by people testifying in Detroit that were not actually there. In other words, some of the “witnesses” in Detroit were impostors, tarnishing the names of real soldiers. It appears that Kerry was also something of an impostor. During a massive rally in front of the U.S. Capitol, a number of veterans threw their medals over a high-wire fence. One was Kerry. Or at least so it appeared. The section “Busted by the historians” contains an excerpt from Stolen Valor by B. G. Burkett, Glenna Whitley. The key quote: “But years later, after his election to the Senate, Kerry’s medals turned up on the wall of his Capitol Hill office. When a reporter noticed them, Kerry admitted that the medals he had thrown that day were not his.” Since Kerry’s comrades seem so eager to judge President Bush’s character by whether or not he fulfilled a handful of National Guard obligations, the door may already have been opened to attacks on the Democratic front runner’s own conduct from those days. Voters could have plenty of versions of Kerry from which to choose: the communist sympathizer who gleefully defamed America and millions of American soldiers, the war hero too cowardly to throw away his own medals, or the anti-war activist who was so eager to claim he had committed war crimes. ©2003 Joel Mowbray townhall.com