Village Voice Columnist --- "John Kerry Must Go"
D. Spencer Hines
York City.
The Village Voice is an excellent barometer of the various fads,
formulas, fabrications and fevers that sweep over that benighted outpost
of the Leftover Left in Manhattan. The paper is also funny as hell to
read. Here is one of their better efforts.
Note the aura of alarmed hysteria in this piece -- which is quite
characteristic of the genre.
Enjoy!
DSH
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"Mondo Washington"
by James Ridgeway
"John Kerry Must Go"
"Note to Democrats: it's not too late to draft someone-anyone-else"
April 27th, 2004
The Village Voice
"WASHINGTON, D.C. ---- With the air gushing out of John Kerry's balloon,
it may be only a matter of time until political insiders in Washington
face the dread reality that the junior senator from Massachusetts
doesn't have what it takes to win and has got to go.
Hilarious! ---- DSH
As arrogant and out of it as the Democratic political establishment is,
even these pols know the party's got to have someone to run against
George Bush. They can't exactly expect the president to self-destruct
into thin air.
I reckon not -- although they keep hoping for it. ---- DSH
With growing issues over his wealth (which makes fellow plutocrat Bush
seem a charity case by comparison), the miasma over his medals and
ribbons (or ribbons and medals), his uninspiring record in the Senate
(yes war, no war), and wishy-washy efforts to mimic Bill Clinton's
triangulation gimmickry (the protractor factor), Kerry sinks day by day.
The pros all know that the candidate who starts each morning by having
to explain himself is a goner.
Let's face it. John Kerry is a "kept man" -- married, as her second,
much poorer, husband to a woman five years older than he, who controls
the purse strings. She is estimated to be worth $550 million or so. --
DSH
They have a pre-nuptial agreement. ---- DSH
HE certainly couldn't afford a $35 million private airplane with
gold-plated fixtures -- while SHE won't even reveal her tax returns. --
DSH
What to do? Look for the Dem biggies, whoever they are these days, to
sit down with the rich and arrogant presumptive nominee and try to
persuade him to take a hike. Then they can return to business as
usual -- resurrecting John Edwards, who is still hanging around, or
staging an open convention in Boston, or both.
Hmmmmm... That would certainly be exciting. ---- DSH
If things proceed as they are, the dim-bulb Dem leaders are going to be
very sorry they screwed Howard Dean."
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Fun And Games Among The Leftover Left....
And yes, that certainly includes the radical-chic Greenwich-Village
Marxists -- and other Parlour Socialists -- particularly among the
academics.
D. Spencer Hines
Lux et Veritas et Libertas
Vires et Honor
Bill Case
By WESLEY K. CLARK
Published: April 28, 2004
ITTLE ROCK, Ark.
When John Kerry released his military records to the public last week,
Americans learned a lot about Mr. Kerry's exceptional service in Vietnam.
They also learned a lot about the Republican attack machine.
The evaluations were uniformly glowing. One commander wrote that Mr. Kerry
ranked among "the top few" in three categories: initiative, cooperation and
personal behavior. Another commander wrote, "In a combat environment often
requiring independent, decisive action, Lt. j.g. Kerry was unsurpassed." The
citation for Mr. Kerry's Bronze Star praises his "calmness, professionalism
and great personal courage under fire."
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In the United States military, there's no ideology ? there are no labels,
Republican or Democrat ? when superiors evaluate a man or woman's service to
country. Mr. Kerry's commander for a brief time, Grant Hibbard, now a
Republican, gave Mr. Kerry top marks 36 years ago.
Now the standards are those of politics, not the military. Despite his
positive evaluations, Mr. Hibbard recently questioned whether Mr. Kerry
deserved one of his three Purple Hearts.
In the heat of a political campaign, attacks come from all directions.
That's why John Kerry's military records are so compelling; they measure the
man before his critics or his supporters saw him through a political lens.
These military records show that John Kerry served his country with valor,
and that those who served with him and above him held him in high regard.
That's honor enough for any veteran.
Yet the Republican attack machine follows a pattern we've seen before,
whether the target is Senator John McCain in South Carolina in 2000 or
Senator Max Cleland in Georgia in 2002. The latest manifestation of these
tactics is the controversy over Mr. Kerry's medals.
John Kerry was awarded three Purple Hearts, a Bronze Star and a Silver Star
for his service in Vietnam. In April 1971, as part of a protest against the
war, he threw some ribbons over the fence of the United States Capitol.
Republicans have tried to use this event to question his patriotism and his
truthfulness, claiming he has been inconsistent in saying whether he threw
away his medals or ribbons. This is no more than a political smear. After
risking his life in Vietnam to save others, John Kerry earned the right to
speak out against a war he believed was wrong. Make no mistake: it is that
bravery these Republicans are now attacking.
Although President Bush has not engaged personally in such accusations, he
has done nothing to stop others from making them. I believe those who didn't
serve, or didn't show up for service, should have the decency to respect
those who did serve ? often under the most dangerous conditions, with
bravery and, yes, with undeniable patriotism.
Wesley K. Clark, a former Democratic presidential candidate, was commander
of NATO forces from 1997 to 2000.
