SwiftVets.com

[Patriotic Mom]

Hello All:

Your courage in braving the shark-infested political waters of this awful election year is truly inspiring.
I have question for you.
Even before I heard of your organization or ordered my copy of Unfit For Command, I wondered how many veterans in the history of the US military have earned three Purple Hearts and/or Bronze and Silver stars in four months of combat service. Can any of you help me answer this question?


Stay the Course!

High School Teacher and Proud Patriot

[Me#1You#10]

Patriotic Mom...I have no idea and I don't have a suggestion as to where to start. But I think I can safely make a prediction. Someone...somewhere out in this amazing internet will be compiling that very statistic. It would be an interesting fact to see.

[BuffaloJack]

Patriotic Mom...
I was lucky enough to return home from my two years of service (CSC Vung Tau, CosDiv13 Cat Lo & CSC Qui Nhon) without a purple heart. I did however take home a souvenoir that I still carry to this day. It is a tiny 1/2 inch long by 1/4" wide scar on my right ankle that I received during a minor firefight. When the action was over, I put a bandaid on my boo-boo and went on with life. The one irritation was that it took 6 weeks to replace my damaged boot. Receiving a Purple Heart for a scratch that could be painted over with iodine and topped with a bandaid would do disservice to those boys carried from the field in a stretcher or worse.

[Mark]

Jack:
Your last sentence says it all. Good on ya
Unfortunately, the media and general public think that all Purple Hearts are equal.
_________________
Retired USN Capt.; Market Time vicinity ChuLai 6/67-2/68; Maddox 8/64 Tonkin Gulf; NGFS I Corps 6-12/65; Saigon evac. 4/75.

[Scott]

[WoodyTX]

My first sergeant at Ft. Hood received his third Purple Heart at some point during his eleventh month in country. He was a Marine rifleman who was riding on a vehicle that was hit with a mine or other heavy weapon.

I wish I still knew him, and could ask more about his experiences. He's quite the character. Left the Marines, got a Harley, got into lots of trouble and tattoo ink, and tried to re-enlist to get his act together, but the Marines wouldn't take him back, so he joined the Army.

WoodyTX

[d19thdoc]

Patriotic Mom;
A brief story to put into perspective why I and most of the Vietnam veterans I know despise Kerry's "combat hero" theatrics on the one hand, and his anti-war slanders on the other.
I was a company medic, Army Combat Engineers. One of the men who had just received a Purple Heart in a little ceremony at our company base camp came to me . . . maybe because I was the lone medical person there, and there was no chaplain . . . who knows. He was in tears. He wanted to know if he could give this beautiful purple cameo decoration of George Washington back. Why? His buddy on the truck that hit the mine and sparked a mini-ambush had been burnt to death before his eyes when the truck's fuel tank blew up. He had gotten a Purple Heart posthumously, of course. But this soldier in front of me had only been shot in the calf by a grazing wound. Enough to make him limp a bit for a week or so, and requiring a bandage change every day for a couple of weeks. He showed the wound to me like he was ashamed of it! "See," he said, "that's all it is." He held the leather presentation case out to me, and couldn't say any more. I'll never forget the pleading look he gave me. I just turned and walked away.
_________________
For The Honor of the Fifty-Eight Thousand.
"He Can Lose, But He Can Not Hide"

[redneckvet]

Please, someone help me understand how the "Left" thinks.

President Bush has appointed Rep. Porter Goss as CIA chief. Our local "rag" (owned by NYT) ran an article by Elisabeth Bumiller, saying that this would be a controversial appointment. I have sent the following "Letter to the Editor", but doubt very seriously that it will be published.

Dear Sirs,

In reference to your article published 8/11/04 titled “Bush Picks CIA Chief” by Elisabeth Bumiller.

Ms. Bumiller implies in her article that Rep. Porter Goss’s appointment will cause a political controversy. To support her theory, she uses the following quote:” Rep. Goss, who was once a clandestine operator for the CIA knows a lot about spying but has never managed an organization as large as the CIA.”. I agree with her concept and think that further investigation into his “qualifications” and “integrity” should be examined.

Under the same scrutiny, a “Swiftboat Commander” for 4 months, 35 years ago does not automatically qualify someone for the position of “Commander in Chief.” Same logic, same questions need to be addressed.


Sincerely,
XXXXXXX
XXXXXXX
_________________
"Full Tour Grunt"

[Patriotic Mom]

Jack wrote:
Receiving a Purple Heats for a scratch that could be painted over with iodine and topped with a bandaid would do disservice to those boys carried from the field in a stretcher or worse.

Hi Jack:
When I was in graduate school studying Hemingway, my professor (probably the only conservative in the college) compared Hemingway's lifetime of pain due to injuries sustained in WWI with Bob Dole's spending 10+ hours lying around in triage after a WWII battle while he was passed over by medics who were treating wounded with better prospects for survival.

I remember the way the Clinton reelection campaign implied that Dole was just a tired old man, and I don't recall Dole ever making a big deal out of his military service to help his campaign. That would have been truly dishonorable to those with whom Dole served.

--Now that's my definition of true heroism.