SwiftVets.com

soccer4ever · Lieutenant Joined: 07 Aug 2004 Posts: 214 Location: USA

In this interview titled "An Angry War Veteran", John Kerry admitted to the NYT reporter that he enlisted in the Swift Boats to avoid the war in Vietnam, since the boats were only used for patrol duty:

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..That first trip to Vietnam piqued his curiosity, - "I wanted to go back and see for myself what was going on, but I didn't really want to get involved in the war." So late in 1968 he volunteered for an assignment on "swift boats" - the short, fast aluminum craft that were then used for patrol duty off the coast of Vietnam.

Two weeks before he arrived in Vietnam as a swift boat commander, he said, "they changed the policy on the used of the boats - decided to send them up the river to prove to the Vietcong that they didn't own the waters."

The river missions involved shooting at sampans and at huts along the banks and suddenly, Mr. Kerry recalls, "we said, 'hey, wait a minute - we don't know who these people are'. So we started to beach our boats to go to ashore and find out what we had been shooting at."

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1196410/posts
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FreeFall · LCDR Joined: 13 Aug 2004 Posts: 421

This confirms what I have read from other Vets who knew him!

rhv5862 · PO2 Joined: 21 Aug 2004 Posts: 379 Location: Massachusetts

According to Robert "Buzz" Patterson Lt. Col. Ret. USAF book Reckless Disregard (page 40) before enlisting in the Navy " he had sought relief from the Draft Board by petitioning to go to France to study for twelve months. The Draft Board refused".
It was after this refusel that Kerry joined the Navy. Some say because of his admiration of JohnF. Kennedy.
Its amazing Kerry never mentions this.

RHV

Scott · Posted: Sun Aug 22, 2004 3:09 am Post subject: Re: 1971 Flashback

producehawk · PO1 Joined: 14 Aug 2004 Posts: 463

This also needs to be brought up in interviews anong with the statement theat kerry needs to sign his 180.

FrydayNC1 · Seaman Recruit Joined: 21 Aug 2004 Posts: 23

In this interview titled "An Angry War Veteran", John Kerry admitted to the NYT reporter that he enlisted in the Swift Boats to avoid the war in Vietnam, since the boats were only used for patrol duty:

That may not be that big of a deal. I served in the Navy from 1962 thru 1970. During this time the Navy was giving out re-enlistment bonuses that added up to several thousand $$$, more than anything that had come before, and there were a number of East Coast sailors who re-enlisted thinking this Viet Nam thing was going to be handled by the West Pac sailors, obviously they were wrong. I believe it was 1966 when the Navy started scheduling East Coast Ships to the South China Sea. So Kerry's thinking this tour was going to be a piece of cake tour only proved his timing was wrong.
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