SwiftVets.com

[EODARMY]

The following from Jed Babbin at NRO, reference the 12 Sept rally on Washington:

http://www.nationalreview.com/babbin/babbin200409080845.asp
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Apologize, Senator Kerry
Kerry stole the vets’ honor. And they’re coming to get it back.
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Thirty years later, it still makes their blood boil. When, in April 1971, John Kerry testified to a Senate committee that "...war crimes committed in Southeast Asia [were] not isolated incidents but crimes committed on a day-to-day basis with the full awareness of officers at all levels of command," he said that the average American soldier who fought in Vietnam was a war criminal. Kerry's statement was false, a blood libel that hangs in the air to this day. If John Kerry had apologized, maybe he'd never have had to deal with the little group that calls itself "Vietnam Veterans for Truth."


A Martian observer at the Democratic Convention could have concluded that we won the Vietnam War, and did so because of John Kerry's bravery. He wouldn't know that there are really three John Kerrys: presidential candidate Lt. (j.g.) Kerry, radical anti-war protester Kerry, and Senator Kerry. If — as many now believe — Kerry lied about his war record, that's bad news for candidate Lt. Kerry. But if Lt. Kerry lied, he was lying about himself. For the common soldiers of the Vietnam War, anti-war radical Kerry lied about them in his Senate testimony. For that, they will neither forgive him nor sit idly while he pursues the presidency. And Candidate Kerry is about to have a very bad day: A whole bunch of those common soldiers Kerry purported to speak for on that April 1971 day are coming to Washington on September 12. They will rally under a banner that says, "Kerry lied while good men died."

That Sunday afternoon, hundreds — perhaps thousands — of Vietnam-era veterans will gather near the Capitol building to condemn Kerry for his 1971 libel, and for repeating those lies again and again in his political career. Members of Vietnam Veterans for Truth — and other Vietnam vets — will come by plane, by car, and by bus from New England and Florida, from the Midwest and all over.

When I spoke to organizer Larry Bailey, he said that about 5,000 men were expected at the rally. More than 500 have contributed to Vietnam Veterans for Truth in amounts as little as $2 and as much as $1000. Money was coming in, but the story needed to get out. As you'd expect, the Vietnam Veterans for Truth aren't getting any coverage in the papers or the network news. They need help spreading the word.

This rally may be bigger than its organizers anticipate. Because what they're protesting is not some vague moral principle: It's not, in the words of Vito Corleone, "only business." It's personal to men like Tony Snesko, Larry Bailey, Mike Bradley, Denny Baum, and Pete Webster. They were the men serving on the Swift boats, in the infantry. They were the ones who risked their lives, shot and were shot at, and were often wounded. They were the ones who saw their friends killed. What resonates so loudly in their minds is likely to reach many of the other Vietnam vets who don't remember Lt. (j.g.) John Kerry, and don't think much of Senator John Kerry — but who all remember John Kerry, leader of the radical Vietnam Veterans Against the War.

When Kerry accused Americans of raping, cutting off ears, heads, and limbs, and razing villages in the manner of Genghis Khan, he wasn't talking about some random "other": He was talking about these men. They and their fellow Vietnam veterans were — and are — innocent of the atrocities of which Kerry accused them. They can't forgive Kerry for what he said, or forget what they suffered because of it. They took Kerry's accusation personally. It would have been impossible for them to do otherwise. In Larry Bailey's words, "I never told a lie about John Kerry. He never told the truth about me."

Tony Snesko is a Swift-boat vet. He didn't know Kerry in Vietnam and — like the others I spoke to — doesn't want to debate Kerry's medals or combat experiences. Snesko says Kerry's testimony "put a plague on anyone that served in the war that would last the rest of our lives. ... I don't think there's any way to ever remove from us the stain ... [Kerry's] testimony about us being called rapists, child-killers and the like ... I don't know of anyone of the hundreds of Swift-boat guys that I know and Vietnam veterans that ever participated in any kind of atrocity."

Since the beginning of June, Snesko — with a handmade display of posters and papers mounted on a split U-Haul wardrobe box — has been spending his weekends sitting near the Vietnam War Memorial on the Mall in Washington, D.C. His display includes copies of Kerry's 1971 testimony, one of the fliers that Kerry's group — Vietnam Veterans Against the War — distributed on one of its marches, and the like. Snesko talks with hundreds of people each day. He shocks them by reading passages from Kerry's statements. Snesko says, "I change a lot of minds down there. ... It happens every hour or so when someone says, 'I didn't know that, I'm not voting for Kerry.'"

Mike Bradley had a lot of problems when he returned from Vietnam, and he thinks Kerry — and the rest of the anti-war crowd of those years — is responsible for them. He suffered discrimination against returning vets; for a time, he was even denied permission to date the lady who's now his wife because he was "one of those guys." Bradley remembers another Kerry libel against the Vietnam vets: that they were all alcoholics and drug addicts, and, as he told me, "we got that stink on us and that's what we lived with." Pete Webster is yet another Vietnam vet who blames Kerry for much of the suffering of returning soldiers: "If anyone got raped, it was the Vietnam vets who served honorably. Kerry is a serial rapist. He smeared us every day in the press, and raped us again, and again and again."

Denny Baum is totally disabled as a result of wounds received in Vietnam complicated by disease. Baum will never forgive Kerry for what he said and did in protesting the Vietnam War. "I want to do something to prevent a person with the character of John Kerry from becoming the president and commander-in-chief of this country." Baum remembers Kerry's Senate testimony: "He proceeded to tell my mom and dad, my sister ... everybody that I knew, the entire world, that I was a war criminal. And he said I intentionally murdered civilians, I raped women ... we looted and plundered. ... And he said that we did that on a day-to-day basis with full knowledge of our commanding officers. That is such a gigantic lie, he can never be forgiven for it. And the thing is that to this day he won't apologize. We've asked him to, and he won't."

This isn't about politics. Pete Webster told me, "If the GOP were running Hillary Clinton, we'd still be saying, 'Kerry lied.'" The Vietnam Vets for Truth want their reputations restored, and they want Kerry to apologize for more than 30 years of defaming their character. As they see it, Kerry stole their honor from them in 1971. They want it back — and they're coming to get it.

[Indianbaboon]

the rape quote really strikes home

it's a word I never put to describe your suffering but it fits so well

Your service and sacrifice shine through like silver through Kerry's tarnish, thank you.

[rhv5862]

Apologize that would be a start but he would then have to admit to all the other lies also. He will never apologize, he is to arrogant and self centered to think anything he did was wrong.

RHV

[low26]

The traitor, Elitist, Socialist will never apologize. And even if he did it would be a hollow self serving self promoting publicity stunt. That would mean nothing

[Harley90]

I have written on this board before. True, John Kerry was founder of the VVAW.

Since he is ALSO co-founder of the VVA (Vietnam Veterans of America, and yes he is, go to their web site http://www.vva.org for all the stats) in 1979 and again, this was after Vietnam.

My question to all of you, those who have served, those who have been helped from this orginization, or those who are yet to be helped.....

Are you not glad you are not part of it (the VVA)? or Are you glad there were those who would stand up for the Vietnam Vet? and do you consider him (Kerry) a "traitor" for co-founding the VVA?

And please, remember, I am talking about the VVA, nothing else.

A SHORT HISTORY OF VVA
Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) is the only national Vietnam veterans organization congressionally chartered and exclusively dedicated to Vietnam-era veterans and their families.
By the late 1970s, it was clear the established veterans groups had failed to make a priority of the issues of concern to Vietnam veterans. As a result, a vacuum existed within the nation's legislative and public agenda. In January 1978, a small group of Vietnam veteran activists came to Washington, D.C., searching for allies to support the creation of an advocacy organization devoted exclusively to the needs of Vietnam veterans. VVA, initially known as the Council of Vietnam Veterans, began its work. At the end of its first year of operation in 1979, the total assets were $46,506.

Council members believed that if the nation's attention was focused on the specific needs of Vietnam veterans, a grateful nation would quickly take remedial steps. However, despite persuasive arguments before Congress, which were amplified by highly supportive editorials printed in many leading American newspapers, they failed to win even a single legislative victory to bring new and needed programs into creation to help Vietnam veterans and their families.

It soon became apparent that arguments couched simply in terms of morality, equity, and justice were not enough. The U.S. Congress would respond to the legitimate needs of Vietnam veterans only if the organization professing to represent them had political strength. In this case, strength translated into numbers which meant membership. By the summer of 1979, the Council of Vietnam Veterans had transformed into Vietnam Veterans of America, a veterans service organization made up of, and devoted to, Vietnam veterans.

Hindered by the lack of substantial funding for development, the growth of membership was at first slow. The big breakthrough came when the American hostages were returned from Iran in January 1981. It was as if America went through an emotional catharsis that put the issues of the Vietnam era on the table for public discussion. The question was asked why parades for the hostages but not for Vietnam veterans? Many veterans complained about the lack of recognition and appreciation for past national service. Vietnam-era veterans wanted action in the form of programs that would place the latest generation of veterans on the same footing as veterans from previous wars.

Membership grew steadily, and for the first time, VVA secured significant contributions. The combination of the public's willingness to talk about the Vietnam War and the basic issues that it raised, as well as the veterans themselves coming forward, was augmented by the nation's dedication of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in November 1982. The week-long activities rekindled a sense of brotherhood among the veterans and a feeling that they shared an experience that was too significant to ignore.

In 1983, VVA took a significant step by founding Vietnam Veterans of America Legal Services (VVALS) to provide assistance to veterans seeking benefits and services from the government. By working under the theory that a veteran representative should be an advocate for the veteran rather than simply a facilitator, VVALS quickly established itself as the most competent and aggressive legal-assistance program available to veterans. VVALS published the most comprehensive manual ever developed for veteran service representatives, and in 1985, VVALS wrote the widely acclaimed Viet Vet Survival Guide -- over 150,000 copies of which are now in print.

The next several years saw VVA grow in size, stature, and prestige. VVA's professional membership services, veterans service, and advocacy work gained the respect of Congress and the veterans community. In 1986, VVA's exemplary work was formally acknowledged by the granting of a congressional charter.

Today, Vietnam Veterans of America has a national membership of approximately 50,000, with 525 chapters throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Guam. VVA state councils coordinate the activities of local chapters. VVA places great emphasis on coordinating its national activities and programs with the work of its local chapters and state councils and is organized to ensure that victories gained at the national level are implemented locally.

VVA strives for individual and group empowerment and locally originated action to assist veterans and other needy members of their communities. These volunteer programs offer unique and innovative services to an ever-widening population. They include: support for homeless shelters; substance-abuse education projects and crime-prevention campaigns; sponsorship of youth sports, Boy Scouts/Girl Scouts, Big Brothers/Big Sisters; and relief to other communities affected by natural disasters and chronic poverty.

VVA is governed by a national board of directors and by national officers -- 24 women and men democratically elected by VVA delegates, are sent by their respective chapters to biennial conventions. VVA's essential purpose is to promote the educational, economic, health, cultural, and emotional readjustment of the Vietnam-era veteran to civilian life. This is done by promoting legislation and public-awareness programs to eliminate discrimination suffered by Vietnam veterans.

VVA's government-relations efforts combine the three ingredients essential to success in the legislative arena -- lobbying, mobilizing constituents, and working with the media -- to achieve its ambitious agenda. Legislative victories have included the establishment and extension of the Vet Center system, passage of laws providing for increased job-training and job-placement assistance for unemployed and underemployed Vietnam-era veterans, the first laws assisting veterans suffering from Agent Orange exposure, and landmark legislation (i.e., Judicial Review of veterans claims) permitting veterans to challenge adverse VA decisions in court. All were enacted largely as a result of VVA's legislative efforts. The Vietnam-era Veterans in Congress (VVIC), formed in 1978, in part through the efforts of VVA, now boasts a membership of nearly 100 members of Congress.

VVA helps to provide greater public awareness of the outstanding issues surrounding Vietnam-era veterans by disseminating written information on a continual basis. The VVA Veteran ®, VVA's award-winning newspaper, is mailed to all VVA members and friends of the organization. In addition, self-help guides on issues such as Agent Orange, to Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, to discharge upgrading are published and made available to anyone interested.


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E-mail us at membership@vva.org

[bhlewis]

I'm not a Vietnam vet but my dad is. I really doubt he belongs to the VVA. I'm sure the VVA has done a great many things to help Vietnam Vets but how much involvment does JFnK really play in it. Is it just their to pat his resume? This is a good way to pander to all possible sides of this issue.

Now confronted with a crowd of hippies JFnK could say
"Oooh vote for me I spoke out on war crimes, though I said I saw them yet I never reported them.....

And when he goes in front of the VFW he gets to say
Well at least I went to VietnamThough I came back with my three scratches and could continue my political agenda of underminding the war by meating with the North Vietnamese.



JFnK really aught to do some explaining on his postwar actions.

[Harley90]

bhlewis,

Actually, Kerry is the co-founder of the VVA, hence the VVA thread I mentioned. No left, no right just the facts.
This is taken DIRECTLY from the VVA web site....no spin cycle here.

Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) has received an assortment of e-mails which (1) incorrectly assume VVA has endorsed Senator John Kerry for President; or (2) criticize Senator Kerry for his involvement with antiwar activities after he served in Vietnam; or (3) incorrectly assume that Bobby Muller, the President of a different organization (Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation), is the President of VVA. In response to all such e-mails, VVA says:

1. VVA's Constitution prohibits it from endorsing any candidate for any elected office. Article IV, Section 3. E. of the VVA Constitution clearly says that "[a] member, Chapter, State Council, or the Corporation [VVA] may not endorse, on behalf of the Chapter, State Council, or the Corporation, any candidate for any elected office or position."

2. John Kerry was a co-founder of VVA in 1979 and he is a life member of VVA.

3. Bobby Muller is not the President of VVA and he does not speak for VVA. Bobby Muller is the President of the Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation, which is a separate corporation with a separate board of directors and with separate funding sources. Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation is not a membership organization like VVA.

[cipher]

So basically, Kerry was against the vietnam war (at Yale) before he went to fight in the war (in the Navy) before he was against the veterans (in the VVAW) before he was for the veterans (in the VVA) before he was against the veterans (in the Senate)?

Have I missed a flip flop?
_________________
USMC 69-72, 7th Comm, 3rd MarDiv, FMFPAC
US Army 75-79, 97th Sig, SHAPE, NATO
Arkansas National Guard 79
Defense contractor for US Navy, SSPO, SP-20, SP-24, OP-12 84-92

[Harley90]

I almost forgot, you asked if he used it to pat his resume. (VVA)
I have never heard either the Democrats nor the Republicans mention his involvement with the VVA to any media outlet.

[carpro]

Personally, I don't want his damned apology.

First: His ego would not allow it to be sincere if he did apologize.

Second: The only reason he would give it now is to aid in his election.

Third: If he has to be coerced for any reason, it won't be sincere.

Fourth: It's 30 years too late.
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"If he believes his 1971 indictment of his country and his fellow veterans was true, then he couldn't possibly be proud of his Vietnam service."

[bhlewis]

I understand, I've never heard him tout co-founding the VVA either. But just recently at a rally, Kerry claimed he was part Jewish(which is true but now he can pander to both the catholic and jewish communities). He also puts clouts his senate intelligence committee experience, yet fails to show up at most of the public hearings(and won't release attendence records about private hearings). I could go on, and on, and on.... Lets just say Kerry likes to embelish is record and co-founding a Vietnam Veterans organization is a nice thing to have on a record so

Kerry panders to people. At least Clinton had CORE VALUES and ISSUES to stand on. I knew where Clinton was coming from. I just get confused day to day listening to Kerry. For the issues which are highly debated between the two candidates, Kerry switches position on them depending on what fringe group he is talking to, what the poll numbers say, what his handlers tell him to say, etc. It's just poetic irony for Kerry to be handed a gun which under a bill he supported would have been banned.

The democrats really should have picked Dean. Instead of trying to pander both sides of a issue, Dean would have held clear message. Dean seemed very outgoing which is the opposite of Kerry who seems to bore the crap out of his audience. Dean could energize the Democratic base. But now the Democrats are stuck with a lame duck which the partison media is trying to prop him back up with petty and pointless attacks.