SwiftVets.com

[vankuran18]

Have read that the date on JFK-2's honorable discharge could be many years after 1972, but have not seen this discussed pretty much anywhere.

The late date discharge, if true, combined with JFK-2's not having signed DD Form 180 (full release of mil records) causes me to think the following:
1) Something happened which could have been either a less-than-honorable dischg or other UCMJ action, due either:
- To the Silver Star action (beaching boat under fire = endangering command, leaving boat = abandoning command, killing wounded VC = Geneva Convent'n), or;
- To his actions in 1971 (anti-war acts, testimony, visit NVA in Paris) while still a sworn, uniformed USN Officer

2) JFK-2 waited a while before filing appeal (time Democrats memories), and it took time to gather appeal info/data and submit to board for review.

Could be something else as well (i.e., AWOL due to political committments, etc.). Don't know.

Reason I'm thinking this: I have dealt with several Vets with less-than-honorable dischgs who have appealed and had their dischgs upgraded. In all cases, advice was to wait a while (time Democrats memories), etc.

I wonder.

What say you? Am I all wet, or just a suspicious critter on this one?

By the way, and FYI, I am a US Army infantry combat Veteran (1st Inf Div, C-1-18, RVN class of '66-'67).

[Boundless]

> ... have not seen this discussed pretty much anywhere.

It comes up often on the Free Republic site (a conservative
site), but is usually met with skepticism even there, due to a
complete lack of evidence.

Yes, a prior less-than-honorable might be consistent with
the limited Kerry records we can see, but chasing this
theory is a waste of effort that could be applied to the
massive obvious problems with the records we can see.

In any case, if there's no prior discharge, then Kerry was
an officer (inactive) in the US Naval Reserve during his
various illegal post-war frauds and conspiracies.

Of course, Kerry could easily clear up the discharge matter
with an SF-180.

[Stevie]

what do his discharge papers say on his site? I'm assuming you looked (it takes forever on my computer and I thought you've already done it)...

what could happen to kerry for his anti war stuff while still in Navy?

I thought I'd read he took an early out (like bush) for campaign for senate.

[air_vet]

[ASPB]

[air_vet]

[Nathanyl]

The guy that wrote that article was basing it on the dd215 that updated Kerry's record. Kerry got his honorable discharge in 78 much as we may think and wish otherwise.

[drjohn]

Is there any chance he needed that time to scrub his discharge- say until there was a willing dupe in the White House who would do it?

[Boundless]

> Is there any chance he needed that time to scrub
> his discharge- say until there was a willing dupe in
> the White House who would do it?

That presupposes an existing tarnished discharge,
for which there's no evidence, and several
contributors here think we'd see some side effects
of it in the other docs (unless they've been tampered
with).

Here's another take on your theory though ....

Suppose Kerry knew that if he applied prior to the
Carter admin, the discharge he'd get would be at
some risk of not being honorable?

Is that even possible, or would the USNR have
flushed him already if he didn't qualify for honorable?

[ArmyWife]

Isn't it really most likely that Kerry kept his commision for that extra 5+ years because he was so politically ambitious, and he thought it might look good in a future campaign?

When you read his testimony, and listen to him for a while, everything is both good and bad, up and down, here and there...so it makes sense that he would try to play politics both ways, anti-war and in the military.

Maybe he just wanted to keep his ID card so he could go on base and buy more ribbons to toss over the fence.